Cognitive neuroscience of spatial asymmetry: behaviour, genes and brain imaging. When humans distribute their attention in space, biases or asymmetries of spatial attention exist. Healthy individuals exhibit a processing advantage favouring left space but this advantage is lost in disorders such as unilateral spatial neglect, ADHD and dyslexia. This project will develop novel electrophysiological methods to dissociate the sensory, attentional, decision-making and motoric contributions to spatial ....Cognitive neuroscience of spatial asymmetry: behaviour, genes and brain imaging. When humans distribute their attention in space, biases or asymmetries of spatial attention exist. Healthy individuals exhibit a processing advantage favouring left space but this advantage is lost in disorders such as unilateral spatial neglect, ADHD and dyslexia. This project will develop novel electrophysiological methods to dissociate the sensory, attentional, decision-making and motoric contributions to spatial asymmetries. By interfacing electrophysiology with genetic, neurochemical and brain imaging methods, this project will comprehensively map the biology of spatial asymmetry. This knowledge is vital to developing effective treatments for disorders where atypical patterns of spatial asymmetry index neurological vulnerability.Read moreRead less
Mapping, understanding and manipulating the human brain connectome with MRI. The human brain is an extraordinarily complex network, comprising millions of nerve cells connected by trillions of fibres. Understanding this intricate web of connectivity – the so-called human connectome – has become a central goal of neuroscience and is comparable in scale to the human genome project. This project will develop new brain imaging methods for accurately mapping the connectome. It will investigate how in ....Mapping, understanding and manipulating the human brain connectome with MRI. The human brain is an extraordinarily complex network, comprising millions of nerve cells connected by trillions of fibres. Understanding this intricate web of connectivity – the so-called human connectome – has become a central goal of neuroscience and is comparable in scale to the human genome project. This project will develop new brain imaging methods for accurately mapping the connectome. It will investigate how information is communicated between its different regions and how individual differences in brain network function relate to our genetic make-up. It will also determine whether we can manipulate the function of specific circuits of the connectome in a targeted way, in the hope of developing new treatments for brain disorders.Read moreRead less
Examining the neural mechanisms underlying cognitive control and its application to clinical syndromes featuring dyscontrol. This project will examine the cognitive control and its underlying neural mechanisms. Understanding this relationship is of major scientific interest because cognitive control dysfunction is related to a number of Australia's major social and economic problems, including drug dependence.
From neuroscience to society: A multi-disciplinary study of human perception and cognition. This project aims to use a multi-disciplinary approach to investigate the factors influencing human perception and cognition - from the level of basic neuroscience, through to the wider impact felt by individuals and society when these functions are either impaired or enhanced. This will inform the basic research question of how the brain generates a conscious experience, identify the relationship between ....From neuroscience to society: A multi-disciplinary study of human perception and cognition. This project aims to use a multi-disciplinary approach to investigate the factors influencing human perception and cognition - from the level of basic neuroscience, through to the wider impact felt by individuals and society when these functions are either impaired or enhanced. This will inform the basic research question of how the brain generates a conscious experience, identify the relationship between altered visual cognitive function and clinical symptoms of psychosis, and determine the current prevalence and neuroethical issues associated with the non-medical use of drugs to enhance cognitive or perceptual function within Australia.Read moreRead less
Moral frontiers: When the needs of humans and nonhumans collide. Decision making about resources is not simply based on human needs alone. Issues relating to animal rights, biodiversity, and environmental protection weigh heavily in these debates. These issues are receiving increased attention at a time when the human (over)population of the planet is already placing pressure on scare resources, creating conflict between the needs of humans and non-humans. It is along our moral frontiers where t ....Moral frontiers: When the needs of humans and nonhumans collide. Decision making about resources is not simply based on human needs alone. Issues relating to animal rights, biodiversity, and environmental protection weigh heavily in these debates. These issues are receiving increased attention at a time when the human (over)population of the planet is already placing pressure on scare resources, creating conflict between the needs of humans and non-humans. It is along our moral frontiers where these conflicts will erupt and the rights and needs of humans and non-humans alike are given merit or discarded. This project will examine the psychological processes involved in extending moral concern to non-humans and the benefits and costs of this extended morality for the satisfaction of human needs.Read moreRead less
The development of the social brain in early childhood. This project aims to understand how the human brain develops social and emotional understanding. The brain has remarkable abilities for understanding our social environment, such as inferring other people’s thoughts and feelings. This project will use neuroscience techniques to investigate how brain networks combine to produce social understanding, how this changes throughout child development, and how it relates to complex social behaviour ....The development of the social brain in early childhood. This project aims to understand how the human brain develops social and emotional understanding. The brain has remarkable abilities for understanding our social environment, such as inferring other people’s thoughts and feelings. This project will use neuroscience techniques to investigate how brain networks combine to produce social understanding, how this changes throughout child development, and how it relates to complex social behaviours. This project’s findings could be used to develop educational programmes that enhance empathy and co-operation, strengthen family relationships, promote social inclusion and reduce maladaptive behaviours. It could also guide intervention in brain disorders that affect social understanding.Read moreRead less
Perception: From Genes to Behaviour. Understanding how genes affect behaviour is inherently difficult because the human brain is extraordinarily complex. This project aims to map fundamental relationships between genes, brain, and behaviour by studying visual perception, where brain mechanisms can be characterised with high fidelity. The project expects to generate new knowledge in behavioural genetics using innovative, interdisciplinary approaches to integrate precise genetic, neural and psycho ....Perception: From Genes to Behaviour. Understanding how genes affect behaviour is inherently difficult because the human brain is extraordinarily complex. This project aims to map fundamental relationships between genes, brain, and behaviour by studying visual perception, where brain mechanisms can be characterised with high fidelity. The project expects to generate new knowledge in behavioural genetics using innovative, interdisciplinary approaches to integrate precise genetic, neural and psychophysical measurements. Expected outcomes of this project include a deeper understanding of our perceptual experience, and rich new experimental paradigms. This should provide significant benefits for future research attempting to disentangle complex gene–behaviour relationships.Read moreRead less
A new complex systems approach to road trauma: Applying systems thinking to the fatal five. By 2030 road trauma is expected to be the fifth leading cause of global deaths. The current road user centric road safety approach has failed to control the global health epidemic of road trauma. Although systems thinking is widely accepted to be the most effective approach for understanding and enhancing safety in complex systems, it has not yet been adopted in road safety efforts. This project aims to a ....A new complex systems approach to road trauma: Applying systems thinking to the fatal five. By 2030 road trauma is expected to be the fifth leading cause of global deaths. The current road user centric road safety approach has failed to control the global health epidemic of road trauma. Although systems thinking is widely accepted to be the most effective approach for understanding and enhancing safety in complex systems, it has not yet been adopted in road safety efforts. This project aims to apply a novel, integrated framework of systems analysis and design methods to the so called 'fatal five' causes of road trauma to create new knowledge on their causes and to develop and test new interventions that will enable the achievement of currently unreachable road safety targets.Read moreRead less
Self-control and pathologies of agency. This project will develop a philosophically and scientifically sophisticated account of the nature of self-control. This account will provide tools for allocating responsibility for failures of self-control and will contribute to the development of means for enhancing it, thereby aiding in addressing major social problems.
Improving the quality of life of children born very premature. This research program is in line with the national research priority to promote good health and well being, and more specifically to provide a healthy start to life for high-risk infants. This research program is attempting to improve the quality of life of infants born very preterm by improving our understanding of the nature of the problems faced by these high-risk children. This knowledge will inform future preventative care and ....Improving the quality of life of children born very premature. This research program is in line with the national research priority to promote good health and well being, and more specifically to provide a healthy start to life for high-risk infants. This research program is attempting to improve the quality of life of infants born very preterm by improving our understanding of the nature of the problems faced by these high-risk children. This knowledge will inform future preventative care and early intervention strategies. More directly, this research program incorporates a series of randomised controlled trials which are all attempting to improve the health and well being of these vulnerable infants.Read moreRead less