My experience at Macalester really shaped my ability to succeed at the level that’s required for this research.
– Ionatan Kuperwajs  

BY | Ionatan Kuperwajs ’18
Redmond, Wash.
Neuroscience Studies, Computer Science, Mathematics

I conducted research in David Heeger’s Computational Neuroimaging Lab at New York University’s Center for Neural Science. More specifically, I studied how our visual system processes the optic flow field, which can be thought of as an array of vectors that your brain generates and then utilizes to calculate heading direction and angular velocity as you move through an environment.

The fact that your brain does this calculation of the scene image in real-time is unbelievably impressive. What we are proposing is an alternate theory for the underlying mechanism by which your brain is able to do this and interpret the information it’s receiving. It’s an incredible opportunity for me, as an undergraduate, to revise a theory that’s been established in neuroscience and vision research literature for almost 30 years.

It’s been eye-opening to see how programming, mathematical modeling, and statistical analysis centered on a neural mechanism can all come together. I’ve seen what one of the top computational neuroscience labs in the world looks like, which has solidified my aspirations for graduate school and beyond. I have a much better idea of what I want to do after I graduate and am genuinely excited about the future.

Working with Dr. Heeger as my mentor has been an enormous privilege. Despite being an extremely accomplished neuroscientist, he is very approachable, consistently meeting with me and helping me make progress on the project. I had a support system that gave me feedback on my work and pushed me forward when I’d hit a wall.

My experience at Macalester really shaped my ability to succeed at the level that’s required for this research. My Macalester professors have done a wonderful job of giving me the technical skills that I need to succeed in my areas of study and many of the abilities I have developed—problem solving, perseverance, organization, and communication, skills so crucial to success in a research setting—were fostered at Macalester.

Whether in academia or industry, I’ve acquired numerous skills that will be imperative in the future. This includes technical skills like programming in MATLAB and R, and using different packages to code stimuli for perceptual psychophysics and analyze raw data and psychometric functions, but also other skills like communicating complex topics to people in different fields with no prior knowledge of my work, and presenting a poster or giving a talk in front of a large audience.

Apart from work, this program has given me the opportunity to live in and explore New York City for 10 weeks. Some of the highlights include going to the Copa America soccer final and seeing Hamilton on Broadway, not to mention Central Park, the restaurants, and museums.

When this research is concluded, I expect to be co-author on a published paper, which as an undergraduate is an opportunity for which I am really grateful.

 

Ionatan’s research was supported by National Science Foundation Research Experience for Undergraduates site grant number DBI 1460880.

 

September 15 2016

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