This PhD fellowship offers the opportunity to explore the neural processing of how we see, understand, and remember objects in the world.

When we walk down a familiar street we have strong expectations about what kind of things will come into view, with those predictions being met or not. Later, it’s likely we’ll remembered many of those things, although others will be forgotten. Our semantic knowledge is at the core of all of this - without accessing semantics, we cannot act appropriately or know what decision to make. We can’t learn what is typically found in different environments, cannot have meaningful predictions about the future, or form interpretable memories. This makes semantics one of the most essential aspects of cognition, and the key to understanding the dynamic interactions between our predictions, perception and memories.

The broad issues that the PhD could address include how our environmental context changes the visual and semantic processing of objects; how semantic knowledge is represented in the brain; how semantic representations are warped by context; or, what are the brain mechanisms supporting different aspects of vision, semantics and episodic memory. Projects that explore these issues in real-world contexts or in lab-based settings are both possible.

These projects will use a variety of techniques from cognitive neuroscience, including EEG, mobile EEG, augmented and virtual reality, and eye tracking, and utilization of computational and cognitive models. For more information, or to discuss alternative topics in more detail, please feel free to contact Dr. Clarke via email.

Requirements:

We are looking for candidates with an interest in object recognition, human memory and cognitive neuroscience, who are able to think critically, integrate different perspectives, and come up with new ideas, and who are persistent in finding solutions to challenges. Strong computational and statistical skills are highly valued. Applicants should, as a minimum, have an Upper Second Class undergraduate degree in Psychology or a related field, but preferably a First Class undergraduate degree or a Master’s distinction in Psychology or a related field, for example Cognitive Science, Neuroscience, Computer science. To apply, please include your CV (2 pages maximum) and a cover letter (2 pages maximum) detailing why you are a suitable candidate, any relevant background or research experience, and a description of your research interests.

Applicants without an existing PhD application with us should apply online through the Doctoral College online form:https://warwick.ac.uk/pgapply

Applicants who already have an existing PhD application with us should instead complete the online form:https://warwick.ac.uk/fac/sci/psych/fellowships/applications

For questions regarding this PhD project, please contact Dr Alex Clarke ( ).

Closing date: Sunday 16 March 2025 at 23.59

Representative publications:

Pandya S, Nicholls VI, Krugliak A, Davis S & Clarke A. (2024). Context and semantic object properties interact to support recognition memory. Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology.

von Seth J, Nicholls VI, Tyler LK & Clarke A. (2023). Recurrent connectivity supports higher-level visual and semantic object representations in the brain. Communications Biology.

Krugliak A, Draschkow D, Võ MLH, & Clarke A. (2023). Semantic object processing is modulated by prior scene context. Language, Cognition and Neuroscience.

Clarke A, Crivelli-Decker JE, & Ranganath C. (2022). Contextual expectations shape cortical reinstatement of sensory representations. Journal of Neuroscience, 42 (30).

Krugliak A & Clarke A. (2022). Towards real-world neuroscience using mobile EEG and augmented reality. Scientific Reports 12, Article number: 2291.

Clarke, A., & Tyler, L.K. (2015). Understanding What We See: How We Derive Meaning From Vision. Trends in Cognitive Sciences. 19(11): 677-687.