Decision and Aging Insights

In Part 2, of this two-part finale, the SRNDNA co-directors, Drs. Kendra Seaman, Nichole Lighthall, and Duke Han, discuss what the network has meant to them and what the future holds for SRNDNA.

These interviews were conducted separately, and the conversations have been edited for clarity and flow.

Co-Director section beginnings:
00:56 – Dr. Kendra Seaman
09:09 – Dr. Nichole Lighthall
25:25 – Dr. Duke Han

In Part 1, of this two-part finale, the SRNDNA co-directors, Drs. Kendra Seaman, Nichole Lighthall, and Duke Han, will take us to the beginnings of the network, sharing the network’s impacts on their trajectories. They’ll explain the importance of adding Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias to this recent round of funding. They will also share their excitement about the special issue on Decision Neuroscience and Aging in JGPS series B. 

These interviews were conducted separately, and the conversations have been edited for clarity and flow.

Co-Director section beginnings:

1:40 - Dr. Kendra Seaman

19:35 - Dr. Nichole Lighthall

28:37 - Dr. Duke Han

We spoke with Dr. Vishnu "Deepu" Murty, a 2022 SRNDNA Pilot Grant recipient and an associate professor of psychology at the University of Oregon. Formerly of Temple University, Dr. Murty describes his move across the country and what it's been like to change institutions as mid-level faculty. He also shares how an experience at a haunted house inspired a method to study temporal memory. Dr. Murty is a proud queer scientist and chairs the Committee for an Inclusive Community at U of O.

We spoke with Dr. Sharon Noh, a 2018 SRNDNA Collaboration Award recipient and postdoctoral scholar at the University of California, Irvine. Dr. Noh shares how the Collaboration Award impacted her academic and professional journey. She also delves into her research on memory and learning conditions, offering insights into how we retain and process information to make decisions across the lifespan. As a mother of two, Dr. Noh reflects on the challenges and rewards of balancing an academic career with family life.

We spoke with Dr. Brittany Cassidy, an associate professor at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. She shares the journey of receiving a 2018 SRNDNA Pilot Grant Award and explains her research on how perceptions can change with additional information. Dr. Cassidy received UNCG's Thomas Undergraduate Research Mentor award in 2023 and describes what she enjoys most when mentoring students.

We spoke with Dr. Todd Braver, a professor of psychological and brain sciences, radiology, and neuroscience at Washington University in St. Louis. Dr. Braver is also the William R. Stuckenberg Professor in Human Values and Moral Development. He shares his mentoring experiences and what it's like co-leading a lab. Dr. Braver also discusses the many aspects of his cognitive control research and his new collaboration examining the impacts of mindfulness training.

We spoke with Dr. Marilyn Horta, an active member of the SRNDNA network since 2015. She's also received SRNDNA's Collaboration and Open Data awards. In this episode, Dr. Horta discusses the research associated with the Open Data Award and her study on age differences in trust-related decision making and learning. Dr. Horta is now an applied research scientist at the Moffitt Cancer Center's Tobacco Research and Intervention Program (TRIP) where she uses mobile health interventions for mindfulness-based stress reduction and to help people stop smoking.

Link from the conversation:

AARP Fraud Watch Network: https://www.aarp.org/money/scams-fraud/about-fraud-watch-network/

Please note:

OpenfMRI should be OpenNeuro: openneuro.org

In 2023 NIH created the Data Management and Sharing (DMS) Policy for all new applications. Dr. Luke Stoeckel, SRNDNA’s NIA Program Officer, and Dr. David V. Smith, an Associate Professor of Psychology and Neuroscience at Temple University, discuss the policy, the importance of sharing data, and the difficulties getting data into a sharable format.

David's helpful resources/websites for psychology/neuroscience data sharing:

⁠https://bids.neuroimaging.io⁠

⁠https://neurostars.org⁠

⁠https://open-brain-consent.readthedocs.io/en/stable/⁠ ⁠

Luke's top 10 tips for those new to data sharing:

https://sites.utdallas.edu/srndna/2025/02/03/10-tips-for-nih-dms-policy-newbies/

Join us as we speak with Dr. Jennifer Crawford, a postdoctoral fellow in the Neurochemistry and Cognition Lab at Brandeis University. We discuss Dr. Crawford's 2019 SRNDNA Pilot Grant Award and how it set the course for her research career. She also explains Ecological Momentary Assessment (EMA) and how she uses daily life monitoring in her studies to get a more accurate glimpse into participants' lives and activities.

Join us as we speak with Dr. Joe Kable, a member of the SRNDNA advisory board. Dr. Kable is the Jean-Marie Kneeley President’s Distinguished Professor of Psychology at the University of Pennsylvania and Director of MindCORE, U Penn’s hub for the integrative study of the mind. He shares with us the different methods of decision making and how those methods relate to life outside the lab. To learn more about the MindCORE Fellowship Program, visit https://mindcore.sas.upenn.edu/post-doctoral-research-fellowship/