Dr Carmel Mevorach BA, PhD

• BA (Tel Aviv)
• PhD (Birmingham)

Dr Mevorach completed his undergraduate degree in psychology and computer sciences at Tel Aviv University, Israel. He later moved on to develop a new computerised assessment and training batteries for children and adults with ADHD (together with Professor Tsal and Professor Shalev) following which he arrived at Birmingham to study for a Ph.D. with Professor Glyn Humphreys looking at mechanisms of salience-based selection. He then took a couple of post-doc positions (ESRC, MRC) before taking up a lectureship position in 2010.

Dr Mevorach is the module leader for a third-year module focusing on understanding the neurocognitive effects on attention of both normal aging and brain damage and the attempts to ameliorate them.

Dr Mevorach is accepting applications from graduate students all year long in topics related to the cognitive neuroscience of attention. Students should be knowledgeable about neuroscience, and ideally have some experience with brain imaging or brain stimulation. Students interested in attention intervention projects are also welcome to apply.

Current PhD students:

• Orli Azulai - Orli is an external student (Tel Aviv University) co-supervised with Prof. Lilach Shalev. Her PhD work focuses on perceptual learning in ADHD and controls and the role of attention processes in transfer effects of learning.

Recent PhD students:

• Brandon Ashinoff (PhD) – Parietal contribution to proactive and reactive control in aging.
• Mayra Muller Spaniol (PhD) – Characterising attention control in ASD and the potential benefit of attention training in such individuals.

Dr Mevorach uses a variety of methodologies including brain stimulation (TMS/ tDCS) and brain imaging (fMRI) to better understand brain mechanisms of attention control.

One aspect of his research focuses on the interaction between attention control and implementation in the brain (e.g., Mevorach et al., 2010 JoN) in order to provide a neurocognitive marker of attention performance. Consequently, these markers are used in investigating atypical attention: in patients with brain lesion, neurodevelopmental disorders (such as ADHD or Autism) and normal ageing. By better understanding the circuitry of top-down attentional selection in health he aims to elucidate attentional functioning in these atypical scenarios so that the difficulties and also the way they might be ameliorated can be unveiled.

Other lines of his research focus on how visual attention processes are intertwined with motor control (e.g., Mevorach et al., 2016, JoV) and how they interact with perceptual learning (Chang et al., 2014, Curr Biol). Taken together the work in his lab also paves the way for a more translational approach to how computerised attention training (CPAT, Sampanis et al., 2015) as well as perceptual learning can be beneficially utilised in a variety of contexts (e.g., after stroke, in ADHD, in Autism and in aging).

Find out more at Mevorach Lab