Areas of Interest
Hasini Weerathunge is a Speech Scientist who uses various techniques ranging from auditory/somatosensory motor perturbations to neurocomputational models to understand and characterize motor speech disorders. Her research interests include understanding the neuropathophysiological of motor speech disorders and developing neuro-engineering applications that enhance the quality of life for those with sensorimotor deficits. As a postdoctoral researcher in the Speech Neurophysiology lab, she is interested in investigating the application of non-invasive neurostimulation techniques to improve the effectiveness of current behavioral approaches to stuttering treatment.
Honors & Awards
- Boston University Department of Biomedical Engineering Best Student Paper Award (2022)
- ASHFoundation New Century Scholars Doctoral Scholarship (2022)
- Academy of Neurologic Communication Disorders and Sciences (ANCDS) Student Fellowship (2022)
- Raymond H. Stetson Scholarship in Phonetics and Speech Science, Honorable Mention Recipient (2021)
Credentials
- Ph.D., Biomedical Engineering, Boston University
- M.S., Biomedical Engineering, Boston University
- B.S., Electronics and Telecommunication Engineering, University of Moratuwa, Sri Lanka
Published Articles or Reviews
- Weerathunge, H. R., Alzamendi, G. A., Cler, G. J., Guenther, F. H., Stepp, C. E., & Zañartu, M. (2022). LaDIVA: A neurocomputational model providing laryngeal motor control for speech acquisition and production. PLOS Computational Biology, 18(6), e1010159.
- Weerathunge, H. R., Voon, T., Tardif, M., Cilento, D., & Stepp, C. E. (2022). Auditory and somatosensory feedback mechanisms of laryngeal and articulatory speech motor control. Experimental Brain Research, 1-19.
- Weerathunge, H. R., Tomassi, N. E., & Stepp, C. E. (2022). What Can Altered Auditory Feedback Paradigms Tell Us About Vocal Motor Control in Individuals With Voice Disorders?. Perspectives of the ASHA Special Interest Groups, 1-18.
- Tomassi, N. E., Weerathunge, H. R., Cushman, M. R., Bohland, J. W., & Stepp, C. E. (2022). Assessing Ecologically Valid Methods of Auditory Feedback Measurement in Individuals With Typical Speech. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 65(1), 121-135.