Lab Members
Principal Investigator
Michael Mack, PhD
Associate Professor Department of Psychology Ph.D. in Psychology, Vanderbilt University, 2011 M.Sc. in Computer Science, Michigan State, 2005 B.Sc. in Computer Science, Michigan State, 2003 View CV |
Want to join the team?We are always looking for motivated undergraduates or recent grads interested in research experience. Visit this page for more details. |
Postdoctoral Fellows
Frida Printzlau
B.A. in Psychology and Philosophy, University of Oxford
Ph.D. in Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford
Postdoc, University of Toronto
Frida is a postdoc with the Mack Lab and the Fukuda lab. She is interested in flexible cognition and goal-directed behaviour. In her research, she uses a combination of behavioural methods, neuroimaging, and eye-tracking to study attention and working memory, and how they are modulated by learning.
frida.printzlau@utoronto.ca
B.A. in Psychology and Philosophy, University of Oxford
Ph.D. in Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford
Postdoc, University of Toronto
Frida is a postdoc with the Mack Lab and the Fukuda lab. She is interested in flexible cognition and goal-directed behaviour. In her research, she uses a combination of behavioural methods, neuroimaging, and eye-tracking to study attention and working memory, and how they are modulated by learning.
frida.printzlau@utoronto.ca
Sagana Vijayarajah
B.Sc. in Psychology, York University
M.A. in Psychology, University of Toronto
Ph.D. in Psychology, University of Toronto
Sagana is a postdoc with the Mack Lab and Dr. Meg Schlichting's lab. She is interested in exploring the developmental changes in memory that occur from childhood to adulthood and how they impact decision-making and learning strategies. In her spare time, she likes to bike, paint, and spend time with family and friends.
sagana.vijayarajah@mail.utoronto.ca
B.Sc. in Psychology, York University
M.A. in Psychology, University of Toronto
Ph.D. in Psychology, University of Toronto
Sagana is a postdoc with the Mack Lab and Dr. Meg Schlichting's lab. She is interested in exploring the developmental changes in memory that occur from childhood to adulthood and how they impact decision-making and learning strategies. In her spare time, she likes to bike, paint, and spend time with family and friends.
sagana.vijayarajah@mail.utoronto.ca
Graduate Students
Gaeun Son
B.A. in Psychology, Yonsei University
M.S. in Cognitive Science, Yonsei University
Ph.D. Student, University of Toronto
Gaeun is a PhD student with the BWLab and Mack Lab. Her research interest is in the interaction between perception and memory. During her Master’s, she worked on how ensemble perception impacts on visual working memory with Dr. Sang Chul Chong. Now she is expanding her research into various aspects of perception and memory in a realistic visual environment.
gaeun.son@mail.utoronto.ca
B.A. in Psychology, Yonsei University
M.S. in Cognitive Science, Yonsei University
Ph.D. Student, University of Toronto
Gaeun is a PhD student with the BWLab and Mack Lab. Her research interest is in the interaction between perception and memory. During her Master’s, she worked on how ensemble perception impacts on visual working memory with Dr. Sang Chul Chong. Now she is expanding her research into various aspects of perception and memory in a realistic visual environment.
gaeun.son@mail.utoronto.ca
Emily Heffernan
B.A.Sc. in Electrical Engineering, Queen’s University
M.A. in Experimental Psychology, University of Toronto
Ph.D. Student, University of Toronto
After a brief stint in tech after completing her undergraduate degree, Emily chose to return to academia to pursue her passion for learning and teaching. She completed her MA at Mack Lab in 2020 and is currently working on her PhD. Emily is interested in combining computational models and neuroimaging data to better understand how we learn. Her research is fuelled by large amounts of tea, hiking/camping trips, and frequent yoga sessions.
emily.heffernan@mail.utoronto.ca
B.A.Sc. in Electrical Engineering, Queen’s University
M.A. in Experimental Psychology, University of Toronto
Ph.D. Student, University of Toronto
After a brief stint in tech after completing her undergraduate degree, Emily chose to return to academia to pursue her passion for learning and teaching. She completed her MA at Mack Lab in 2020 and is currently working on her PhD. Emily is interested in combining computational models and neuroimaging data to better understand how we learn. Her research is fuelled by large amounts of tea, hiking/camping trips, and frequent yoga sessions.
emily.heffernan@mail.utoronto.ca
Mateja Perovic
Hon. B.Sc. in Psychology, Leiden University
M.A. in Psychology, University of Toronto
Ph.D. Student, University of Toronto
Mateja's primary research interest is in leveraging computational models to study how category learning varies across the menstrual cycle. She has previously studied effects of ovarian hormones on cognition in the context of polycystic ovary syndrome, and early estradiol deprivation. Her secondary research interest is in psychosocial stress and cognitive aging. She primarily studies this in the context of early life adversity and dementia risk. She spends her free time reading, hiking, and petting as many dogs as possible.
mateja.perovic@mail.utoronto.ca
Hon. B.Sc. in Psychology, Leiden University
M.A. in Psychology, University of Toronto
Ph.D. Student, University of Toronto
Mateja's primary research interest is in leveraging computational models to study how category learning varies across the menstrual cycle. She has previously studied effects of ovarian hormones on cognition in the context of polycystic ovary syndrome, and early estradiol deprivation. Her secondary research interest is in psychosocial stress and cognitive aging. She primarily studies this in the context of early life adversity and dementia risk. She spends her free time reading, hiking, and petting as many dogs as possible.
mateja.perovic@mail.utoronto.ca
Melisa Gumus
Hon. B.Sc. in Neuroscience and Mathematics, University of Toronto
M.S. from Institute of Medical of Science, University of Toronto & Tanz Centre for Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases
Ph.D. Student, University of Toronto
Melisa is an incoming graduate student for Fall 2021! In her Master's, Melisa investigated the link between cognitive outcomes and structural/functional brain changes in post-concussion and CTE patients, being supervised by Dr. Carmela Tartaglia and collaborating with Dr. Mack. She is also part of the DTI team at the Mack Lab, that studies the interaction between differences in white matter tracts and learning performance during rapid categorization using computational models. She has been part of the lab since the beginning and previously served as a lab manager. She believes that math can solve anything, even the complexity of the human brain.
melisa.gumus@mail.utoronto.ca
Hon. B.Sc. in Neuroscience and Mathematics, University of Toronto
M.S. from Institute of Medical of Science, University of Toronto & Tanz Centre for Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases
Ph.D. Student, University of Toronto
Melisa is an incoming graduate student for Fall 2021! In her Master's, Melisa investigated the link between cognitive outcomes and structural/functional brain changes in post-concussion and CTE patients, being supervised by Dr. Carmela Tartaglia and collaborating with Dr. Mack. She is also part of the DTI team at the Mack Lab, that studies the interaction between differences in white matter tracts and learning performance during rapid categorization using computational models. She has been part of the lab since the beginning and previously served as a lab manager. She believes that math can solve anything, even the complexity of the human brain.
melisa.gumus@mail.utoronto.ca
Dory (Yongzhen) Xie
Hon. B.Sc. in Psychology, University of Toronto
Ph.D. Student, University of Toronto
Dory is interested in the neural mechanisms underlying concept learning and changes in concept representations overtime. She wants to apply my understanding to improve category learning models in the future. In her spare time, she enjoys creating digital arts, playing video games, and studying insects.
yongzhen.xie@mail.utoronto.ca
Hon. B.Sc. in Psychology, University of Toronto
Ph.D. Student, University of Toronto
Dory is interested in the neural mechanisms underlying concept learning and changes in concept representations overtime. She wants to apply my understanding to improve category learning models in the future. In her spare time, she enjoys creating digital arts, playing video games, and studying insects.
yongzhen.xie@mail.utoronto.ca
Lab Manager
Emily (Emmy) Wang
Hon. B.Sc. in Psychology, University of Toronto
Emmy recently graduated from the University of Toronto with a specialization in Psychology and a minor in Environmental Studies. She is interested in learning about memory and well-being across the lifespan, and hopes to pursue graduate studies in clinical psychology. In her free time, Emmy enjoys painting and going on picnics with her dog.
emilyq.wang@mail.utoronto.ca
Hon. B.Sc. in Psychology, University of Toronto
Emmy recently graduated from the University of Toronto with a specialization in Psychology and a minor in Environmental Studies. She is interested in learning about memory and well-being across the lifespan, and hopes to pursue graduate studies in clinical psychology. In her free time, Emmy enjoys painting and going on picnics with her dog.
emilyq.wang@mail.utoronto.ca
Research Assistants
Janice Jianqi Hou
University of Toronto, 3rd Year Undergraduate
Psychology Specialist, Statistics Major
Janice is eager to explore the factors that affect people’s learning ability and memory. She is also interested in dealing with raw data whilst learning new lines of code (nerd). In her free time, she loves watching crime movies, listening to K-pop songs and making plans.
janice.hou@mail.utoronto.ca
University of Toronto, 3rd Year Undergraduate
Psychology Specialist, Statistics Major
Janice is eager to explore the factors that affect people’s learning ability and memory. She is also interested in dealing with raw data whilst learning new lines of code (nerd). In her free time, she loves watching crime movies, listening to K-pop songs and making plans.
janice.hou@mail.utoronto.ca
Carleigh Pace-Tonna
University of Toronto, 4th Year Undergraduate
Neuroscience Major, Psychology Major
Carleigh is a former ROP student at the Mack Lab and am now a volunteer RA. She is interested in understanding how people learn and remember information. In her free time, she enjoys playing violin, drawing, writing scripts, and filmmaking.
carleigh.pacetonna@mail.utoronto.ca
University of Toronto, 4th Year Undergraduate
Neuroscience Major, Psychology Major
Carleigh is a former ROP student at the Mack Lab and am now a volunteer RA. She is interested in understanding how people learn and remember information. In her free time, she enjoys playing violin, drawing, writing scripts, and filmmaking.
carleigh.pacetonna@mail.utoronto.ca
Nahal Alizadeh Saghati
University of Toronto, 4th Year Undergraduate
Psychology Major, Human Biology Major
Nahal is a fourth year undergraduate student majoring in psychology and human biology. She is currently taking an individual research project focusing on gist-guided attention using fMRI as she evaluates the role of rapid scene categorization in visual search.
nahal.alizadehsaghati@mail.utoronto.ca
University of Toronto, 4th Year Undergraduate
Psychology Major, Human Biology Major
Nahal is a fourth year undergraduate student majoring in psychology and human biology. She is currently taking an individual research project focusing on gist-guided attention using fMRI as she evaluates the role of rapid scene categorization in visual search.
nahal.alizadehsaghati@mail.utoronto.ca
Athanasios Bourganos
University of Toronto, Research Assistant
Hon. B.Sc. in Neuroscience, University of Toronto
After completing his B.Sc. in neuroscience at the University of Toronto, Athanasios joined the Mack Lab to diversify his research experience. He plans to pursue graduate studies and is interested in studying normal and altered perceptions of time, as well as the effects of visuospatial temporal metaphors on time perception. Athanasios enjoys programming, 3D modelling, and adventuring outdoors!
athan.bourganos@mail.utoronto.ca
University of Toronto, Research Assistant
Hon. B.Sc. in Neuroscience, University of Toronto
After completing his B.Sc. in neuroscience at the University of Toronto, Athanasios joined the Mack Lab to diversify his research experience. He plans to pursue graduate studies and is interested in studying normal and altered perceptions of time, as well as the effects of visuospatial temporal metaphors on time perception. Athanasios enjoys programming, 3D modelling, and adventuring outdoors!
athan.bourganos@mail.utoronto.ca
Lab Alumni |
Collaborators |
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Graduate Students and Postdoctoral Fellows:
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