Speaker: Dr. Kielan Yarrow  City, University of London

Time: April 4th (Tuesday), 2:00–3:30 pm

Venue: Room 1113, Wangkezhen Building

Abstract:

How does the brain translate sensory input into plans for action? More specifically – how serial is the perceptuomotor pipeline, and how does the millisecond-by-millisecond accumulation of evidence that is predicted by cognitive models compare with neural signals recorded from humans? These kinds of question require methods with high temporal resolution such as electroencephalography (EEG) and  transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS). For example, a single TMS pulse applied at a specific moment after stimulus onset can evoke activity (MEPs) in two muscles which, when appropriately tied to two alternative responses, reveal covert plans for action. In this talk, I will first briefly describe studies using a TMS-MEP approach to reveal the automatic priming of the motor system by graspable objects, and how the truth seeps all the way into motor cortex before being countermanded by a lie during deceptive behaviour. I will then turn to the more substantive question of how speeded decision-making plays out with a view to testing whether (and how) cognitive models of choice RT might be validated using neural dependent variables. Here, work from my lab using both TMS-MEP and EEG measures suggests a direct and continuous influence of interacting evidence accumulators, each favouring a different decision alternative, on downstream corticospinal excitability.

For more information about Dr. Kielan Yarrow, please see his websites:

Dr Kielan Yarrow • City, University of London

Kielan Yarrow's Personal Academic Website

Host: Hang Zhang

2023-03-23