SCAN researchers A/Prof Frini Karayanidis, A/Prof Juanita
Todd, Emeritus Professor Pat Michie, Dr Patrick Cooper, Kaitlin Fitzgerald, Olivia
Whalen and Montana McKewen recently attended the 13th International
Conference for Cognitive Neuroscience (ICON) in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. ICON
is one of the most prestigious scientific meetings in the field. It is held
only every 3 years, and as it does not belong to any professional society, it
tends to draw an inter-disciplinary and integrative audience from the field of
cognitive neuroscience. The 4-day conference gave us the opportunity to present
our current research as well as hear presentations from prominent researchers
in the area.
Juanita coordinated and spoke in a symposium titled
“Perspectives on sensory prediction”. Frini presented a poster on how the
variability in white matter microstructure alters proactive and reactive
cognitive control processes in ageing. Patrick’s poster was on preparatory
frontoparietal theta during task-switching and how it is associated with
goal-updating and improved behavioural performance. Kaitlin’s poster examined
multiple timescales of automatic statistical learning modulate mismatch
negativity (MMN) to auditory pattern deviations. Olivia’s poster investigated
the relationship between temperament, sensory processing and attentional
control development in early infancy. Montana’s poster was on the distinct
phase-locked and non-phase-locked theta components of proactive control in a
task-switching paradigm. The 90-minute poster sessions were a good opportunity
to meet people in our respective areas and discuss methodology and findings in
detail, something that is not always possible in other presentation formats. These
discussions were particularly helpful for PhD students Kaitlin, Olivia and
Montana to gain feedback outside of their supervisory teams.
We look forward to attending the next ICON in 2020 which
will be held in Helsinki!
