Speaker: Dr. Fang-Chi Yang
Cognitive, Linguistic & Psychological Sciences, Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island, USA
You are welcome to attend the online seminar (in English). Dr. Fang-Chi Yang will present her pioneering work on the neural circuits that guide visuospatial attention in rats. Through single-unit recording and an innovative attention task, her studies show that the thalamic pulvinar signals stimulus onset, spatial context, and behavioral outcomes, revealing its active role in attention. Complementary evidence from the dorsal and ventral posterior parietal cortex (PPC) further demonstrates functional specialization: the ventral PPC responds rapidly to salient cues, while the dorsal PPC supports controlled, goal-directed attention. Together, these findings illuminate how thalamo-cortical networks coordinate perception and action.
This seminar offers an engaging introduction to cutting-edge neuroscience as our campus prepares for the upcoming Nobel Laureate Forum (Jan. 1-6, 2026). All are welcome to join and contribute to our growing neuroscience community.
Ruey-Ming Liao at Psychology
https://teams.microsoft.com/l/
