Research Staff
Todd S. Braver, Ph.D.
Principal Investigator
Dr. Todd Braver studies the cognitive and neural mechanisms underlying memory, attention, and controlled processing. His research approach combines computational modeling (using connectionist framework), functional neuroimaging (using fMRI and PET methods), and behavioral studies (in normal and clinical populations, and under pharmacological challenge). Ongoing projects include testing model predictions regarding (1) how the prefrontal cortex represents and maintains information in working memory; and (2) how the dopamine neurotransmitter system regulates control over these processes.
tbraver@wustl.edu
Dr. Braver’s CV
Visit the CCP Lab Website
Joset Etzel, Ph.D.
Staff Scientist
Jo is a Research Analyst working with Todd Braver and colleagues in the Department of Psychological & Brain Sciences. She completed a PhD in Bioinformatics and Computational Biology at Iowa State University under the supervision of Julie Dickerson and Ralph Adolphs, then worked as a postdoc under Christian Keysers at the Social Brain Lab, University Medical Center Groningen (The Netherlands). Her research interests are focused on methodology, particularly multivariate analyses of fMRI data, but also nonparametric statistics and psychophysiological measures. She blogs about fMRI analysis at MVPA Meanderings. Jo serves as the project manager for the DMCC project.
jetzel@wustl.edu
Nicholas Bloom
Programmer
Nick earned a B.S. in psychology at Washington University in St. Louis in 2010 and has been working in the Psychiatry/Psychology departments since that time, primarily assisting with task design and implementation with software such as E-Prime. Nick has worked on various projects in other capacities as well and has spent time designing and collecting data for eye tracking, EEG and fMRI projects. He is currently a programmer in the CCP Lab.
nbloom@wustl.edu
Rachel Brough
Research Technician II
Rachel is a Research Technician II in Dr. Todd Braver’s lab working on the Dual Mechanisms of Cognitive Control project. She graduated from Washington University in Saint Louis in 2020 with B.A.’s in Cognitive Neuroscience and Anthropology, and a minor in Dance.
rbrough@wustl.edu
Carol Cox
Lab Manager
Carol is the the Manager of the Cognitive Control and Psychopathology Lab in the Psychological and Brain Sciences Department. She works with the Principal Investigators, Dr. Todd Braver and Dr. Deanna Barch, writing and managing the internal review board protocols, federal grant submissions and reporting, and administration of the CCP Lab.
ccox@wustl.edu
Michael Freund
Graduate Student
Michael is a graduate student with Dr. Braver. He received his B.A. in Psychology and Zoology from the University of Wisconsin–Madison, where he studied neural mechanisms of working memory and attention in Dr. Brad Postle’s lab. Michael then worked for three years in Dr. Nazbanou Nozari’s lab at Johns Hopkins, investigating cognitive mechanisms of control in language production. Broadly, he is interested in investigating goal and task rule coding in the prefrontal cortex.
m.freund@wustl.edu
Jeff (Yanli) Lin, Ph.D.
Postdoctoral Research Fellow
Jeff is a postdoctoral scholar working with Dr. Todd Braver. He received his PhD in clinical psychology from Michigan State University. His research broadly aims to elucidate the effects of mindfulness and other contemplative practices on cognitive control and emotion regulation. As a member of the WUSTL Aging and Development program, he hopes to leverage the tools of cognitive neuroscience and psychophysiology to extend his work on mindfulness toward the study of healthy aging. Jeff’s long-term aspira
lyanli@wustl.edu
Matthew Singh, Ph.D.
Postdoctoral Researcher Fellow
Email:
Matthew is a post-doctoral research fellow working with Todd Braver & ShiNung Ching. He was previously a Neuroscience graduate research fellow working with Todd Braver, ShiNung Ching, and Camillo Padoa-Schioppa. Matthew’s research focuses upon mathematical neuroscience including methods/theory and basic questions in cognitive neuroscience. He works on developing new methods in applied mathematics, modeling, and functional data analysis (fMRI, EEG, optical spectroscopy, & primate electrophysiology), in addition to studying basic science questions of higher cognition particularly regarding working memory and cognitive control.
Al Tay
Research Technician II
Allison Tay graduated from Barnard College of Columbia University in 2019 with a major in Psychology and a minor in Mathematical Sciences. They currently work as a research technician in Dr. Todd Braver’s lab.
allison.tay@wustl.edu
Ben (Anxu) Wang
Graduate Student
Anxu (Ben) Wang obtained a dual degree from Washington University in St. Louis with major in Electrical Engineering in 2019 and from Kenyon college with major in Neuroscience. He is currently working with Dr. Braver and graduate student Matthew Singh on DMCC project and a whole brain generative neural model. He plans to apply for neuroscience graduate program in the future.
anxu@wustl.edu
Collaborators
Julie Bugg, Ph.D., University Collaborator
Dr. Bugg is an Associate Professor of Psychological & Brain Sciences
Director of Graduate Studies in Psychological & Brain Sciences at Washington University. She is interested in the use of cognitive control to achieve attention and memory-related goals. Lab website
Andrew Conway, Ph.D., Former Collaborator
Dr. Conway was involved with Phase I of DMCC project. He is a professor of cognitive psychology in the Division of Behavioral and Organizational Sciences at Claremont Graduate University. Conway’s research is aimed at understanding individual differences in intelligence and working memory capacity. Lab website
Shinung Ching, Ph.D., University Collaborator
Dr. Ching is the Das Family Career Development Distinguished Assistant Professor in the School of Engineering & Applied Sciences at Washington University. He serves as a collaborator on the DMCC project. Dr. Ching’s research lies at the interface between systems and control engineering and neural medicine. His research projects will be interdisciplinary, focusing on questions in systems theory as well as basic science and clinical applications. Lab website
Eric Lenze, MD, University Collaborator
Eric Lenze, MD, is a Professor of Psychiatry at Washington University Medical School. He is a collaborator on the DMCC project. Dr. Lenze is interested in treatments for older adults with depression, anxiety, and cognitive decline and in improving recovery from disabling medical conditions. He is the Director and the Principal Investigator of the Healthy Mind Lab.
DMCC Alumni
Shelly Cooper, Ph.D., Former Graduate Student
Shelly is currently a lecturer in Psychological & Brain Sciences at WUSTL. Her contact email is shelly.cooper@wustl.edu. Shelly is a former graduate student with Dr. Todd Braver. She received her BA in Psychology from Boston University and her Ph.D. in 2019. She investigated temporal and spatial differences in proactive vs. reactive control and factors that dictate control strategy employment.
Maria Gehred, Former Research Technician II
Maria Gehred is currently a graduate student at Duke University. Her contact email is maria.gehred@duke.edu. Maria was research technician in Dr. Todd Braver’s lab. She graduated from Washington University with a B.A. in Cognitive Neuroscience in 2017. She is attending graduate school for a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology, with special interest in the genes and mechanisms underlying cognitive deficits in schizophrenia.
Mitch Jeffers, Former Research Program Analyst
Mitch Jeffers is currently a programmer in an Electrical Engineer at NCAR – The National Center for Atmospheric Research. He lives in Boulder, Colorado. His contact email is mjeffers@ucar.edu. Mitch was a programmer for Dr. Todd Braver. He is an Electrical Engineer with an interest in bio-instrumentation and image processing.
Alex Kizhner, Former Research Technician II
Alexander Kizhner is currently a graduate student at University of Miami. His contact email is akizhner@miami.edu . Alex graduated from Washington University in St. Louis in 2017 with majors in Biology and Psychological & Brain Sciences, as well as a minor in Russian Language & Literature. He worked as a Research Technician II in the Cognitive Control & Psychopathology Lab and focuses on the Dual Mechanisms of Cognitive Control project with Dr. Todd Braver. Alex plans to pursue a medical degree with a special interest in neurology.
Marie Krug, Ph.D., former Staff Scientist
Marie Krug is currently a cognitive neuroscientist at the UC Davis MIND Institute, studying cognitive control and decision-making in ASD. Her contact email is mkkrug@ucdavis.edu. Marie was Research Scientist in the CCP Lab working with Dr. Todd Braver. She received my PhD from the University of California, Davis in 2011. She investigated the behavioral and neural effects of reward and punishment incentive conditions during performance of demanding cognitive tasks, as well as how individual differences in reward and punishment sensitivity modulate interactions between motivation and cognitive control.
Leah Newcomer, Former Research Technician II
Leah Newcomer is currently a resident physician at Washington University Medical School. Leah graduated from Brown University in May of 2014 with a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology. She worked as a technician on the HCP and DMCC project.
Kevin Oksanen, Former Research Technician III
Kevin is now at St. Louis Children’s Hospital. His contact email is kevinoksanen@wustl.edu. Kevin was a Research Technician II. He received my B.A in Philosophy-Neuroscience-Psychology from Washington University in 2011.
Carolina Ramirez, Former Programmer
Carolina Ramirez is currently an imaging data scientist at University of California, San Francisco. Carolina was a programmer for Dr. Todd Braver at the CCP Lab. She is an Electrical Engineer interested in applied research that combines image processing and analysis, and machine learning methods.
Catherine (Rongxiang) Tang, Ph.D., Former Graduate Student
Catherine is now a postdoctoral researcher at the University of California at San Diego. Her contact email is rotang@ucsd.edu. She is a former graduate student working with Dr. Todd Braver. She graduated from UT Austin with a B.S. in psychology. Her main research interests include using neuroimaging techniques to investigate the neural mechanism of different forms of training and intervention, and studying their effects on behavior, cognition and physiology in diverse population. Her focus was on the neural correlates of mindfulness meditation and she hopes to incorporate genetics as part of her research to predict individual differences.