Introduction to Cognitive Neuroscience: From Molecule to Behaviour

label Diverse autorenew 2025-09-29, 17:01 history_edu Maria Dumitru
How do you perceive things and act on them? How do you speak and listen? How do you remember? What goes wrong when you suffer from aphasia, Alzheimer's or Parkinson's disease? Answers to questions like these can be found in the brain: the most complex, intricate and fascinating organ in the universe. Over the past few decades, various scientific disciplines - including psychology, neurology, physics, biology and genetics - have joined forces to try to understand the neural basis of human perception, action, speech, comprehension, memory and other cognitive processes, from molecule to behaviour. This research enterprise, known as cognitive neuroscience, seeks to understand the biological underpinnings of cognition and behaviour in terms of explanatory principles on the smallest scale (molecules and neurons) to the largest scale (brain networks). At the Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour at Radboud University Nijmegen, over 500 researchers use a variety of cutting-edge techniques, such as electrophysiology, brain imaging and genetics methods, to unravel cognition and behaviour and its breakdown as a result of stroke or neurodegenerative diseases. Nijmegen is at the forefront of cognitive neuroscience research and the Donders Institute is one of the world's leading institutes in this field. The summer school course on cognitive neuroscience aims to provide a thorough introduction to this exciting research field in general and to the research conducted by Nijmegen in particular. Faculty members are world-renowned experts, who are both principal investigators at the Donders Institute and lecturers for the corresponding research master at the Donders Graduate School for Cognitive Neuroscience. Following a general introduction, we will discuss four specific topics that correspond to the major research themes at the Donders Institute and to the educational tracks of the research master and the graduate school: language and communication; perception, action, and control; plasticity and memory; and brain networks and neuronal communication. You will also be provided with hands-on demonstrations in research labs at the Donders Institute. After completing this course, you will have gained a basic understanding of cognition and behaviour in terms of the basic operating principles of the brain. You will also understand basic operating principles at smaller and larger scales in the brain and apply these principles to the breakdown of cognition and behaviour due to stroke or neurodegenerative diseases.

Period
11-08-2014 - 15-08-2014 (1 weeks)

Target group
Advanced Bachelors students and graduates in the field of Cognitive, Behavioural, Biomedical, Language or Natural Science or related disciplines and Masters students/aspiring PhD candidates outside the field of Cognitive Neuroscience.

Course aim
After this course you will be able to:1. Analyse cognition and behaviour in terms of the basic operating principles of the brain2. Relate explanatory principles at small-scale brain levels, including molecules and neurons, to larger-scale levels, including brain networks
3. Explain cognitive and behavioural disorders such as aphasia, Alzheimer disease and Parkinsons disease in terms of these operating principles



Credits
2.0 ECTS credits

Course fee
EUR 400[Convert to USD]The course fee includes the registration fee, course materials, access to library and IT facilities, coffee/tea, lunch, and a number of social activities. The fee does not include accommodation, travel costs, dinner, insurance and other costs. Discounts10% discount for early bird applicants. The early bird deadline is 1 April 2014.15% discount for students and PhD candidates from Radboud University and partner universities

Course leader
Prof. Dr. A.P.A. (Ardi) Roelofs, Director of the Master of Cognitive Neuroscience programmeDr. C.F.A. (Christian) Dller, Spokesperson for the Donders Graduate School for Cognitive Neuroscience, Radboud University

Radboud University
Address: P.O Box 9102 Nijmegen
Postal code: 6500 HC
City: Nijmegen
Country: Netherlands
Website: http://www.ru.nl/radboudsummerschool/
E-mail: radboudsummerschool@ru.nl
Phone: +31 (0)24 8187706