Bernstein's Construction of Movements

“We are fortunate to now have a new full translation of Nikolai Bernstein’s book On the Construction of Movements (1947). Few if any researchers have had such long-lasting impact as Bernstein on our understanding of motor control in intact and neurologically impaired subjects. Bernstein began his work in Russia early in the last century and his publications extend almost to his death in 1966. His ideas about muscle synergy, hierarchical control and feedback mechanisms in the nervous system have seen a major resurgence in recent years, in spite of the fact that the technologies he used were quite limited in their precision. We now have a crisply written and highly readable translation of this pivotal volume written by a distinguished international leader in human motor control research, who continues current exploration of Bernstein’s ideas using new technologies, and relying heavily on modern instrumentation, modern physics and mathematics.” —William Zev Rymer, Northwestern University, USA

Mark L. Latash was trained in physics of living systems and neurophysiology. He has been working in the fields of motor control and movement disorders, published over 400 papers, six books, and ten edited volumes. He is a recipient of the Bernstein Prize from the International Society of Motor Control.