Understanding the role of mental imagery in cognition and behaviour. This project aims to develop objective physiological methods to measure mental imagery, uncover its brain mechanisms using neuroimaging and show how it biases cognition. It has long been suspected that mental imagery biases cognition, visual working memory and perception. However, showing this has been difficult due to a lack of measurement techniques. Here this is overcome by developing novel assay technologies and applying th ....Understanding the role of mental imagery in cognition and behaviour. This project aims to develop objective physiological methods to measure mental imagery, uncover its brain mechanisms using neuroimaging and show how it biases cognition. It has long been suspected that mental imagery biases cognition, visual working memory and perception. However, showing this has been difficult due to a lack of measurement techniques. Here this is overcome by developing novel assay technologies and applying them to the extremes of imagery, Aphantasia (no imagery) and Hyperphantasia (strong and vivid imagery). Expected outcomes include new measurement tools for generations of scientists, understanding the brain mechanisms of imagery and showing how our cognition (memory, risk, investing) is biased by mental imagery. Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE230100608
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$457,810.00
Summary
Characterising brain networks of intelligence through information tracking. For intelligent behaviour, the human brain needs to engage several processes including sensory, memory and motor processes. How it does this is one of the most significant questions in cognitive neuroscience. This project characterises the neural networks of human intelligence by advancing and building on the most recent advances in neuroimaging analyses. It will determine the interaction of different brain processes by ....Characterising brain networks of intelligence through information tracking. For intelligent behaviour, the human brain needs to engage several processes including sensory, memory and motor processes. How it does this is one of the most significant questions in cognitive neuroscience. This project characterises the neural networks of human intelligence by advancing and building on the most recent advances in neuroimaging analyses. It will determine the interaction of different brain processes by developing novel connectivity methods that track the flow of information through the brain with high temporal and spatial accuracy. The outcomes will be fundamental insights into the mechanisms of human intelligence and new connectivity analysis software that will have wide application in brain research.Read moreRead less
The secret of tiny hand movements to feel and manipulate objects. This study aims to reveal some of the fundamental sensory mechanisms underlying the uniquely human ability to manipulate objects and use tools. Signals from touch receptors are crucial for controlling grip forces so that delicate objects are held without slipping, or being crushed by excessive force. Yet we know little about how such sensory information is obtained and how it is used for the motor control. By analysing hand moveme ....The secret of tiny hand movements to feel and manipulate objects. This study aims to reveal some of the fundamental sensory mechanisms underlying the uniquely human ability to manipulate objects and use tools. Signals from touch receptors are crucial for controlling grip forces so that delicate objects are held without slipping, or being crushed by excessive force. Yet we know little about how such sensory information is obtained and how it is used for the motor control. By analysing hand movements during object manipulation and recording sensory signals from single human nerve fibres we will investigate how certain types of movement shape richness of available sensory information. This knowledge will facilitate the development of next generation sensory-controlled prosthetics and robotic manipulators.Read moreRead less
Human Scheduling of Perceptual Tasks. This project aims to develop a novel approach for synthesising how people prioritise information with theories of attention and decision making. Characterising inefficient scheduling in the tradeoff between the difficulty and the cost/benefit of different subtasks will allow the development of a formal computional model that generalises statistical models of rank order data to a theory of the timing of scheduling decisions and task completions. Outcomes incl ....Human Scheduling of Perceptual Tasks. This project aims to develop a novel approach for synthesising how people prioritise information with theories of attention and decision making. Characterising inefficient scheduling in the tradeoff between the difficulty and the cost/benefit of different subtasks will allow the development of a formal computional model that generalises statistical models of rank order data to a theory of the timing of scheduling decisions and task completions. Outcomes include benchmark data from a novel paradigm for studying perceptual decisions and behavior and a model which can explain and predict human scheduling. This project aims to benefit industry by allowing for the simulation of information prioritisation by human agents in complex environments.Read moreRead less
Enhancing sensory perception and balance control in HMD-based VR. This project seeks to test a revolutionary new theoretical framework for understanding how we perceive our self-motion and maintain postural control when immersed in head-mounted display (HMD) virtual reality (VR). Photorealistic graphical simulations and artificial vestibular stimulation will be used to investigate how visual and non-visual information concerning self-motion is integrated in the brain. The outcomes will reveal ho ....Enhancing sensory perception and balance control in HMD-based VR. This project seeks to test a revolutionary new theoretical framework for understanding how we perceive our self-motion and maintain postural control when immersed in head-mounted display (HMD) virtual reality (VR). Photorealistic graphical simulations and artificial vestibular stimulation will be used to investigate how visual and non-visual information concerning self-motion is integrated in the brain. The outcomes will reveal how multisensory interaction influences our sensory perception and postural control during HMD VR. The knowledge gained is expected to generate new economic benefits by inspiring next-generation technologies that will optimise users' immersive experiences (e.g., virtual exploration and immersive gaming).Read moreRead less