OHBM Cognitive Neuroscience Course 2006

Organization for Human Brain Mapping

Cognitive Neuroscience Course

June 11, 2006

Florence, Italy

Overview:
This course will provide an introduction to the field of cognitive neuroscience.  It is intended for researchers working in the area of imaging methods or statistics, as well as for students who are new to the field of cognitive neuroscience.  The speakers in the workshop will focus on providing a background to help the participants understand how cognitive neuroscientists design and interpret studies, and how to avoid common mistakes in design and interpretation of these studies.  The morning will focus on providing basic background on the underlying principles of brain function (anatomical, physiological, computational, and developmental).  The afternoon will include talks by experts in a number of specific domains of cognitive neuroscience research, including vision, action, learning and memory, emotion, language, and executive function.  It is expected that participants will come away from the workshop with an understanding of best practices for design and interpretation of cognitive neuroscience studies.

Schedule:
8-8:30 am: Overview and outline of cognitive neuroscience, R. Poldrack
Dr. Poldrack will provide a historical overview of the development of cognitive neuroscience, and an outline of the kinds of questions that cognitive neuroscientists ask and the methods that they use.  He will focus in particular on the importance of convergent results across imaging and lesion methods.

8:30-9:10 am: Basic neurophysiology, D. Leopold
Dr. Leopold will provide an introduction to the basic mechanisms of neuronal function, including the electrophysiological properties of neurons and how neural firing relates to perceptual function. 

9:10-9:50 am:  Basic neuroanatomy, D. Van Essen
Dr. Van Essen will provide an overview of the anatomical organization of the brain.  He will outline the relations between gross anatomical structure, cytoarchitecture, and structural connectivity, and describe ways in which computational methods have been used to provide novel characterization of anatomical structure.

10:05-10:45 am: Neural transmission and neuromodulation, E. Bullmore
Dr. Bullmore will present an introduction to the function of neurotransmitters in the brain.  He will focus particularly on the brain’s neuromodulatory systems and their relation to mental function.

10:45-11:25 am: Neural computation, N.Daw
Dr. Daw will introduce how computational methods can be used to understand the function of the brain. He will focus on computational models of learning and their relation to brain and cognitive function.

11:25 am -12:05 pm: Brain development, B.J. Casey
Dr. Casey will provide an introduction to brain development, showing how cognitive and brain function change over the course of development. She will focus on relating the structural and functional development of the frontal lobe to executive control functions.

1:10-1:50 pm: Visual perception and attention, G. Rees
Dr. Rees will describe how the brain perceives visual stimuli and how attention affects visual processing.  He will focus particularly on how brain processes are related to conscious perception of visual stimuli.

1:50-2:30 pm: Motor systems and action, J. Doyon
Dr. Doyon will outline the brain’s system for the control of actions.  He will also discuss the mechanisms in the brain that support the learning of new motor skills.

2:30-3:10 pm: Learning and memory, A. Wagner
Dr. Wagner will provide an overview of the brain systems that support learning and memory, focusing on how different systems in the medial temporal lobe and prefrontal cortex may be involved in different aspects of memory encoding and retrieval.

3:25-4:05 pm:  Emotion and Motivation, E. Phelps
Dr. Phelps will outline the emotional systems of the brain and how emotional responses are learned. She will also discuss how emotion influences decision-making and memory formation.

4:50-4:45 pm: Language and reading, C. Price
Dr. Price will provide an overview of the brain systems for language and reading.  She will focus particularly on how particular language functions may be accomplished by multiple systems in the