Virtual Guest Speaker Series
Monday 03/09/26 (1:30pm-2:30pm)
"S-index: A Simple Way To Measure Data Sharing Quality, And Why it Matters"
- Presenter: Dr. Shuhan He, assistant professor of medicine, Harvard Medical School, Massachusetts
- To Participate: Attend via Zoom
This talk will introduce the S-index and explain why common measures like citation counts and the h-index can miss what matters, especially when we care about openness, reuse, and reproducibility. We will connect this to the bigger “scientific meta”, including FAIR principles and Data Management and Sharing (DMS) expectations, why incentives often push people away from careful sharing, and practical steps students can take to make their own research easier to trust and build upon.
Tuesday 03/10/26 (1:30pm-2:30pm)
"Open Educational Resources in Neuroscience"
- Presenter: Dr. Thomas Newpher, associate professor, Department of Psychology & Neuroscience, Duke University, North Carolina
- To Participate: Attend via Zoom
A growing number of open educational resources (OERs) are available for neuroscience students and faculty. In this talk Dr. Newpher will discuss OER textbook options and additional OER tools available for activity classrooms. The talk will also cover open datasets and how they can be used for laboratories and course-based undergraduate research experiences.
Wednesday 03/11/26 (1:30pm-2:30pm)
"Bullying in The Brain: A Social Neuroscience Community-engaged Learning Course Initiative"
- Presenter: Dr. Sally Séraphin, assistant professor, Department of Neuroscience, Trinity College, Connecticut
- To Participate: Attend via Zoom
Description: Bullying functions as a chronic social threat, it’s linked to stress-system (HPA/cortisol) dysregulation, measurable brain differences, and poor measures of physical health over the course of development. High-quality friendships provide emotional security and social support that can reduce stress responses to negative experiences and promote resiliencies after peer-victimization. I designed a community-engaged learning program that translates cutting-edge neuroscience on social rejection/affiliation into tangible learning activities for K-12 children.
Thursday 03/12/26 (1:30pm-2:30pm)
"The Mind’s Eye: Does Visual Recall Clarity Predict Exam Performance in Under-graduate Neuroscience Courses?"
- Presenter: Dr. Andrea Nicholas, professor of teaching, Department of Neurobiology & Behavior, University of California, Irvine
- To Participate: Attend via Zoom
This talk will examine how individual differences in the vividness of students’ visual imagery (VVIQ), study behaviors, and subjective vividness of recall clarity related to exam performance using question-level data from summative assessments in large non-major’s taking neuroscience courses. VVIQ and recall clarity are positively correlated, but neither seems to predict answer correctness or overall exam scores. These findings highlight a disconnect between VVIQ scores and success on summative assessments and even overall GPA.
Friday 03/13/26 (1:30pm-2:30pm)
Keynote Presentation
"Generative AI and Your Learning Brain"
- Presenter: Dr. Tommy Lee, post-doctoral teaching fellow, Department of Neuroscience & Behavior, University of Notre Dame, Indiana
- To Participate: Attend Via Zoom
Why do some study habits make learning stick while others fade fast, especially now that generative artificial intelligence (AI) can produce answers instantly? In this talk, we will use the neuroscience of learning and memory to connect learning from mistakes to prediction error, retrieval practice to synaptic plasticity that strengthens recall pathways, and spaced repetition to memory consolidation over time. You will leave with a practical guide for using generative AI to strengthen learning by supporting active practice and spotting misconceptions, without replacing your thinking or compromising academic integrity and critical judgement.