The Human Brain Dynamics Lab
Research Projects
The “Cocktail Party Problem”
The well-known ‘Cocktail Party Problem’ encapsulates the challenge of paying attention to speech in a noisy environment.
Multiple projects in the lab, using EEG, MEG, fMRI and other methods, focus on understanding the neural mechanisms underlying the ability to focus attention in realistic audiovisual environments, the neurophysiological signatures of distraction and mind wandering, and the basis for individual differences
Attention-Research Gets Real
To understand how the brain processes and prioritizes information in the real world, we must study its operations under the type of ecological circumstances we deal with in real life.
Using Virtual Reality, combined with measurements of brain activity (EEG), eye-tracking and skin-conductance, we investigate how the brain deals with the abundance of multisensory information in realistic environments, such as a noisy cafe or learning in a classroom.
Neuroscience Goes to School:
A research-education partnership
In a unique research-education partnership with the Begin high school, we use mobile neurotechnology to teach students about their own brains and to study students' brain activity during learning in their organic classroom.
This pioneering field-based neuroscience research allows us to better understand the neural basis of learning and attention in real-life, and to study individual differences between students, as they pertain to their challenges and academic achievements at school.
The program has a profound educational impact on students, helping them understand their own brain and cognitive abilities, and engaging them authentically in the process of science.
"Being part of this project has given me a deeper appreciation for the complexities of attention. It's incredible to witness how external factors can influence our focus, and I'm excited to explore this further."
"Our classroom transformed into a hub of exploration. The experiments allowed us to understand ourselves better and sparked engaging discussions."
Student testimonials
"I never thought that attention research could be so relevant to my daily life. Seeing how my mind responds to different situations has opened up an entire new perspective."
Rhythm and music perception
Humans have an automatic tendency to tap, clap or move to the beat of the music, revealing a strong link between the perceptual and motor systems.
We study the neural mechanisms underlying this auditory-motor synchronization and the ways through which rhythmic structure and temporal predictability facilitate perception, action and attention.
