Anne Silverman

Rowlinson Associate Professor of Mechanical Engineering

Dr. Silverman’s research program centers on understanding musculoskeletal biomechanics and movement coordination to develop effective training interventions, prevent injury, and improve mobility. As director of the Functional Biomechanics Laboratory, she uses experimental movement analysis and computational whole-body modeling techniques to evaluate muscle action, joint loading, and device function during movement. Prior to joining Colorado School of Mines in 2011, Dr. Silverman earned her B.S.E. from Arizona State University, and her M.S.E. and Ph.D. from The University of Texas at Austin, all in mechanical engineering. Recent projects in Dr. Silverman’s group have investigated military service members, people with lower-limb amputations, and older adults. Her work has been funded by the National Institutes of Health and the Department of Defense and has been published in the Journal of Biomechanics, Journal of Biomechanical Engineering and Gait & Posture. She currently serves as an Associate Editor for Gait & Posture and is a Fellow of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers.

Contact

Brown Hall W310G
303-384-2162
asilverm@mines.edu

Labs and Research Centers

Research Areas

  • Muscular compensations resulting from the use of prosthetic and assistive devices
  • Balance regulation during dynamic tasks
  • Musculoskeletal modeling analyses to predict optimal treatment interventions
  • Relationships between whole-body movement and the development of long-term secondary conditions

Recent Publications

2021

  • Nolasco, L.A., A.K. Silverman, D.H. Gates. The ins and outs of dynamic balance during 90-degree turns in people with a unilateral transtibial amputation. Journal of Biomechanics, 122: 110438 (2021).
  • van der Kruk, E, A.K. Silverman, P. Reilly, A.M.J. Bull. Compensation due to age-related decline in sit-to-stand and sit-to walk. Journal of Biomechanics, 122: 110411 (2021).
  • van der Kruk, E., A.K. Silverman, L. Koizia, P. Reilly, M. Fertleman, A.M.J. Bull. Age-Related Compensation: Neuromusculoskeletal Capacity, Reserve & Movement Objectives. Journal of Biomechanics, 122:110385. (2021).
  • Honegger, J.D., J.A. Actis, D.H. Gates, A.K. Silverman, A. Munson, A.J. Petrella. Development of a multiscale model of the human lumbar spine for investigation of issue loads in people with and without a transtibial amputation during sit-to-stand. Biomechanics and Modeling in Mechanobiology, 20, 339-358. (2021).
  • Sepp, L.A., B.S. Baum, E. Nelson-Wong, A.K. Silverman. Hip Joint Contact Loading and Muscle Forces During Running with a Transtibial Amputation. Journal of Biomechanical Engineering, 143(3), 031012. (2021).
  • Sturdy, J.T., P.H. Sessoms, A.K. Silverman. A Backpack Load Sharing Model to Evaluate Lumbar and Hip Joint Contact Forces during Shoulder Borne and Hip Belt Assisted Load Carriage. Applied Ergonomics, 90: 103277. (2021).

2020

  • Sepp, L. A., Nelson-Wong, E., Baum, B. S., Silverman, A. K. “Running-Specific Prostheses Reduce Lower-Limb Muscle Activity Compare to Daily-Use Prostheses in People with Unilateral Transtibial Amputations.” Journal of Electromyography and Kinesiology, 55, 102462. (2020).
  • Nolasco, L. A., Morgenroth, D. C., Silverman, A. K., Gates, D. H. “Effects of Anterior-Posterior Shifts in Prosthetic Alignment on the Sit-to-Stand Movement in People with a Unilateral Transtibial Amputation.” Journal of Biomechanics 109:109926 (2020).
  • Hegarty, A. K., Kurz, M. J., Stuberg, W., Silverman, A. K. “Muscle Capacity to Accelerate the Body During Gait Varies with Foot Position in Cerebral Palsy.” Gait & Posture 78:54–59 (2020).
  • Wagner, K. E., Nolasco, L. A., Morgenroth, D. C., Gates, D. H., Silverman, A. K. “The Effect of Lower-Limb Prosthetic Alignment on Muscle Activity During Sit-to-Stand.” Journal of Electromyography and Kinesiology 51:102398 (2020).
  • Sepp, L. A., Baum, B. S., Nelson-Wong, E., Silverman, A. K. “Joint Work and Ground Reaction Forces During Running with Daily-Use and Running-Specific Prostheses.” Journal of Biomechanics 101:109629 (2020).
  • Hu, X., Pickle, N. T., Grabowski, A. M., Silverman, A. K., Blemker, S. S. “Muscle Eccentric Contractions Increase in Downhill and High-Grade Uphill Walking.” Frontiers in Bioengineering and Biotechnology 8:1196 (2020).
  • Segal, A. D., Lesak, M. C., Silverman, A. K., Petruska, A. J. “A Gesture-Controlled Rehabilitation Robot to Improve Engagement and Quantify Movement Performance.” Sensors, Special Issue on Wearable Systems in Physical Rehabilitation: Opportunities and Challenges, 20(15):4269 (2020).

2019

  • Hegarty, A. K., Kurz, M. J., Stuberg, W., Silverman, A. K. “Strength Training Effects on Muscle Forces and Contributions to Whole Body Movement in Cerebral Palsy.” Journal of Motor Behavior 51(5):496–510 (2019).
  • Nolasco, L. A., Silverman, A. K., Gates, D. H. “Whole-Body and Segment Angular Momentum During 90-Degree Turns.” Gait & Posture 70:12–19 (2019).
  • Pickle, N. T., Silverman, A. K., Wilken, J. M., Fey, N. P. “Statistical Analysis Reveals Changes in 3D Segmental Coordination of Balance in Response to Prosthetic Ankle Power on Graded Terrain.” Nature Scientific Reports 9(1):1272 (2019).
  • Sepp, L. A., Baum, B. S., Nelson-Wong, E., Silverman, A. K. “Dynamic Balance During Running Using Running-Specific Prostheses.” Journal of Biomechanics 84:36–45 (2019).
  • Hegarty, A. K., Hulbert, T. V., Kurz, M. J., Stuberg, W., Silverman, A. K. “Evaluation of a Method to Scale Muscle Strength for Gait Simulations of Children with Cerebral Palsy.” Journal of Biomechanics 83:165–173 (2019).

2018

  • Pickle, N. T., Wilken, J. M., Fey, N. P., Silverman, A. K. “A Comparison of Inverted Pendulum Models of Human Walking on Ramps.” PLoS ONE 13(11):e0206875 (2018).
  • Actis, J. A., Gates, D. H., Nolasco, L. A., Silverman, A. K. “Lumbar Loads and Trunk Kinematics in People with a Transtibial Amputation During Sit-to-Stand.” Journal of Biomechanics 69:1–9.
  • Actis, J. A., Honegger, J. D., Gates, D. H., Petrella, A. J., Nolasco, L. A., Silverman, A. K. “Validation of Lumbar Spine Loading from a Musculoskeletal Model Including the Lower Limbs and Lumbar Spine.” Journal of Biomechanics 68:107–114 (2018).

2017

  • Pickle, N. T., Grabowski, A. M., Jeffers, J. R., Silverman, A. K. “The Functional Roles of Muscles, Passive Prostheses and Powered Prostheses During Sloped Walking in People with a Transtibial Amputation.” Journal of Biomechanical Engineering, Special Issue: Spotlight on the Future of Musculoskeletal Biomechanics 139(11):1–11 (2017).
  • Giannetti, R., Petrella, A., Bach, J., Silverman, A. K., Sáenz-Nuño, M. A., Pérez-Mallada, N. “In Vivo Bone Position Measurement Using High-Frequency Ultrasound Validated with 3D Optical Motion Capture Systems: A Feasibility Study.” Special Issue on Technologies in Biomedical Instrumentation in Journal of Medical and Biological Engineering 37(4):519–526 (2017).
  • Gaffney, B. M. M., Christiansen, C. L., Murray, A. M., Silverman, A. K., Davidson, B. S. “Separation of Rotational and Translational Segmental Angular Momentum to Assess Movement Coordination During Walking.” Human Movement Science 51:99–111 (2017).
  • Hegarty, A. K., Petrella, A. J., Kurz, M. J., Silverman, A. K. “Evaluating the Effects of Ankle Foot Orthosis Mechanical Property Assumptions on Gait Simulation Muscle Force Results.” Journal of Biomechanical Engineering 139(3):1–8 (2017).

2016

  • Hanrahan, S. J., Nedrud, J. J., Davidson, B. S., Farris, S. M., Giroux, M. L., Haug, A. M., Kumar, R., Mahoor, M. H., Silverman, A. K., Zhang, J. J., Hebb, A. O. “Long-Term Task and Dopamine Dependent Dynamics of Subthalamic Local Field Potentials in Parkinson’s Disease.” Brain Sciences, Special Issue: Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS) Applications 6(4):57–72 (2016).
  • Pickle, N. T., Wilken, J. M., Aldridge Whitehead, J. M., Silverman, A. K. “Whole-Body Angular Momentum During Sloped Walking Using Passive and Powered Lower-Limb Prostheses.” Journal of Biomechanics 49(14):3397–3406 (2016).
  • Pickle, N. T., Grabowski, A. M., Auyang A. G., Silverman, A. K. “Muscle Functional Roles During Sloped Walking.” Journal of Biomechanics 49(14):3244–3251 (2016). 
  • Hegarty, A. K., Kurz, M. J., Stuberg, W., Silverman, A. K. “Changes in Mobility and Muscle Function of Children with Cerebral Palsy after Gait Training: A Pilot Study.” Journal of Applied Biomechanics 32(5):469–486 (2016).

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Recent Courses

  • Dynamics
  • Modeling and Simulation of Human Movement
  • Experimental Methods in Biomechanics