The NOMIS & Science Young Explorer Award recognizes outstanding early-career researchers. I-LABS faculty, Dr. Christina Zhao is a finalist for the 2024 NOMIS & Science Young Explorer Award. This prestigious award recognizes early-career researchers who ask fundamental questions at the intersection of the life and social sciences. The award recognizes scientists doing interdisciplinary work that promotes cross-field collaboration and researchers … Read More
Accelerated brain maturation shown in teens post-pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic produced dramatic changes in the daily lives of adolescents, and these changes were particularly detrimental for teens’ academic, social, and emotional development. Using brain measures (Magnetic Resonance Imaging, or MRI), I-LABS scientists studied the structure of the brain in teens ranging in age from 9 to 20 years, both before and after the pandemic. Brain maturation is … Read More
New research compares speech and music in babies’ environment
First controlled study on speech vs. music yields surprises I-LABS scientists sought a snapshot of infants’ auditory environments. Unlike previous research which documents the amount of speech and language that infants hear, no previous work looked at the amount of music infants hear. Results showed that infants hear more spoken language than music, with the gap widening as the babies get … Read More
New research: A “social ensemble” of interactions in infancy predicts future language development
New insights into the neurobiology of language learning Whether you’re in Tokyo, Madrid, or Seattle, seeing a parent interact with a baby produces a heartwarming scene – the parent uses a high-pitched voice (often called ‘parentese’), reacts positively to the baby’s babbling and gestures, and often makes eye contact and smiles. Babies are riveted by this “social ensemble.” But why? … Read More
Children are not born with racial biases
New article unpacks how children experience and develop racial biases In a special issue of Daedalus, leading scholars, scientists, and policymakers examine the science behind implicit bias—stereotyped associations that we are not consciously aware of but that reinforce inequality in the world. “Understanding Implicit Bias: Insights & Innovations” features research and perspectives from a range of areas, including antidiscrimination law, early education, … Read More
Neva Corrigan interviewed for New Scientist magazine
New Scientist interview on study showing adolescent brains changed in unexpected ways during Covid-19 lockdown Dr. Neva Corrigan was the lead author on new research about the structural changes in adolescent brains pre- and post-pandemic. As reported in the popular science magazine New Scientist (Jan. 2024), the data showed that cortical thickness in teenagers, following the pandemic, was abnormally reduced across widespread areas … Read More
New research supported by the Institute for Learning & Brain Sciences reveals differences in how white and Black parents talk to their children about race.
In the United States, Black and white parents have different conversations with their children about race. In a multi-university study spanning 11 cities across the United States, Dr. Onnie Rogers and a group of researchers at Northwestern University, teamed up with Dr. Katharine Scott, Wake Forest University, Dr. Andrew Meltzoff, University of Washington, and Dr. David Chae, Tulane University, to … Read More
AI signals mirror how the brain listens
When we listen to spoken words, the sound enters our ears and is converted into electrical signals. Those signals then travel through the brainstem and into the auditory processing regions of the brain. Christina Zhao at I-LABS and colleagues at UC Berkeley and Johns Hopkins traced that path in the brain using EEG electrodes placed on listeners’ scalps. Participants listened … Read More
I-LABS researchers have discovered a connection between conversational turn taking with infants, and their brain maturation related to language development
Have you ever wondered what exactly is going on in the brains of babies as you return their coos and chat through the millionth diaper change? Turns out, quite a lot. Researchers at I-LABS looked at how the structure of babies’ brains change in response to early language input. Their findings, published in the Journal of Neuroscience, explored the effects … Read More
Identification with ‘all humanity’ predicts willingness to contribute to health of others.
Psychology plays a considerable role in human health. New research shows that the level to which individuals identify with ‘all humanity’ is a reliable predictor of their willingness to contribute to the health of others. The COVID-19 pandemic has been one of the most pressing challenges to global society in the early 21st century. Research Scientist Dr. Rodolfo Cortes Barragan … Read More