MRI facilities

The lab has access to world-class MRI facilities through the Sir Peter Mansfield Imaging Centre (SPMIC) at the University of Nottigham. Named after Sir Peter Mansfield, one of the 2003 Nobel Prize winners for the discovery of the MRI, the SPMIC includes several research-dedicated MRI scanners that can be used for structural and functional neuroimaging.

• 7 T Philips Achieva MRI scanner
• 3 T Philips Ingenia wide-bore MRI scanner
• 3 T Philips Achieva MRI scanner
• 3 T GE Discovery MR750 MRI scanner

EEG lab

The lab collects EEG data using a 64-channel BioSemi ActiveTwo system. Access to additional shared EEG data acqusition facilities is also available.

Rethinking the cognitive psychology toolkit

Part of the lab’s approach is to innovate from standard methods to ask research questions differently. In some cases this is software development, such as in signal processing (Madan & Spetch, 2012, F1000Research; Ksander, Kark, & Madan, 2018, F1000Research) or surface morphology (Madan & Kensinger, 2016, NeuroImage; Madan, 2019, Brain Informatics). In other instances, this may involve using existing technology in new ways, such as a standard webcam to measure heart rate (Madan, Harrison, & Mathewson, 2018, Psychophysiology) or picture cards from a board game as novel memory stimuli (in preparation). Sometimes this innovation instead takes the form of adopting specialised equipment in new ways, such as a LCD keypad as novel experimental hardware (Madan, 2018, Journal of Open Source Software) or a computer glove to study motor learning (Madan & Singhal, 2021, Frontiers in Psychology).