The PhD defence will be in Abels utsikt - Niels Henrik Abels hus. The host of the session will moderate the technicalities while the chair of the defence will moderate the disputation.
Ex auditorio questions: the chair of the defence will invite the audience to ask questions ex auditorio at the end of the defence.
Trial lecture
December 12th 2025, time: 10:15 am, room 1259 (Abels utsikt).
Machine learning in bio-medical applications of fluid mechanics?
Main research findings
Neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer's and Parkinson's are characterized by a toxic build-up of protein aggregates in the brain. This points to a failure in the brain's "waste clearance" system, a vital process thought to be driven by fluids moving through spaces between cells and surrounding the blood vessels. However, we lack a fundamental understanding of how this system works, and studying it in the living brain presents both ethical and technical challenges.
This thesis aimed to improve our understanding of this crucial transport system in two ways. Firstly, we developed mathematical models to simulate how substances spread through brain tissue, comparing our results to real-world MRI scans. This allowed us to test competing theories of brain clearance. Secondly, we empowered the research community by publishing a unique MRI dataset, developing new imaging techniques, and creating open-source analysis tools, providing valuable resources for other researchers to build upon.
Adjudication committee
Professor Stephen Payne, Institute of Applied Mechanics, National Taiwan University
Professor Trond Kvamsdal, NTNU
Professor Ira Didenkulova, University of Oslo
Supervisors
Professor Kent-André Mardal, University of Oslo
Seniorforsker Thomas M. Surowiec, SIMULA
Seniorforsker Marie Rognes, SIMULA
Chair of defence
Head of Department Håkon Hoel
Host of the session
Professor Ira Didenkulova, University of Oslo