Research

Visual Search & Attention

What are the strategies the brain implements to optimize visual search? What are the basic mechanisms by which attention benefits perceptual performance in biological and artificial organisms?

Medical Imaging

Can we reduce radiological errors by learning how doctors look at and process medical images?

Mind & Machine Intelligence

We aim to optimize human-AI interaction by uncovering general principles of intelligent systems, in both minds and machines.

Face Perception

The brain has dedicated neural machinery and unique computations to process faces. We are uncovering such computations.

Eye Movements

Deciding where to look is critical given the powerful processing of the central visual field. We measure and model how humans direct their gaze.

Wisdom of the Crowds & Group Decisions

Groups often make decisions despite disagreement between individuals. We uncover the algorithms groups use to combine individual decisions.

Perceptual Learning

How are the mechanisms by which organisms learn about the visual world and achieve perceptual expertise?

Computational Tools & Models

Computational modeling, functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), electro-encephalography (EEG), eye tracking, deep learning.

Undergraduate Research in the VIU

Current undergraduate researchers enrolled in PSY 99/199, volunteers, and those interested in applying for a position can follow this link to access more information about undergraduate research in the VIU, including lab policies, UCSB human subjects information, tutorials, and a selection of readings from which many of our three quarterly PSY 99/199 lectures are drawn.