Date Time Blast trauma and human brain A University of Texas at Arlington researcher has received an Office of Naval Research (ONR) grant to examine the mechanics of how blast-like events cause damage to the brain. Ashfaq Adnan, professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering, has received a three-year, $944,845 grant to study the potential link between blast-like trauma and cellular and tissue damage in the brain. By using ultra-high-speed cameras to capture dynamic events within a simulated brain, he will be able to look at rapid acceleration and deceleration to investigate what happens during such events. Previous research has suggested that blast-like trauma has great potential to create cavitation, or bubbles, and cause damage to brain cells, with some studies showing their presence inside realistic head models. Adnan wants to track the entire process of bubble formation, evolution and collapse to observe how it affects brain cells.