Cognitive and Brain Sciences Program

My research topic is driven by two fundamental questions: why are some people really sensitive to their environment, to the point of inducing discomfort and headaches, whereas others are not? What impact does this have on their ability to process incoming information? I use a variety of electrophysiological (EEG, ECG, GSR), neuroimaging (fMRI, DTI, NIRS), and psychophysical methods to measure over (hyper) and under (hypo) responsiveness to sensory stimulation. I explore these questions primarily in migraine, autism, and schizophrenia populations to further identify how sensory processing can exacerbate symptomatology.

The Jiang Plasticity Lab lab focuses on the relationship between brain structure and function/behaviors and the mechanisms underlying such relationship. We use a variety of neuroimaging and behavioral measures. Please visit our lab website for more information on our current projects, lab members, publications, and more.

My research topic is driven by two fundamental questions: why are some people really sensitive to their environment, to the point of inducing discomfort and headaches, whereas others are not? What impact does this have on their ability to process incoming information? I use a variety of electrophysiological (EEG, ECG, GSR), neuroimaging (fMRI, DTI, NIRS), and psychophysical methods to measure over (hyper) and under (hypo) responsiveness to sensory stimulation. I explore these questions primarily in migraine, autism, and schizophrenia populations to further identify how sensory processing can exacerbate symptomatology.

The Memory and Brain Lab studies human cognition, particularly working memory. Working memory is the ability to hold onto a little bit of information to accomplish a task. We are interested in understanding the neural mechanism of working memory in neurotypical and clinical populations, and we use a variety of empirical approaches to address our research questions. Current research is studying the long-term consequences of mild traumatic brain injury (concussion) on cognition, working memory in people with varying schizotypy symptomatology, and determining whether neuromodulation can remediate performance deficits.  

In the SNOW lab we study how and why real-world solid objects are processed and represented in the human brain differently from artificial proxies for reality. Artificial proxies include two-dimensional (2-D) photos and computerized images, three-dimensional (3-D) stereoscopic images, and high-fidelity 3-D augmented reality (AR) projections –stimuli that are not actually present, but evoke indirect perceptions of depicted objects or scenes. My students and I study naturalistic vision using a powerful multi-pronged approach that leverages behavioral psychophysics, eye-tracking, neuropsychology, action kinematics, electroencephalography (EEG) and functional neuroimaging. Our research covers a spectrum of visual cognitive functions, from perception to attention, memory and decision-making.

My research investigates human spatial orientation, that is our sense of location and movement relative to the environment. Many daily activities, including standing upright, walking, driving, or riding a bike, depend critically on spatial orientation estimates that are continuously and effortlessly maintained by dedicated sensory and cognitive processes that most of us take for granted. The broad aim is to achieve a better understanding of these processes. Research methods include psychophysical measurement of visual and non-visual spatial orientation perception using virtual reality headsets and moving platforms and computational modeling approaches. In addition, natural statistical properties of spatial orientation stimulation in real world environments are measured using a head-mounted device that records head motion, eye movements, and visual stimulation during everyday activities. 

Memory systems – whether biological or synthetic – exist so that information learned in the past can be used to make decisions in the present. We know a lot about the neurobiology of human memory, and we know a lot about the neurobiology human motor system. We know a lot less about the neurobiology of memory-to-action transformations, that is, how people access and use memories to make decisions and act on them. Our lab studies this process in humans using a variety of methods, including classic behavioral/psychophysical techniques, modeling and simulation, non-invasive measures of brain activity (primarily EEG and fMRI), and – more recently – neurostimulation techniques (tD/ACS and TMS).

We study how humans see the world, whether you are walking in a forest or looking at your iPhone. We study visual perception, broadly, using behavioral methods (i.e., experimental psychology) and also neuroimaging (e.g., fMRI) to study how the human visual system enables us to recognize other people and other familiar “visual objects”—and which parts of the brain make up the visual system (i.e., are involved in visual perception and other vision-related phenomena). Our lab welcomes undergraduate involvement. Please feel free to drop by the lab anytime!