Dr Alexa Morcom
Cognitive neuroscience of memory, and memory in healthy ageing
People are able to recall unique events from the brain’s vast store of overlapping experiences. We are interested in how memories are selected from this store for retrieval, and how these abilities evolve in ageing. We use anatomically precise fMRI and time-resolved EEG brain imaging as well as behavioural methods in humans, combining traditional with multivariate and model-based analytic techniques such as machine learning and representational similarity analysis (see profile and publications here].
I’m keen to recruit PhD students with an interest in cognitive and brain ageing. Here are two project ideas.
Goal-driven memory retrieval. How do people select which memories to retrieve, and shape retrieval to meet their needs? Mental control is important in young people as well as external cues [1] but older people may rely more on external cues [see 2]. You will have the opportunity to learn advanced EEG and/or fMRI brain imaging methods, apply them to tasks designed to assess memory and use them to test theories of cognitive ageing. This will allow you to explore when and how control dynamically modifies representations in memory brain networks.
Decline and compensation in the ageing brain. Even healthy ageing is associated with declines in memory and some other processes. But imaging has often shown striking activity increases as well as decreases in older adults during task performance. After 2 decades it remains controversial to what degree these results reveal compensatory changes [e.g. 3,4]. We have recently used a multivariate Bayesian approach showing that compensation may occur, although it is not the rule. You will combine this approach with those used by others to create stronger tests of the competing theories of neurocognitive ageing. This is a data analysis project so excellent data skills are a must.
Visit Alexa Morcom’s full profile for more information.