Human cognition does not occur in isolation; it emerges from complex neural operations that facilitate the interaction of diverse cognitive processes. Grounded in this principle, Melisa researches the complex interaction of learning, memory, attention, and perception, and the underlying neural processes with multimodal techniques. Currently, she is focused on understanding how the brain resolves competition in memory-guided attention during the dynamic learning process.Melisa completed her Hon. BSc. in Neuroscience and Mathematics and her MSc. in Medical Science at the University of Toronto, studying concussions and neurodegenerative diseases. She earned her PhD in Computational Cognitive Neuroscience with Dr. Michael Mack at the University of Toronto and was awarded the Vanier, the most prestigious scholarship in Canada. Melisa’s doctoral work made pivotal contributions to our understanding of the intricate interplay of learning, memory, and attention by characterizing white matter pathways in the hippocampus and their relationship to cognition, linking computational mechanisms of learning to episodic memory functions and hippocampal representations, exploring how attention is encoded into flexible concept knowledge, and introducing the concept of learning-guided attention. During her research fellowship with Dr. Anna Schapiro at the University of Pennsylvania, Melisa informed computational models of the hippocampus with anatomy to further illuminate the dynamics of learning. Beyond her academic career, Melisa has translated her research into practice with 3+ years of industry experience, where she focused on developing speech-based biomarkers for neurodegenerative and psychiatric diseases. She employs a powerful, multimodal research strategy, seamlessly integrating behavioural measures, eye-tracking, neuroimaging techniques (diffusion imaging, fMRI, MEG), and computational modelling to tackle the most pressing questions in cognitive neuroscience.

 

Pronouns: she/her

Fun fact: For a daily reset, I turn to kickboxing - nothing beats the thrill of throwing kicks and punches to upbeat music! The only rival to that energy is challenging myself to catch the perfect wind while sailing on the bay!

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My CV can be found here.