Dr. Taraz Lee joins us to talk about cognitive control: that is, how we organize and execute actions throughout the day. In particular, although we often think about cognitive control as helping performance, this might not always be the case—for example, when choking under pressure. All of which provides insight into daily activities, complex motor activities found in sports and music, and opportunities for rehabilitation.

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TBMP on Apple Podcasts (leave us a review!)

Special Guest: Taraz Lee.

Links:

• Cognition, Control, and Action Lab – Taraz Lee
• Taraz Lee (@TarazLee) / Twitter
• Transcranial magnetic stimulation - Wikipedia
• Dorsolateral prefrontal cortex - Wikipedia
• Primary motor cortex - Wikipedia
• Out of control: Diminished prefrontal activity coincides with impaired motor performance due to choking under pressure - ScienceDirect
• Phineas Gage - Wikipedia

We talk about the neuroscience of music with Dr. Jessica Grahn, with a special attention to rhythm and beat. Beat perception relies on both auditory and motor systems, including the basal ganglia, which may relate to effects of music in patients with Parkinson’s Disease. We also talk about beat perception in birds and other animals, and why some people might be better at beat perception than others.

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TBMP on Apple Podcasts (leave us a review!)

Special Guest: Jessica Grahn.

Links:

• Jessica Grahn
• Jessica Grahn (@NeuroBeats) / Twitter
• Genome-wide association study of musical beat synchronization demonstrates high polygenicity | bioRxiv
• Grahn and Brett (2007): Rhythm and Beat Perception in Motor Areas of the Brain | Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience | MIT Press
• Stevie Wonder Superstition - YouTube
• The Little Kicks - Seinfeld - YouTube — Classic example of individual differences in beat synchronization
• Snowball the cockatoo - Another One Bites The Dust - YouTube
• Ronan the Sea Lion Keeps A Beat | Video - YouTube

Dr. Lauren Whitehurst joins us to talk about the critical role that sleep plays in cognition. The effects of sleep (and sleep loss) are seen in systems that span not only the brain, but the rest of the body, and understanding this can help us understand not only a host of cognitive processes, but encourage us to have good sleep habits. And, importantly, how some people have more freedom over their sleep schedule due to external demands (such as job or family responsibilities). Lots of reasons to prioritize sleep, when we can!

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TBMP on Apple Podcasts (leave us a review!)

Special Guest: Lauren Whitehurst.

Links:

• Lauren Whitehurst | Psychology
• Lauren Whitehurst (@LNWhitehurstPhD) / Twitter
• Memory consolidation - Wikipedia
• Circadian rhythm - Wikipedia
• Autonomic activity during sleep predicts memory consolidation in humans | PNAS

Dr. Morgan Barense joins us to talk about the close relationship between perception and memory. In particular, the hippocampus — a brain structure most often associated with memory — is also involved in high-level vision. Also discussed: the formative impact of undergraduate research experience and mentors, different kinds of perception and memory, and an app for your phone (Hippocamera) that might help you remember things better.

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TBMP on Apple Podcasts (leave us a review!)

Special Guest: Morgan Barense.

Links:

• Memory & Perception Lab – Morgan Barense
• Henry Molaison (H.M.) - Wikipedia
• Intact Memory for Irrelevant Information Impairs Perception in Amnesia - ScienceDirect
• HippoCamera
• ‎HippoCamera on the App Store
• Morgan Barense (@morganbarense) / Twitter
• PsyArXiv Preprints | A smartphone intervention that enhances real-world memory and promotes differentiation of hippocampal activity in older adults

Host Jonathan Peelle introduces a new podcast aimed at explaining the brain in an accessible way. Each episode will feature an interview with a different scientist talking about their research (and maybe other things).

Links:

• The Brain Made Plain Website
• Support The Brain Made Plain on Patreon
• The Brain Made Plain Podcast (@brainmadeplain) on Twitter