Julia N
- Research Program Mentor

PhD at Harvard University

Expertise

Neuroscience, Behavior, Sensory perception, Working memory, Artificial Intelligence

Bio

Hello, I'm Julia! I received my PhD in neuroscience from the Program in Neuroscience at Harvard University. My interests lie in how complex adaptive systems, such as the brain, process information and give rise to flexible behavior. In my thesis work, I study how a circuit's properties relate to its computational abilities using a combination of two-photon calcium imaging, novel behavioral tasks, and computational modeling. I'm a Midwest girl born and raised, but I have since lived in Lisbon, Portugal; Tokyo, Japan; and Boston, MA. I love traveling and exploring new places and cultures both within and outside of the United States. In my spare time, I enjoy baking bread and pastries from scratch, brewing mead, painting, and lifting weights. I adore being out in nature, and I'm an avid hiker and cyclist. I also have two adorable and clever pet rats, Marzipan and Polvorón! I've been lucky enough to have had a number of wonderful mentors throughout my career, and I want to pass along the guidance and support I've been given to the next generation of scientists.

Project ideas

Project ideas are meant to help inspire student thinking about their own project. Students are in the driver seat of their research and are free to use any or none of the ideas shared by their mentors.

Predictive coding in the cortex

Predictive coding is a theory of brain function in which the brain is continually generating and updating a model of the world based on context and previous information and experience. In this schema, not only does the brain receive and process sensory input, it also forms expectations or "predictions" about the nature of the input we receive, thus altering our perception of the world. In this project, one can explore the kind of cortical architecture that is necessary to support theories of predictive coding.

Coding skills

Python, Matlab

Languages I know

Vietnamese

Teaching experience

As a college student, I worked as a tutor in biology, neuroscience, and statistics. I helped individual students work through homework and prepare for exams. During graduate school, I have mentored both master's students and laboratory technicians through developing a project, analyzing data, and applying for graduate school. Additionally, I've served as a teaching fellow for three courses, covering Matlab-based programming and modeling, statistics, and neuroscience. These experiences involved both preparing for lectures and working with students one-on-one during office hours.

Credentials

Work experience

Genuity Science (2021 - 2021)

Artificial Intelligence Research Intern

Champalimaud Centre for the Unknown (2014 - 2016)

Research Technician

Education

Harvard University

BA Bachelor of Arts (2014)

Neurobiology