Wilbur Wang

I am working with Dr. Tony Ro, Associate Professor of Psychology here at Rice, on the neuropsychological aspects of visual attention and eye movements. This goal is achieved by conducting both cognitive behavioral studies as well as neural studies, which often entail using transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI).

My work this past academic year has involved examining the redundancy gain and inhibition of return effects, as well as exploring the importance of the frontal eye fields (FEF) in producing or delaying saccades, which are fast, conjugate movements of the eyes. Eye movements play a key role in understanding human attention. During my time in the lab, I have learned how to operate equipment like eye-tracking devices and TMS devices.

In April, I traveled with Dr. Tony Ro’s lab group to San Francisco to participate in the Annual Cognitive Neuroscience Society (CNS) Conference. I plan to present the results of my current research at the 2007 CNS conference.

I am a freshman at Rice University, and a member of Wiess College. I am from sunny and beautiful California, and I graduated from Archbishop Mitty High School in San Jose as salutatorian of my class.

I am a biochemistry and psychology double major, since I have always been interested in how the mind and brain work. I am particularly interested in human consciousness, and the mind-brain problem. Is mind created by the neural workings of the brain? Combined with my humanitarian interests, I plan on pursuing a MD/PhD in neurosciences after I graduate from Rice.

The Century Scholars program was what tipped the scales for me during college selection time. Very few institutions offer the opportunity for one to do research with a faculty mentor. Being exposed to a research environment early on in my academic career has led me to consider doing neuroscience research after Rice. I have also established a great relationship with Dr. Ro and he has been an influential figure for me with his exceptional guidance and mentoring.