What we see as we navigate through the world can have tremendous impacts on our behavior, and our actions in turn, influence our sensory experience. Understanding how individual neurons in the brain contribute to this process has been a major challenge, and experiments are often intentionally designed to break this natural action-sensation loop, leaving us with incomplete models of how the brain actually works to drive behavior under real-world conditions. We utilize ethological paradigms in which animals actively sense their environment to make decisions, while simultaneously performing high-density neural recordings and manipulating neural circuits with optogenetic techniques. Our goal is to understand the neural basis of natural visual behaviors in health and disease, and ultimately to help achieve more targeted therapeutic strategies for neurological disorders.
In this lab, we believe that science should be supportive and inclusive.
Everyone is welcome regardless of race, background, or beliefs.
We advocate strongly for students and scientists from under-represented and disadvantaged groups.
Psychology Building
Undergraduate Advising at Tillett Hall