Research Interests

I’m interested in the organization of the human brain, and how cognitive function maps onto structure in cortex. The surface of visual cortex is covered by a series of topographic maps of the visual field, which can be relatively easily revealed by fMRI. These maps can then serve as landmarks by which to guide the interpretation of functional activation patterns produced by perceptual or cognitive tasks. By studying these relationships between structure and function, I hope to better understand both the computational processes that underlie our experience of the world around us, and how these conscious experiences might differ from one person to another.

Curriculum Vitae [pdf]

Selected Publications

Swisher, J.D., Halko, M.A., Merabet, L.B., McMains, S.A., and Somers, D.C. (2007) Visual topography of human intraparietal sulcus. Journal of Neuroscience 27(20):5326-37.

Merabet, L.B., Swisher, J.D., McMains, S.A., Halko, M.A., Amedi, A., Pascual-Leone, A., and Somers, D.C. (2007) Combined activation and deactivation of visual cortex during tactile sensory processing. Journal of Neurophysiology 97(2):1633-41.