Visual Attention and Cognition Lab

The Visual Attention and Cognition Lab, led by Dr. Matt Peterson, is concerned with how attention, working memory, and eye movements interact to affect cognition and perception in both well-controlled laboratory settings and more complex environments. Topics of interest include how environmental factors capture attention, how memory guides visual search, how attention affects scene perception, and how working memory is affected by eye movements. Our lab uses a variety of methods to study cognition, including psychophysical methods, high-speed eye tracking, EEG, brain-computer interfaces that utilize machine-learning algorithms to match patterns in ERP signals, transcranial direct-current stimulation (tDCS), and salivary cortisol measures of stress.

The Visual Attention and Cognition Lab is recruiting graduate students to start in fall 2015 as part of the Human Factors and Applied Cognition, Cognitive Neuroscience, or Neuroscience PhD Program. Current juniors and seniors interested in pursuing a Ph.D. in the Visual Attention and Cognition Lab are encouraged to contact Prof. Matt Peterson with their expressions of interest.

Funding for the lab is provide by Army Research Office.