Interdisciplinary Neuroscience: Seminars/Events

Interdisciplinary Neuroscience Seminar

Dec. 10, noon
STAR North Atrium

Allyson Mackey
University of Pennsylvania

Environmental influences on brain plasticity

Children today will grow up to solve problems we cannot yet imagine. To build the skills they need to solve these problems, their brains need to be plastic: they need to rewire in response to new experiences. During development, maturational processes, including myelination and inhibition, stabilize synaptic connections, cementing knowledge and skills. Even once brakes on plasticity are in place, brains retain mechanisms to boost plasticity when learning is essential. Modulatory neurotransmitters, including dopamine, can signal that current neural configurations are a poor match for new inputs. Our research group examines how early life experiences influence maturation and motivation and their consequences for learning.
 
This talk will highlight our work on MRI-based proxy measures of brain plasticity and how these measures change over childhood. I will discuss our ongoing work on whether early childhood experiences have a causal impact on markers of brain plasticity or on the pace of maturation more broadly. I will also discuss whether capturing variation in children’s experiences and behavior with greater temporal precision can lead to insights into new approaches to supporting children’s thinking and learning.Allyson Mackey is an Associate Professor of Psychology at the University of Pennsylvania. Mackey holds a Ph.D. in neuroscience from the University of California, Berkeley, and a B.S. in biological sciences from Stanford University. She completed her postdoctoral training at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
 
Mackey is the founder and director of the Changing Brain Lab. She studies individual differences in brain plasticity and development with an eye towards personalizing the type and timing of educational interventions. Her research is supported by the National Science Foundation, the National Institute on Drug Abuse, CIFAR, the Jacobs Foundation, the William Penn Foundation and the LEGO Foundation. Mackey serves on the Scientific Advisory Council of the National Center on the Developing Adolescent. She is the recipient of the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientist and Engineers (PECASE), the Rising Star award from the Association of Psychological Sciences and the Early Career Award from the International Mind Brain and Education Society.

A light lunch will be provided following the seminar. Please RSVP below.

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