Upcoming Seminar
Neural systems underlying social-emotional functions
In this talk, I will summarize my research assessing the neural basis of human social-emotional functions from different perspectives. In the first study, which leveraged neuroimaging and histopathological data in a neurodegenerative disease of social-emotional dysfunction, I will provide evidence for a chain of influence linking specific neuron-types to specialized brain network in mediating the typical empathy deficits found in patients with frontotemporal dementia. Second, I will talk about how brain networks supporting social-emotional functions are highly dynamic systems, and that mapping these time-varying processes can reveal both individual state and trait characteristics in healthy older adults. Finally, I will introduce my most recent work revealing emotion-specific patterns of autonomic nervous system activity, and present evidence that these patterns are intrinsically generated at rest. I will conclude with an outlook on how multimodal integration of autonomic and brain activity can improve our understanding of social-emotional well-being in healthy and clinical populations.
Latest Seminar
Alessandra Dodich
CIMEC, Trento University
18/01/21 @ 14:00pm
Towards an evidence-based assessment of social cognition
Social cognition is a multifaceted complex domain resulting from different cognitive sub-functions involved in interpreting information acquired from the social environment and in modulating the way of thinking and acting according to social situations. The processing of social signals, and the subsequent adaptation of behavioural responses, relies on the activation of complex networks involving frontal and temporo-limbic regions that can be significantly affected in neurodegenerative diseases such as the frontotemporal dementia. Cognitive tests represent gateway markers in the diagnostic framework of dementia, thus the objective quantification of socio-affective deficits with ad hoc developed social cognition tasks represents a critical component in clinical and research settings. In this talk I address the issue of the development of evidence-based neuropsychological tests for the assessment of social cognitive abilities, that will be discussed through empirical studies and clinical cases.
Visiting Professors
Susan Bookheimer
Professor of Cognitive Neuroscience at UCLA
Clinical neuropsychologist with a broad interest in the study of human cognition in relation to brain structure, function, and pathology. Her experimental expertise includes structural and functional MRI and intraoperative electrocortical stimulation mapping, as well as classical neuropsychological approaches.
Jack Van Horn
Professor of Psychology and Data Science at University of Virginia
Author, researcher, lecturer on the human brain, its structure and function, and the role of information technology in sharing data for use in understanding fundamental neurological processes in health and disease.
Andrea Mechelli
King’s College London
After completing his studies in psychology at the University of Padua (1999), he carried out a PhD in neuroscience at University College London (2002). In 2004, he joined the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience at King's College London, where is Professor of Early Intervention in Mental Health. His research Interests: Integration of machine learning and neuroimaging to develop diagnostic and prognostic models of psychosis; Development and validation of novel clinical tools for improving detection and treatment of psychosis; Use of smartphone technologies to investigate the impact of the built and social environment on mental health in real time (see urbanmind.info).
Corrado Sinigaglia
Università degli Studi di Milano
Professor of Philosophy of Science at University of Milan since 2001. Before that he studied at the Husserl-Archives of Leuven (1992-1993), at the Ecole Normale Superiéure of Paris (1994), and at the University of Genova (1995-1999), where he obtained my PhD in Philosophy of Science. Fields of research: Cognitive neuroscience and philosophy of mind. He is currently working on the role of motor processes and representations in joint action.
Past Visiting Professors
Russ Poldrack
Stanford University
Professor of Psychology and director of the Stanford Center for Reproducible Neuroscience. His research uses brain imaging to understand how we learn and make decisions and how we exert self-control. Some projects he developed include the Cognitive Atlas (htttp://www.cognitiveatlas.org) and OpenfMRI (http://www.openfmri.org).
Leah Krubitzer
University of California, Davis
American neuroscientist, Professor of Psychology and head of the Laboratory of Evolutionary Neurobiology. Her research interests center on how complex brains in mammals (e.g., humans) evolve from simpler forms.
Past Seminars
Pieter Roelfsma
Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience
James Haxby
Dartmouth College
Jody Culham
Western University
Hans Op de Beeck
Leueven University
Michael Hanke
Forschungszentrum Jülich
Maria Ida Gobbini
Dartmouth College
Takao Hensch
Harvard University
Michela Fagiolini
Boston Children's Hospital
Events
October 21-23, 2018
MidTerm Conference - May 21-23, 2018
Summer School “AFNI and SUMA Bootcamp” – June 3-7, 2019
H2020 EU-project SoftPro
Review meeting – May 22-24, 2019
Review meeting – May 22-24, 2019
