Other than that which is genetically coded, everything we know is derived from and reflects memory for our past experiences. Memory is intimately involved in most, if not all, levels of human cognition, from the ability to temporarily remember a phone number or where you placed your keys to the acquisition of language and the ability to reason. The centrality of memory is too often painfully evident when memory fails due to neurodegenerative disease (e.g., Alzheimer's disease), acute neural insult (e.g., due to stroke), or even healthy cognitive aging. Using functional brain imaging methods (fMRI and MEG) that permit us to peer into the healthy human brain as it is in the throes of building and retrieving memories, our research examines how cognitive and neural systems support our ability to learn and remember. An emphasis is placed on determining how prefrontal cognitive control computations interact with mnemonic processes in posterior neocortical and medial temporal structures to subserve memory.
Affiliate Member, Picower
Center for Learning and Memory Paul E. Newton Career Development Assistant
Professor
Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences
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