Gil T
- Research Program Mentor
PhD candidate at University of California Los Angeles (UCLA)
Expertise
Neuroscience, Vision Science/Vision, Virology, Science Communication, Sculpture/3D Art
Bio
Hi! My name is Gil Torten and I am a 5th year Ph.D. student at UCLA studying Neuroscience, with a focus on vision science and the rod photoreceptor. I am passionate about all things neuroscience, and am interested in the way that neurons interact to create a sensory experience of the world. I am also particularly interested in the intersection of art and science - outside of my lab work, I am an artist (check out my IG: @tortenceramics), and an illustrator for a website called Knowing Neurons where I make vision science infographics and illustrations. Beyond that, I have been working with clay for over 12 years and am passionate about sculpture and resin work. I look forward to meeting you and working on some amazing projects! Best, GilProject ideas
Neuroscience of Optical Illusions
Publish a compiled article on the current neuroscience knowledge of optical illusions. This might involve a range of topics from cell biology at the retina level to higher order systems topics aimed at understanding how optical illusions are produced in the brain. The end goal might be a research article compiling different neuroscience concepts associated with optical illusions in the style of a review article.
Neural Circuitry Art Piece
Create a large-scale sculpture or mural aiming to visualize neural circuitry concepts in a visual artistic way. The exact way this might be done could vary, but could include a mural of canonical neural circuits with an 'infographic' style aimed at education. Another alternative might be a children's book to explore these topics with a focus on outreach and education. Yet another possibility could be a large-scale sculpture of a neural circuit (either literal or abstract) aimed at provoking thought in the audience about the way the brain works.