Dr. Kronsted got his master’s degree from the University of Chicago and his Ph.D. from the University of Memphis, specializing in embodied cognitive science. Dr. Kronsted frequently conducts research on large groups behaving as one organism, including: teams, pedestrian clusters, crowds, masses, or swarms (and maybe one day The Borg). For this research, he frequently uses motion capture technology and machine learning. Honors students at Merrimack College can serve as research assistants for Dr. Kronsted and help run experiments and conduct cognitive science research.
Dr. Kronsted also publishes research on dance and art more generally and has won awards for his research on performance art and the mind. He organizes the bi-annual, internationally attended Workshop on Embodied Cognition and Dance and is the editor of the Dance Philosophy Network.
In his classes, Dr. Kronsted uses experiential and embodied learning. In every class, his students do a learning activity that involves getting out of their chairs and using their bodies. Having great success with this method, Dr. Kronsted is currently writing a book on embodied teaching pedagogy. Students taking directed studies with Dr. Kronsted help develop new learning activities to be implemented in future college classes.
When not “professor-ing,” Dr. Kronsted has a secret alter-ego. He is a co-director with the breakdance and DJ collective Stylin’ Out Network in Chicago. Dr. Kronsted has more than 20 years of experience as a competitive breaker and event organizer and (by popular demand) teaches a breaking workshop for honors students every year. He is a lifelong Magic the Gathering player, and while Dr. Kronsted is very friendly and accommodating, there is no mercy if any student challenges him to a game of magic!
