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Rad Scientist Ep. 15: Science And Basketball

In these 2015 photos, Elischa Sanders is sporting a Steph Curry shirt (left) and putting the ball in the hoop.
Charlie Dickey and Jerhime Sanders
In these 2015 photos, Elischa Sanders is sporting a Steph Curry shirt (left) and putting the ball in the hoop.
When Elischa Sanders was young, he thought he would grow up to be in the NBA. But he realized he was better in the classroom than on the court. Now he studies how the brain controls movement. Maybe he can figure out why Stephen Curry's jump shot is so consistent.

Elischa Sanders grew up in Tacoma, Washington playing basketball and getting good grades. A first-generation college student at the University of Washington, Sanders decided he wanted to be a doctor and a scientist.

Now a second-year graduate student at UC San Diego, he conducts research on how we make smooth movements. He works under the supervision of Eiman Azim at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies.

Whenever Sanders presents his research, he starts by describing Stephen Curry and his flawless jump shots. How does Curry make such a steady movement? By probing the brains of mice who do skilled movements like pulling ropes and grabbing pellets through tiny windows, he hopes to understand how our nervous system keeps movements on the right track.