Kit Vaughan
Encyclopedia
Christopher L. ‘Kit’ Vaughan, DSc, (born April 21, 1953), is Emeritus Professor of Biomedical Engineering
in the Department of Human Biology, University of Cape Town
in South Africa
.
of human locomotion for which he was recognised with the award of a Doctor of Science in Medicine degree in 2009. He served as President of the International Society of Biomechanics from 1999 to 2001.
Vaughan was the founding director in 2000 of the Medical Imaging Research Unit at the University of Cape Town. He is the author of the award-winning book, Imagining the Elephant, a biography of Allan MacLeod Cormack who won the Nobel Prize in Medicine in 1979 for his contributions to the development of computer assisted tomography.
In 2006 Vaughan was elected a Fellow of the International Academy of Medical and Biological Engineering in recognition of his outstanding contributions to the field, and in 2009 he was awarded an A rating by the National Research Foundation of South Africa
as a leading international scholar. In 2010 he took early retirement from the University of Cape Town to serve as Chief Executive Officer of CapeRay
Medical (Pty) Ltd, a spin out company that is developing innovative systems to detect breast cancer
.
in the Western Transvaal, South Africa, Christopher Leonard ‘Kit’ Vaughan was educated at Michaelhouse
, and then attended Rhodes University
where he graduated with honours in 1975, earning a Bachelor of Science degree in applied mathematics and physics with distinction. He represented the university in track and field athletics, golf and weight lifting.
While a student at the University of Iowa
, where he received a PhD in musculoskeletal biomechanics
in 1980, Vaughan captained the university’s rugby team. In 1983 he was a post-doctoral fellow in orthopaedic engineering at Oxford University when he first began to establish himself as a scholar in the field of human locomotion.
Vaughan spent the years 1986 to 1989 as an Associate Professor of Bioengineering at Clemson University
, where he published Dynamics of Human Gait that, with the software package Gait Laboratory, was recognised as a seminal contribution to the field. Between 1989 and 1995 he was Professor of Orthopaedics and Biomedical Engineering at the University of Virginia
where he directed the motion analysis laboratory and published significant findings on the treatment of children with cerebral palsy
.
In 1996 Vaughan returned to South Africa to accept appointment as the Hyman Goldberg Professor of Biomedical Engineering
at the University of Cape Town
, a position he held until his retirement in 2009.
Vaughan was among the first biomechanical scientists to apply artificial neural network theory to model neuromuscular control of human gait, and also provided key evidence to support the central pattern generator
hypothesis. He extended dynamic similarity theory, developing a neuromaturation growth curve and proposing a risk aversion hypothesis for children’s gait.
Clinicians in Cape Town pioneered dorsal rhizotomy for the reduction of spasticity in children with cerebral palsy. Over a 20-year period Vaughan led the research to demonstrate that the neurosurgery leads to improved and sustained locomotor function. His GaitCD software package provided scientists with four tools, including animation, bibliography, interactive reference book and 3D gait laboratory.
Biomedical engineering
Biomedical Engineering is the application of engineering principles and design concepts to medicine and biology. This field seeks to close the gap between engineering and medicine: It combines the design and problem solving skills of engineering with medical and biological sciences to improve...
in the Department of Human Biology, University of Cape Town
University of Cape Town
The University of Cape Town is a public research university located in Cape Town in the Western Cape province of South Africa. UCT was founded in 1829 as the South African College, and is the oldest university in South Africa and the second oldest extant university in Africa.-History:The roots of...
in South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
.
Scientist
Kit Vaughan is considered a world authority on the biomechanicsBiomechanics
Biomechanics is the application of mechanical principles to biological systems, such as humans, animals, plants, organs, and cells. Perhaps one of the best definitions was provided by Herbert Hatze in 1974: "Biomechanics is the study of the structure and function of biological systems by means of...
of human locomotion for which he was recognised with the award of a Doctor of Science in Medicine degree in 2009. He served as President of the International Society of Biomechanics from 1999 to 2001.
Vaughan was the founding director in 2000 of the Medical Imaging Research Unit at the University of Cape Town. He is the author of the award-winning book, Imagining the Elephant, a biography of Allan MacLeod Cormack who won the Nobel Prize in Medicine in 1979 for his contributions to the development of computer assisted tomography.
In 2006 Vaughan was elected a Fellow of the International Academy of Medical and Biological Engineering in recognition of his outstanding contributions to the field, and in 2009 he was awarded an A rating by the National Research Foundation of South Africa
National Research Foundation of South Africa
South Africa’s National Research Foundation is the intermediary agency between the policies and strategies of the Government of South Africa and South Africa's research institutions....
as a leading international scholar. In 2010 he took early retirement from the University of Cape Town to serve as Chief Executive Officer of CapeRay
CapeRay
CapeRay Medical Ltd is a privately held company based in Cape Town, South Africa, that develops, manufactures and supplies medical imaging equipment for the diagnosis of breast cancer...
Medical (Pty) Ltd, a spin out company that is developing innovative systems to detect breast cancer
Breast cancer
Breast cancer is cancer originating from breast tissue, most commonly from the inner lining of milk ducts or the lobules that supply the ducts with milk. Cancers originating from ducts are known as ductal carcinomas; those originating from lobules are known as lobular carcinomas...
.
Biography
Born in 1953 to Peter Leslie Vaughan, a mining engineer, and Margaret Baillie Vaughan at BlyvooruitzichtBlyvooruitzicht
Blyvooruitzicht is a gold-mining village in Gauteng, South Africa. It is situated about 3.5 km south of the centre of Carletonville and 80 km westwards from Johannesburg.-History:The name of the village is of Dutch origin meaning "happy prospect"...
in the Western Transvaal, South Africa, Christopher Leonard ‘Kit’ Vaughan was educated at Michaelhouse
Michaelhouse
Michaelhouse is a full boarding senior school for boys founded in 1896. It is located in the Balgowan valley in the Midlands of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa.- History :...
, and then attended Rhodes University
Rhodes University
Rhodes University is a public research university located in Grahamstown in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa, established in 1904. It is the province’s oldest university, and is one of the four universities in the province...
where he graduated with honours in 1975, earning a Bachelor of Science degree in applied mathematics and physics with distinction. He represented the university in track and field athletics, golf and weight lifting.
While a student at the University of Iowa
University of Iowa
The University of Iowa is a public state-supported research university located in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. It is the oldest public university in the state. The university is organized into eleven colleges granting undergraduate, graduate, and professional degrees...
, where he received a PhD in musculoskeletal biomechanics
Biomechanics
Biomechanics is the application of mechanical principles to biological systems, such as humans, animals, plants, organs, and cells. Perhaps one of the best definitions was provided by Herbert Hatze in 1974: "Biomechanics is the study of the structure and function of biological systems by means of...
in 1980, Vaughan captained the university’s rugby team. In 1983 he was a post-doctoral fellow in orthopaedic engineering at Oxford University when he first began to establish himself as a scholar in the field of human locomotion.
Vaughan spent the years 1986 to 1989 as an Associate Professor of Bioengineering at Clemson University
Clemson University
Clemson University is an American public, coeducational, land-grant, sea-grant, research university located in Clemson, South Carolina, United States....
, where he published Dynamics of Human Gait that, with the software package Gait Laboratory, was recognised as a seminal contribution to the field. Between 1989 and 1995 he was Professor of Orthopaedics and Biomedical Engineering at the University of Virginia
University of Virginia
The University of Virginia is a public research university located in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States, founded by Thomas Jefferson...
where he directed the motion analysis laboratory and published significant findings on the treatment of children with cerebral palsy
Cerebral palsy
Cerebral palsy is an umbrella term encompassing a group of non-progressive, non-contagious motor conditions that cause physical disability in human development, chiefly in the various areas of body movement....
.
In 1996 Vaughan returned to South Africa to accept appointment as the Hyman Goldberg Professor of Biomedical Engineering
Biomedical engineering
Biomedical Engineering is the application of engineering principles and design concepts to medicine and biology. This field seeks to close the gap between engineering and medicine: It combines the design and problem solving skills of engineering with medical and biological sciences to improve...
at the University of Cape Town
University of Cape Town
The University of Cape Town is a public research university located in Cape Town in the Western Cape province of South Africa. UCT was founded in 1829 as the South African College, and is the oldest university in South Africa and the second oldest extant university in Africa.-History:The roots of...
, a position he held until his retirement in 2009.
Ideas
Within the broad spectrum of human locomotion, Vaughan’s seminal contributions have been in three separate but related areas: basic theories of human gait; impact of clinical interventions on the neuromuscular system; and engineering tools for human movement scientists.Vaughan was among the first biomechanical scientists to apply artificial neural network theory to model neuromuscular control of human gait, and also provided key evidence to support the central pattern generator
Central pattern generator
Central pattern generators are neural networks that produce rhythmic patterned outputs without sensory feedback. CPGs have been shown to produce rhythmic outputs resembling normal "rhythmic motor pattern production" even in isolation from motor and sensory feedback from limbs and other muscle...
hypothesis. He extended dynamic similarity theory, developing a neuromaturation growth curve and proposing a risk aversion hypothesis for children’s gait.
Clinicians in Cape Town pioneered dorsal rhizotomy for the reduction of spasticity in children with cerebral palsy. Over a 20-year period Vaughan led the research to demonstrate that the neurosurgery leads to improved and sustained locomotor function. His GaitCD software package provided scientists with four tools, including animation, bibliography, interactive reference book and 3D gait laboratory.
Publications
- Vaughan CL, “The biomechanics of running gait”, CRC Critical Reviews in Biomedical Engineering, 12(1):1-48, 1984
- Vaughan CL, Davis BL, O'Connor JC, Dynamics of Human Gait, ISBN 0 873 22368 3, Human Kinetics Publishers, Illinois, 152 pages, 1992
- Sepulveda F, Wells D, Vaughan CL, “A neural network representation of electromyography and joint dynamics in human gait”, Journal of Biomechanics, 26: 101-109, 1993
- Vaughan CL, Subramanian N, Busse ME, “Rhizotomy as a treatment option for children with cerebral palsy”, Gait & Posture, 8(1): 43-59, 1998
- Vaughan CL, GaitCD, a CD-ROM containing four separate packages: Animate; GaitBib; GaitBook; and GaitLab, ISBN 0 620 23561 6, Kiboho Publishers, Cape Town, 1999
- Vaughan CL, "Theories of bipedal gait: an odyssey", Journal of Biomechanics, 36(4): 513-523, 2003
- Vaughan CL, Langerak N, O’Malley MJ “Neuromaturation of human locomotion revealed by non-dimensional scaling”, Experimental Brain Research, 153: 123-127, 2003
- Vaughan CL, O’Malley MJ “A gait nomogram used with fuzzy clustering to monitor functional status of children with cerebral palsy", Developmental Medicine and Child Neurology, 47(6): 377-383, 2005
- Vaughan CL, Blaszczyk MB “Dynamic similarity predicts gait parameters for Homo floresiensis and the Laetoli hominins”, American Journal of Human Biology, 20(3): 312-316, 2008
- Vaughan CL, Imagining the Elephant: A Biography of Allan MacLeod Cormack, ISBN 978-1-86094-988-3, Imperial College Press, London, 304 pages, 2008