Opti Lab Research
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Research in the Opti Lab addresses neural and cognitive processes that underlie human learning and techniques that can be used to accelerate skill acquisition. Our research spans basic, applied and clinical sciences with a focus on the neural mechanisms of visual information processing and precision motor control. This research utilizes multiple neural recording techniques such as electroencephlography (EEG) and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to measure brain function, noninvasive brain stimulation approaches such as transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) and transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) to modulate neural functioning, and is based on a platform of visual psychometrics and eye tracking that offer objective metrics of behavior that are tested in computational models to infer processes and mechanisms. We also conduct applied studies "in the wild" with professional and collegiate athletic programs (see our Research in Action page). Across this research, we attempt to adhere to best-practices, with multiple pre-registered clinical trials and open-science registries. Specific areas of research include:
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Visual-Motor Function & Expertise
A key element of research in the Opti Lab has been experimentation with sensorimotor training tools, including several developed by Nike Inc. Through research supported by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) and the Army Research Office (ARO), we have conducted laboratory and field studies in unique groups of expert athletes and soldiers, leading to several papers addressing perceptual and motor expertise. Among these are studies addressing …
- Sensorimotor expertise in athletes (Klemish, 2017; Burris et al, 2018)
- Sports vision training (Appelbaum & Erickson 2016; Krasich 2016; Appelbaum 2016; Wang et al., 2015)
- Stroboscopic training (Appelbaum 2011, Appelbaum 2012)
- Visual training as an remediation for lower extremity injury (Gromes 2014)
- Sensorimotor learning in immersive virtual environments (Rao et al, 2018; Clements et al 2018)
Strobe Training
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Vision predicts baseball stats
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Early days of strobe research
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Training Study with Duke Basketball Team
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Noninvasive Brain Stimulation
Brain stimulation techniques such as Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) and transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) offer the powerful means by which to noninvasively modulate neural function. Research in our lab is interested in the application of such neuromodulation techniques to improve cognitive faculties, emotional regulation, and motor function. Among these studies is a U01 award through the National Institute for Aging to study the combination of working memory training and TMS for improving executive function abilities that typically decline with age (see Clinical Trial registry, here). We are also partners on an ambitious BRAIN Initiative award with colleagues in the School of Engineering and in the Departments of Psychology and Neurology to investigate dose-response relationships underlying repetitive TMS through systematic studies in both humans and non-human primates. In another exciting line of research done in conjunction with the Department of Surgery, we are currently developing a surgical training program that utilizes tDCS and eye tracking to facilitate manual skill learning in laparoscopic simulations.
- rTMS to enhance working memory abilities (Beynel et al 2019; Beynel et al 2020)
- Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation to accelerate surgical skill learning (Cox et al, 2020; Clinical Trial Registry)
- Meta analysis of online rTMS (Beynel et al 2019)
- Systematic review of rTMS effects on fMRI resting-state functional connectivity (Beynel et al 2020)
- Brain stimulation for emotional regulation (Beynel et al 2020) and treatment of substance use disorder (Young et al in press; Addicott et al 2019)
- Probing the mechanisms of vision with targeted TMS (Luber et al 2020; Gamboa-Arana et al 2020)
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This is what fMRI-guided, electric field-modeled, robot-controlled, brain stimulation looks like
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Mechanisms of Human Cognition
Cognitive Neuroscience has evolved remarkably over the recent past with evermore sophisticated approaches for inferring the neural mechanisms that enable the function of the mind. Our lab has been at the forefront of this field with cutting-edge studies investigating the processes and mechanisms underlying attention, perception, memory and emotional control. Examples of these studies include:
- BOLD, resting-state and functional connectivity fMRI to understand the mechanisms of working memory (Davis et al 2018; Crowell et al 2020)
- Steady State Visually Evoked Potential (SSVEP) to study scene perception (Appelbaum 2006; Appelbaum 2008; Appelbaum 2009; Appelbaum 2010; Appelbaum 2012; Ales 2013; Norcia et al 2015)
- Perceptual Learning and Neuroplasticity (Clark 2015; San Martin 2013; San Martin 2015; Rao et al 2018; Clements et al 2018)
- Individual Differences in Perception (Appelbaum 2013)
- The mechanisms of executive control in the brain (Appelbaum et al. 2009; Appelbaum et al. 2012; Appelbaum et al. 2014; Donohue et al 2016; Krebs et al. 2013)
- Multisensory integration (Donohue et al. 2013; Appelbaum et al. 2013)
- Response inhibition (Boehler et al. 2010; Boehler et al. 2011; Boehler et al. 2012)