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= Vanderbilt Computational Memory Lab =
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Welcome to the home page of the '''Vanderbilt Computational Memory Lab''', based in the [http://www.psy.vanderbilt.edu Vanderbilt University Department of Psychology], and directed by Sean Polyn.
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Our lab is interested in the cognitive and neural dynamics of the human memory system, and more specifically, how we use this system to search through our memories of recently learned material. Every day, we store hundreds of new memories; sometimes these memories can be retrieved and examined effortlessly, but sometimes, to our frustration, we find our efforts blocked, and our memories inaccessible. The brain contains sophisticated neural machinery allowing us to target particular memories. How does this machinery work, and why does it fail? We believe in a multi-tiered approach to the study of human memory, combining neurorecording techniques (fMRI and EEG), with behavioral investigations and computational modeling. These multiple levels of analysis inform one another, and allow us to constrain our understanding of human memory.
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Our mission is to advance our knowledge of the structure and function of the human memory system. We use a combination of approaches to achieve this goal. Behavioral testing of memory function is carried out in two sound-attenuated testing rooms, and focuses on the cognitive processes engaged during memory search. We also are interested in the neural signals generated as people search through their memories; a two-pronged approach is used to characterize these neural signals. In our shielded testing room, we record scalp electroencephalographic (EEG) activity, with particular attention towards the patterns of oscillatory neural activity that accompany successful retrieval of information from memory. In work carried out at the nearby Vanderbilt University Institute of Imaging Science (VUIIS) we record brain activity using functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) during memory tasks. Finally, we are developing the Context Maintenance and Retrieval (CMR) model of human memory, which is designed to explain the behavioral dynamics observed while people search through their memories as they perform a task called [[wikipedia:Free recall|free recall]. Current work on CMR is focused on bridging the behavioral and neural phenomena observed during free recall performance.
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Revision as of 19:46, 27 September 2016

Vanderbilt Computational Memory Lab

Welcome to the home page of the Vanderbilt Computational Memory Lab, based in the Vanderbilt University Department of Psychology, and directed by Sean Polyn.

Our lab is interested in the cognitive and neural dynamics of the human memory system, and more specifically, how we use this system to search through our memories of recently learned material. Every day, we store hundreds of new memories; sometimes these memories can be retrieved and examined effortlessly, but sometimes, to our frustration, we find our efforts blocked, and our memories inaccessible. The brain contains sophisticated neural machinery allowing us to target particular memories. How does this machinery work, and why does it fail? We believe in a multi-tiered approach to the study of human memory, combining neurorecording techniques (fMRI and EEG), with behavioral investigations and computational modeling. These multiple levels of analysis inform one another, and allow us to constrain our understanding of human memory.