Learning how people read: Models, brains, big data and maths. Aims: This project aims to understand how people read. We will use novel mathematical methods, experimentation, brain imaging and computational modelling to adjudicate between model predictions.
Significance: This project expects to develop methods to understand and test important aspects of reading.
Expected outcomes: Expected outcomes are the development of novel methods for understanding complex models and the collection of data t ....Learning how people read: Models, brains, big data and maths. Aims: This project aims to understand how people read. We will use novel mathematical methods, experimentation, brain imaging and computational modelling to adjudicate between model predictions.
Significance: This project expects to develop methods to understand and test important aspects of reading.
Expected outcomes: Expected outcomes are the development of novel methods for understanding complex models and the collection of data that can extend and falsify current models of reading.
Benefits: These developments will significantly increase our understanding of how people read and what causes dyslexia. This work will also provide new ways to evaluate complex computational psychological models.Read moreRead less
Evidence-accumulation models of external influences on decision-making. This project aims to apply the evidence-accumulation computational framework of decision-making to investigate how simple interventions affect our choices. It intends to use a suite of theory-driven experiments, state-of-the-art techniques for testing the robustness of empirical effects, and the powerful computational machinery inherent in evidence-accumulation models. Expected outcomes include providing a comprehensive char ....Evidence-accumulation models of external influences on decision-making. This project aims to apply the evidence-accumulation computational framework of decision-making to investigate how simple interventions affect our choices. It intends to use a suite of theory-driven experiments, state-of-the-art techniques for testing the robustness of empirical effects, and the powerful computational machinery inherent in evidence-accumulation models. Expected outcomes include providing a comprehensive characterisation of how, why and when simple external factors exert their influence on decision-making. Significant benefits include the enhancement of the world-class status of Australian cognitive and mathematical psychology.Read moreRead less
When reading takes off: Children's word learning during independent reading. This project aims to address the major unsolved problem of how children build their knowledge about printed words through their reading. This is important since, once children have been taught the basics of reading, the primary means by which they learn new words is through reading experience. The project will use innovative technology to monitor children’s eye movements as they encounter new words during reading, exami ....When reading takes off: Children's word learning during independent reading. This project aims to address the major unsolved problem of how children build their knowledge about printed words through their reading. This is important since, once children have been taught the basics of reading, the primary means by which they learn new words is through reading experience. The project will use innovative technology to monitor children’s eye movements as they encounter new words during reading, examining factors influencing real-time cognitive processing and ongoing learning. Expected outcomes will be new insights into how to optimise children’s word learning when reading, and the refinement of a new computational model. These will inform policy and practice in reading instruction, to the benefit of Australia's children.Read moreRead less
Contextual modulation in high-level vision. This project aims to understand the nature and mechanisms of spatial contextual modulation and the relationship between spatial and temporal context. Contextual modulation refers to the sometimes profound changes in the appearance of the visual image caused by interactions across space and time. Little work has been done to examine whether spatial context effects exist for high-level attributes of objects, and socially relevant stimuli such as heads an ....Contextual modulation in high-level vision. This project aims to understand the nature and mechanisms of spatial contextual modulation and the relationship between spatial and temporal context. Contextual modulation refers to the sometimes profound changes in the appearance of the visual image caused by interactions across space and time. Little work has been done to examine whether spatial context effects exist for high-level attributes of objects, and socially relevant stimuli such as heads and bodies. This project expects to provide new knowledge regarding the way that contextual modulation is mediated by interactions within the normal human visual system. This will provide significant societal benefits as contextual interactions in sensory processing can have profound consequences for our perceptual experience.Read moreRead less
Extracting meaning from motion. This project aims to understand how the human visual system uses motion signals to detect the presence of other people and nonhuman animals. This question links vision science to social experience, and will be addressed using rigorous methods for studying human vision combined with 3D graphical modelling of interactive motion. The expected outcomes include an improved theoretical understanding of how rich, social information is extracted from motion signals in the ....Extracting meaning from motion. This project aims to understand how the human visual system uses motion signals to detect the presence of other people and nonhuman animals. This question links vision science to social experience, and will be addressed using rigorous methods for studying human vision combined with 3D graphical modelling of interactive motion. The expected outcomes include an improved theoretical understanding of how rich, social information is extracted from motion signals in the brain and the introduction of new techniques for testing an individual's social perception. This is expected to provide the knowledge and methodological tools to progress research in clinical neuroscience, computer vision, and interactive robotics.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE200100139
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$426,979.00
Summary
Understanding the neural dynamics of colour constancy and feature binding. A key open question in visual neuroscience is how sensory input is combined with higher-level influences (e.g. attentional state). This project aims to address this using neuroimaging techniques combined with sophisticated analysis methods that were recently developed to measure when stimulus-related information is being transferred between different brain regions. These methods will be used to investigate the neural mech ....Understanding the neural dynamics of colour constancy and feature binding. A key open question in visual neuroscience is how sensory input is combined with higher-level influences (e.g. attentional state). This project aims to address this using neuroimaging techniques combined with sophisticated analysis methods that were recently developed to measure when stimulus-related information is being transferred between different brain regions. These methods will be used to investigate the neural mechanisms underlying two fundamental phenomena in visual perception: feature binding and colour constancy. Understanding the neural mechanisms by which sensory input interacts with attention for these tasks would be a major advance in understanding how interactions between brain regions give rise to our perceptual experiences.Read moreRead less
Cortical layers: examining the role of feedback in human visual perception. This project aims to generate a detailed mechanistic understanding of the neural circuitry underlying human visual perception. Through an international collaboration with the world-renowned Max Planck Institute, Germany, the project will exploit powerful new tools to measure human brain activity in cortical layers to test major theoretical models of human vision. The anticipated results are expected to significantly adva ....Cortical layers: examining the role of feedback in human visual perception. This project aims to generate a detailed mechanistic understanding of the neural circuitry underlying human visual perception. Through an international collaboration with the world-renowned Max Planck Institute, Germany, the project will exploit powerful new tools to measure human brain activity in cortical layers to test major theoretical models of human vision. The anticipated results are expected to significantly advance our basic understanding of how the human visual system parses complex visual input into objects and visual scenes, which may inform the development of artificial vision systems.Read moreRead less
Improving novice drivers' speed and hazard management. The aim of the study is to extend the evidence-based approach we have developed for speed management (cognitive integration speed management training) to hazard management, thereby developing cognitive integration hazard management training for young drivers. Hence, this study is specifically designed to curb the alarming trend in young driver fatalities on Australian roads. The results of the research will provide clear direction to road au ....Improving novice drivers' speed and hazard management. The aim of the study is to extend the evidence-based approach we have developed for speed management (cognitive integration speed management training) to hazard management, thereby developing cognitive integration hazard management training for young drivers. Hence, this study is specifically designed to curb the alarming trend in young driver fatalities on Australian roads. The results of the research will provide clear direction to road authorities and driver training providers as to effective training strategies to improve young driver training, and ultimately improve road safety with this vulnerable population.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE200101159
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$420,556.00
Summary
Understanding the role of hemispheric communication in the human brain. A crucial question in cognitive neuroscience regards how humans integrate perceptual information to understand and interact with our environment. This project aims to identify neural processes that operate competitively and cooperatively within the left and right hemispheres to understand how the human brain integrates information for perception. This project expects to generate new insight into the nature of hemispheric com ....Understanding the role of hemispheric communication in the human brain. A crucial question in cognitive neuroscience regards how humans integrate perceptual information to understand and interact with our environment. This project aims to identify neural processes that operate competitively and cooperatively within the left and right hemispheres to understand how the human brain integrates information for perception. This project expects to generate new insight into the nature of hemispheric communication and perceptual decision making. This should provide significant benefits by understanding how the two brain hemispheres process different visual information yet communicate efficiently to allow seamless interface with the world.Read moreRead less
Cognitive Foundations of Fast Decision Making. This project aims to develop a new theory of fast decision making. In all walks of life, from the sports field to the battlefield, fast and accurate decisions are central to human performance. This project will develop and test mathematical models of the processes involved in making decisions with continuous choice sets and decisions requiring integration of multiple sources of information and decisions in which information varies over time. It is e ....Cognitive Foundations of Fast Decision Making. This project aims to develop a new theory of fast decision making. In all walks of life, from the sports field to the battlefield, fast and accurate decisions are central to human performance. This project will develop and test mathematical models of the processes involved in making decisions with continuous choice sets and decisions requiring integration of multiple sources of information and decisions in which information varies over time. It is expected to contribute to our understanding of factors that characterise and limit human performance in settings in which fast and accurate decisions are required. It is expected to benefit the design of systems and environments in which safety and efficiency depend on human decision making.Read moreRead less