gaby costello

My postdoctoral work tested several key predictions about how the timing and certainty of perceptual decisions are represented in FEF activity.

During my thesis work I had been studying the role of cortical - subcortical interactions in decision-making. The thalamic nuclei from which I recorded are a source of input to oculomotor cortical areas, such as FEF, and our data provide an important piece of evidence supporting the idea that cortical-subcortical loops play a role in oculomotor decision-making

For my postdoctoral project, I did learn to use simultaneous multi-neuron recordings in visual cortex and premotor areas to study the process by which visual information is used to guide behavior.

The long-term goal of my research is to understand the way sensory information is encoded in neurons in the Basal Ganglia (BG) circuitry and is used to guide voluntary behavior. By combining psychophysical, electrophysiological and causal techniques such as electrical stimulation and pharmacological intervention, I will investigate the dynamics of information flow through basal ganglia-thalamocortical circuits and the relationship in a wide range of behavior such as movement control, learning, and decision-making.

During my thesis work I had been studying the role of cortical -subcortical interactions in decision-making.