The team

Lucas Sjulson, MD, PhD

Principal investigator

Neuroscientist interested in the neural basis of reward-guided decision-making and drug addiction. Also a psychiatrist interested in developing novel gene-based treatments for clinical use. Father of three children allegedly too young to learn Muay Thai and microcontroller programming who are making progress nonetheless.

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CV

Soyoun Kim, PhD

Post-Doc

Systems neuroscientist interested in the decision process. Wanting to understand the role of corticostriatal circuits in goal-directed behaviors. Loves hiking and watching movies.

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José Moreno-Larios, PhD

Post-Doc

Electrical engineer who switched to optical physics and finally neuroscience. Keen to apply novel imaging and data processing techniques for in vivo calcium imaging in mice, as well other computational analysis tools for research. Likes fiddling with Linux systems, visiting museums, and cooking.

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Mitch Farrell, PhD

Post-Doc

Behavioral/systems neuroscientist curious about hippocampal/basal ganglia interactions in drug addiction. Combines large-scale neural recordings with intravenous drug self-administration. Loves playing basketball and longboarding.

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Eliezyer Fermino de Oliveira

Ph.D. Student

Engineer and systems neuroscientist looking to untangle basal ganglia circuits. Focused on how projections, molecular identity, and functional response shape neural assemblies. Likes to learn about new cultures and food, halal street food connoisseur, will try every restaurant in NYC.

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Kelly Clemenza

Ph.D. Student

Interested in studying genetically encoded approaches to modulating maladaptive behaviors in psychiatric disease. An NYC native and avid birder. A very occasional artist in various mediums.

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Aleksandra Fryc

Ph.D. Student

Interested in the circuitry of neuropsychiatric disorders and learning techniques to study their activity. Specific new interest in hippocampal ripple behavior. Loves trying new recipes and drawing.

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Duy Tran

M.D./Ph.D. Student

Joint MSTP student between the Sjulson and Batista-Brito labs, interested in decision making and impulsive behaviors. Specifically, how PFC activity contributes to the neural circuitry underlying these behaviors. Loves food and nature.

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Matt Chin

M.D./Ph.D. Student

MSTP student interested in the neuroscience of motivation and cognition, computational modeling, and applications of circuit neuroscience to brain-machine interfaces and neuromodulation therapies. Likes biking, fitness, nature, and going to concerts.

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Julia Benville

M.D./Ph.D. Student

MSTP student interested in the neural circuitry of substance use disorders. Currently exploring the mPFC and hippocampus' relation to how contextual states influence drug-seeking behavior. Loves fitness, nutrition, travel, and listening to podcasts.

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Alumni

Season Qiu

Research trainee, 2021-2023

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Current position: PhD student, Neuroscience Program, Rutgers.

Scott McElroy

Research trainee, 2020-2022

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Current position: PhD student, Neural and Behavioral Science Program, SUNY Downstate.

Yi Tian

Research trainee, 2019-2021

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Current position: PhD student, Biomedical Engineering Program, University of Michigan.

Adam Sugi

Research trainee, 2019-2020

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Current position: PhD student, Kerr lab, Max Planck Institute, Bonn, Germany.

 

Daniela Cassataro

Research trainee, 2011-2018

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Current position: PhD student, Callaway lab, University of California San Diego.

Andrea Cumpelik

Research trainee, 2014-2018

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Current position: PhD student, Csicsvari lab, Institute of Science and Technology, Austria.

Edith Chung

Research trainee, 2018-2019

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Current position: PhD student, Trenholm lab, McGill University.

J. Luke Norena, BA

Research Assistant, 2018-2019

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Current position: PhD program in clinical psychology, Palo Alto University

Gabriel Ben-Dor, MD

Medical student

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Current position: Combined neurology/psychiatry residency, NYU Langone Medical Center.

Jacob Kerr

High school student, summer 2019

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Current position: Cornell Engineering

Simon Fridlyand

High school volunteer, summer 2018

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Maesoumeh Mohammadkhani

Undergraduate volunteer

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Current position: data scientist, MediaMath