Public Lecture and Open Evening

The man who mistook his neuropsychologist for a popstar: an exploration of the wonders of the human brain

Date: Wednesday, 4 March 2009
Time: 6pm
Venue: Great Hall, University House, Stratford Campus

Dr Ashok Jansari, Principal Lecturer in Cognitive Neurosychology

Programme

6pm Introduction by Professor David Rose, Dean of School of Psychology.

6.15 - 7.15pm Public lecture: The man who mistook his neuropsychologist for a popstar: an exploration of the wonders of the human brain by Dr Ashok Jansari.

7.15 -8pm Refreshments in the Cafe on the Green, Arthur Edwards Building, alongside information displays, research posters and stands from organisations working with individuals with brain-related disorders, such as: The London Brain Injury Centre, The Epilepsy Trust, Saneline and Headway.

8-9pm Panel discussion with Dr Ashok Jansari on 'Living With Brain Damage' in Arthur Edwards Building AE.1.01 Dr Jansari's research patients have also been invited.

Public Lecture Synopsis

The human brain is probably the most complex system that is known to man; this system allows us to remember what was said two minutes ago, visually recognise our families and make decisions on what to buy from vareity of options when in a supermarket. Despite this complexity, we take the brain's function for granted.

In this lecture Dr Ashok Jansari will take us on a journey from the earliest thoughts on the brain to the most recent findings, primarily by describing specific individuals who, following brain damage, are unable to do the things those things that most of us take for granted. What does one man’s ability to recognise his wife from her shoes, but not her face, or another man mistaking his neuropsychologist for George Michael, tell us about how we recognise faces?

Dr Jansari will also address a very new area being researched, which is the impact of meditation on the brain. Following the lecture there is an opportunity to hear directly from some of the people who experience conditions such as face-blindness as well as visit facilities at our School of Psychology.

This public lecture is part of the ‘Dana Alliance for Brain Initiatives’ International Brain Awareness Week. It will be followed by information displays by organisations involved in brain-related work in society (e.g. Rehab UK, Headway, the Epilepsy Trust, Saneline), demonstrations of research techniques and a chance to talk to two individuals about their experiences of living with brain damage are planned.

Dr Jansari received his degree in Experimental Psychology from King’s College Cambridge and then his doctorate at the University of Sussex where he conducted research on memory and amnesia. Following a two year postdoctoral fellowship in the United States at the University of Iowa Hospitals & Clinics, he created an extensive research programme looking at different aspects of memory loss including the development of rehabilitation regimes, the creation of a Virtual Reality assessment of brain damage and impairments in face-recognition (known as ‘prosopagnosia’ or face-blindness).

Recently he has conducted research into the intriguing phenomenon of ‘synaesthesia’ or cross-sensory perception; in this condition, an individual upon hearing the word ‘Monday’ will claim to see the colour red!

Currently, he is also involved in an international project investigating the impact that meditation could have on specific brain functions. In 2004, he was awarded the Cermak Award for best research in memory disorders by the International Neuropsychological Society and in 2008, he was awarded a Media Fellowship by the British Association for the Advancement of Science. He has been a contributor to the BBC World Service, a television documentary in 2008 entitled ‘My Strange Brain’ and is currently writing an undergraduate textbook on cognitive neuropsychology.

All welcome, admission FREE.

For further details and to confirm your attendance, contact our events team on 020 8223 2884 or events@uel.ac.uk

For travel information to our Stratford campus see:www.uel.ac.uk/about_uel/why_uel/stratford

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