This past weekend, members of our lab trekked a 4-mile hike on the Shady Canyon Trail, located less than 10-minutes away from the UC Irvine campus. Sunny weather, fresh air, morning exercise, insightful conversations… what nicer way is there to spend a Saturday morning?

Top (left to right): Mike, Vaisakh, Liz, and Olivia. Bottom (left to right): Theo, Alina, Nikki, and Daniela. Dogs (left to right): Pepper and Dash

Congratulations to postdoc Mike Starrett Ambrose, who was appointed to the UCI Training in Translational ADRD Neuroscience (TITAN) T32 training grant. As a trainee funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) National Institute on Aging (NIA), Mike will learn about current models of and research into Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias (ADRD) while also conducting independent ADRD research in the Spatial Neuroscience Lab.

Chrastil Lab publishes paper, “Understanding differences in wayfinding strategies,” in Topics in Cognitive Science (2021).

Authors: Hegarty, M., He, C., Boone, A. P., Yu, S., Jacobs, E. G., & Chrastil, E. R.

A couple of the lab members got into the Halloween spirit and carved some pumpkins in Aldrich Park over the weekend. The weather was perfect, and it was a lot of fun to have a small hangout with lots of pumpkins, delicious pumpkin pie, and Fall vibes.

Pictured (left to right): Lily, Vaisakh, Mike, Daniela, Alina.

It’s time to welcome all the newcomers to the lab!

Alina Tu worked in Dr. Chrastil’s lab as an undergrad RA and completed her senior honors thesis on the relationship between hippocampal subfield volumes and individual differences in navigation ability. Although she is not new to the lab, she’s now working in a new position as Lab Manager, managing 20+ RAs. Congrats, Alina!

Daniela Cossio transitioned from her Lab Manager position at the Medical University of South Carolina to her Ph.D. program here at UC Irvine to study aging, sex differences, and the mechanisms underlying spatial learning and memory. Her background with rodent models will definitely bring a unique perspective to our lab. Excited to have you here, Daniela!

Erica Ward is also a new Ph.D. student coming from CSU Fullerton through the Mathematical, Computational, and Systems Biology Program. She aims to use her computational and model-building skills to understand the neural processes behind human spatial ability. We’re supporting you, Erica!

Marjan Rashidi recently joined our lab from Iran University of Science and Technology with an MSc in Architectural Engineering. She now plans to research human decision-making behaviors in spatially complex environments at the Spatial Neuroscience Lab. You got it, Marjan!

Vaisakh Puthusseryppady, Ph.D. traveled from the UK after finishing his Ph.D. from the University of East Anglia, where he analyzed factors that contribute to spatial disorientation in patients with Alzheimer’s disease. Now, he’ll be working with behavioral testing, neuroimaging, and VR to further understand spatial ability and AD risk. Looking forward to it, Vaisakh!

Rob and Bailey started as Lab Managers in 2019, when the Spatial Neuroscience Lab moved from UCSB to UCI. They established the lab’s foundation, spearheaded multiple research projects, and created a stimulating and inclusive environment for the lab to grow and thrive. With Bailey managing all of the RAs and Rob hosting weekly coding workshops, they’ve both made significant contributions to the lab’s organization and flow.

Thank you for these wonderful two years with the Spatial Neuroscience Lab. We wish you both the best of luck navigating graduate school!