Cognitive Neuroscience Commons^™

The Sub-Syllabic Symphonies Of Self-Learning: How Do Zebra Finches Sing Them?, Abiesha Abiola Budiman

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Learning is a lifelong journey, where the mind and muscle dance to a tune of memory and motion. It begins at infancy and continues throughout life, encompassing everything from singing to achieving peak performance in sports. Complex motor skills involve multiple components and require coordination of several muscles. Humans and animals are extremely adept at learning complex motor skills on their own. However, we do not completely understand how self-directed learning works. One group of animals used to observe self-directed learning are songbirds. Zebra finches, Taeniopygia guttata, are one of the most studied songbird species due to their well-defined …

When Avatars Go To School: The Effect Of Virtual Reality On Learning And Error Correction, Lauren Barack

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

The pandemic in 2020 led to an increasing dependency on technology particularly in learning environments. National educational assessments in the proceeding years have indicated steep, measurable learning loss. While a fully virtual learning environment is not the norm today, we chose to investigate how virtual reality (VR) environments influence learning in college students.

Our primary research goal was to look at how students learn and remember information gathered in virtual spaces. In particular, we examined whether sensory inputs in the VR environment, including spatial audio and haptic feedback, such as vibrations felt in a handheld controller, would help to better …

Memory Interference In The Lateral Entorhinal Cortex, Omar Ghazy

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Memory interference occurs when previously formed memories disrupt the acquisition or retrieval of new information. A prominent example of proactive interference is latent inhibition (LI), defined as a reduced ability to form or express Pavlovian associations with a stimulus following non-reinforced exposure. The interference-based model suggests that LI arises because the memory that the pre-exposed stimulus is inconsequential interferes with the memory that it predicts a reinforcer.

Because interference increases with age, identifying its neural basis may help prevent or slow cognitive decline. Prior studies using the LI paradigm implicate the entorhinal cortex (EC) in retrieving the memory that a …

The Manifestation Of Synesthesia In The Deaf, Hard-Of-Hearing, And Sign Language User Population, Elizabeth Droubi

Undergraduate University Honors Capstones

This capstone project investigated the prevalence and manifestation of synesthesia—a perceptual condition where stimulation in one sensory pathway triggers automatic, involuntary experiences in another—within d/Deaf, hard-of-hearing (DHH), and sign language user populations. Despite an estimated prevalence of over 4% in the general population and findings that many synesthetic experiences are language-based, little is known about how synesthesia presents across different language modalities, including signed languages. This project explored the phenomenon in two phases: an initial online survey assessing the prevalence and characteristics of synesthesia among DHH and signing individuals and follow-up interviews with self-reported synesthetes along with a test-retest procedure …

Capturing The Representational Dynamics Of Face Perception In Deep Recurrent Neural Networks, Hossein Adeli, Chase W. King, Nikolaus Kriegeskorte

MODVIS Workshop

We investigate the representational dynamics of recurrent convolutional neural networks (RCNNs) in order to understand the time-course of visual recognition. We explore a family of models with bottom-up and lateral connections that were optimized for face-identification and object-recognition tasks. Using representational similarity analysis (RSA), we observed that only models that were trained for face identification showed a late-emerging prominent distinction of identities as seen in the monkey face patch AM. Early model responses strongly separated the objects from the faces. These findings suggest that the dynamics of face recognition that emerges in a hierarchical recurrent neural network prioritizes category-level recognition …

Attention Improves Classification Performance Of Locations In Ventral And Dorsal Visual Pathways, Jinho Lee, Sung-Mu Lee, Ishita Agarwal, Anne Sereno

MODVIS Workshop

Visual processing is divided into a ventral and dorsal pathway, thought to be important for object recognition and spatial cognition, respectively. Yet both streams encode shape and spatial information, and both are modulated by attention and task demands. This study compared how attention influences fMRI bold responses in a ventral region (fusiform gyrus, FG) and dorsal region (superior parietal gyrus, SPG). Specifically, using multivariate pattern analysis within each region, we examined whether attention modulated spatial location classification performance. During fMRI scans, participants performed one of 3 possible tasks: a 1-back task under attend-to-shape (detect a shape repetition); a 1-back task …

Modeling Effects Of Edge Classification And Perceptual Organization On The Appearance Of Disk/Annulus Stimuli, Michael E. Rudd

MODVIS Workshop

In classical theories of sensory psychophysics, appearance matches conducted with simple stimuli consisting of disks surrounded by annuli were posited to probe low-level contrast mechanisms in the visual pathways that computed the approximate luminance ratio between the disk and annulus for the purpose of achieving lightness constancy (Wallach, 1948). Subsequent models have explained such matches on the basis of neural edge integration (Shapley & Reid, 1985; Rudd & Zemach, 2004). Here, I demonstrate that appearances matches made in the disk/annulus paradigm are influenced by at least two types of top-down effects involving edge classification and perceptual organization. I present a …

The Impact Of Insufficient Sleep On The Serial Reproduction Of Information, David L. Dickinson, Sean P. A. Drummond

ESI Publications

Story retelling is an important form of communication, cultural practice, and message transmission. Insufficient sleep is known to affect relevant cognitive skill areas necessary for story retelling or transmission fidelity. We conducted a preregistered randomized cross-over study on n = 155 young adults with exogenously assigned nightly sleep levels experienced in their at-home environments. A serial story reproduction task was administered online, and chains of up to three retells of a given story involved varied numbers of sleep restricted (SR) versus well-rested (WR) retellers. While story content decayed with each retell, group-level analysis showed that additional SR retellers in a …

Poor Sleep Quality Is Associated With Decreased Structural Coherence Of Mesolimbic Dopamine Projections In Children, William A. Walker

Psychological Science Undergraduate Honors Theses

Insomnia is the second most common mental disorder that affects approximately 10% of the population. An additional one-third of the population experiences occasional symptoms of insomnia like difficulty falling asleep or staying asleep. Sleep quality is also a key indicator of overall mental and physical health; however, researchers have only begun to study the effects of the structure of the mesolimbic pathway on sleep cycle regulation and quality. Emerging research suggests that mesolimbic dopamine projections from the Ventral Tegmental Area (VTA) to the Nucleus Accumbens (NAcc) play a role in sleep-wake regulation. In this study, I analyzed data from the …

Effects Of The Non-Stimulant Norepinephrine Reuptake Inhibitor, Atomoxetine, On Cognitive Flexibility In Healthy Adult Long-Evans Rats, Noah A. Ivak, Samantha Walkow, Christopher Knapp, Eleni Papadopoulos, Barry D Waterhouse, Rachel L Navarra

Rowan-Virtua Research Day

Executive function is the control of multiple higher order cognitive processes that include attention, working memory, and cognitive flexibility. Cognitive flexibility is the ability to shift behavioral strategies

in response to changing environmental demands and task complexity. This cognitive modality is often impaired in many neuropsychiatric disorders like attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Deficits in cognitive flexibility are associated with dysregulation of the catecholamines, norepinephrine (NE) and dopamine (DA) within the prefrontal cortex (PFC). Atomoxetine (ATX), a non-stimulant NE reuptake inhibitor, elevates levels of NE and DA in the PFC by inhibiting the norepinephrine transporter (NET). ATX is used to …

Effects Of Social Isolation On Cecum Opioid Receptor Expression And Affective Behavior, Jordan Riser, John Tkaczynski, Nicole Shellenbarger, Maya Patel, Daniel Chandler, Daniel Manvich

Rowan-Virtua Research Day

BACKGROUND

Psychological stress can induce gastrointestinal symptoms and exacerbate existing gastrointestinal disorders, indicating an interaction between the central and enteric nervous systems. Central nervous system activation of opioid receptors stimulates sympathetic outflow to the enteric nervous system, delaying motility and reducing gastrointestinal secretions, producing a similar clinical presentation to IBS.

HYPOTHESIS

We hypothesize that social isolation induces anxiety states, disrupting homeostatic noradrenergic activity in the brain and gut, leading to neurophysiological changes in the cecum characterized by altered expression of opioid receptors.

METHODS

Sprague-Dawley rats were housed in either group (control) or socially isolated conditions. Affective behavior was assessed using …

Atypical Morphometry And Connectivity Of The Cortico-Striatal-Thalamo-Cortical Circuit In Children And Adolescents With Chromosome 22q11.2 Deletion Syndrome: A Population At Ultra-High Risk For Developing Obsessive-Compulsive And Schizophrenia Spectrum Disorders, Amanda I. Rowan

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

Chromosome 22q11.2 deletion syndrome (22q11.2DS) is a complex neurodevelopmental disorder associated with serious medical, cognitive, and psychiatric conditions, including significantly elevated risk for obsessive-compulsive (OCD) and/or schizophrenia spectrum disorders (SCZ). The cortico-striato-thalamo-cortical (CSTC) neural circuit is critical for cognitive and emotional processing. Dysfunction of the CSTC circuit is implicated in the etiopathology of both OCD and SCZ but has not been specifically examined in individuals with 22q11.2DS. This study used structural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and diffusion tensor imaging (DTI), along with standardized psychological and cognitive measures, to investigate atypical morphometry and white matter connectivity within CSTC-related brain regions in …

Neural Patterns Reflect Semantic Representation In Novice Sign Language Learners, Megan E. Hillis

Dartmouth College Ph.D Dissertations

How do novice language learners represent semantic information in their new language? The extent to which languages are supported by distinct or overlapping neural representations in bilinguals has been the topic of much research, but less is known about how new knowledge is integrated into established representational networks, especially at the earliest stages of language acquisition. Furthermore, most investigations have compared languages which share a modality (spoken). Signed languages can provide insight into language unconfounded by perceptual qualities that spoken languages share. Chapter 1 presents an initial study in which hearing English-speaking non-signers learned a set of nouns in American …

Simulating Chill: Exploring The Cognitive And Therapeutic Potential Of Cold Vr Environments, Jessica Turner, Piper Hutson, James Hutson

Faculty Scholarship

This study investigates the cognitive and therapeutic potential of immersive virtual reality (VR) environments designed to simulate cold conditions. Through the engagement of participants through multisensory stimuli—including vivid visual representations of the Athabasca Glacier, auditory effects of icy winds, and corresponding haptic feedback—the research evaluates neurological and physiological responses associated with attention, emotional regulation, and stress modulation. Participants experienced virtual scenarios featuring icy winds and snow, activating specific neurological pathways involving the occipital lobe, primary visual cortex, superior colliculus, and insula, thus reinforcing sensory integration. Through predictive coding, the anterior insula and hypothalamus were engaged, prompting thermoregulatory simulations and subconscious …

Neural Activity Within And Between Visual And Executive Areas Is Modulated Post-Locomotion In Rhesus Macaques, Sergey Egranov

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

Physical activity has been shown to benefit cognitive and mental health by improving cerebrovascular perfusion and regulating hormone-mediated processes on a systemic level. However, the acute effects of physical activity, such as locomotion, on the neuronal circuits underlying cognitive processes have yet to be fully characterized. This body of work seeks to rectify this gap in knowledge through analysis of how both behavioral performance and neuronal activity signatures in visual and executive brain regions are modulated post-locomotion in rhesus macaques.

To this end, we performed high-yield electrophysiological recordings simultaneously from area V4, a mid-tier visual cortical region, and the dorsolateral …

The Impact Of Diet-Induced Obesity On Cerebrovasculature Structure And Function, Riley M. Feagle

MUSC Theses and Dissertations

Adequate cerebral perfusion is necessary to help the brain maintain a constant and steady state of nutrient delivery. Since the brain is highly metabolic, changes in the vasculature structure can impact perfusion levels and, therefore, reduce the ability of the brain to receive the support necessary for full functionality. Vascular dysfunction is a common comorbidity among obese individuals. Given the strong association between obesity and cognitive dysfunction, understanding the correlation between reduced cerebral perfusion and altered cerebrovascular structure is crucial. The overall hypothesis of this thesis originated after ample preliminary data, and states that diet-induced obesity reduces cerebral perfusion and …

Examining Physiological Responses To Misophonic Triggers, Christian O'Reilly, Xuan Yang, Sewon Oh, Doug Wedell, Svetlana Shinkareva

Faculty Publications

We collected and analyzed an array of biosignals (face electromyogram, skin electrodermal activity, peripheral temperature, and electrocardiogram) in 60 participants with and without misophonia, a condition characterized by decreased tolerance to innocuous sounds. Our goal was to objectively characterize the physiological response to misophonia triggering sounds. We found that misophonic responses can be objectively identified in some cases through atypical physiological reactions to triggering stimuli, though not all participants exhibited this response. Our analyses suggest a large interindividual variability in response to misophonic triggers and highlights the need for methodological adjustments in future experiments to increase the detectability of misophonic …

80 - Effects Of Concussion History On Sleep Quality And Memory Function, Aubrey Thames, Amin Mohammadi, Thomas Campbell

Undergraduate Research Symposium

To examine the relationship between sleep quality and memory performance (immediate memory and delayed recall) in athletes with a history of concussion.

Individual Differences In The Effects Of A Muscarinic Antagonist On Cued Fear Recall And Extinction, Caitlyn J. White

Senior Theses

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is characterized by an inability to extinguish fear after experiencing a traumatic event. The cholinergic system shows increased activity during fear learning and extinction, suggesting a role for cholinergic transmission in PTSD. Our lab has previously found that rats can be divided into extinction resistant (ER) and extinction competent (EC) phenotypes, with ER representing a PTSD-like phenotype. While women are more likely to develop PTSD, there is limited literature on the cholinergic system and recall of cued fear or extinction in female rats which are used as a model system due to their similar brain anatomy. …

Behavioral And Neural Effects Of Distributing Visual Attention Across Location And Feature Space, Mert Özkan

Dartmouth College Ph.D Dissertations

Visual attention refers to the mechanisms by which relevant visual information, such as location, simple features (e.g., color, orientation), and objects, is selected and prioritized for further processing. The current dissertation investigates capacity limitations on spatial and feature–based attention in early visual processing and behavioral performance. Specifically, I examined whether attention could be efficiently tuned across narrow and broad ranges of locations and colors, or even be split across noncontiguous locations in the case of spatial attention. I used several behavioral paradigms and frequency–tagging methods in electroencephalography (EEG) to illustrate the effects of narrowing or broadening the attentional focus on …