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INFORMATION FOR

    Anirvan Nandy, PhD

    Assistant Professor of Neuroscience and of Psychology
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    About

    Titles

    Assistant Professor of Neuroscience and of Psychology

    Biography

    I have a broad background in signal processing, psychophysics, and computational modeling from pre-doctoral and doctoral work. My doctoral research resulted in the first comprehensive model of visual crowding, a ubiquitous phenomenon in peripheral vision that severely degrades our ability to identify objects in clutter. Crowding is especially detrimental in patients with central vision loss. We also demonstrated that the oculomotor system has a remarkable ability to rapidly and persistently adapt to simulated central vision loss in normally sighted human subjects. During my post-doctoral training at the Salk Institute, I employed advanced electrophysiological and optogenetic techniques in the alert non-human primate to investigate the neuronal mechanisms of shape processing and attention in the visual cortex. My research has uncovered the detailed spatio-temporal structure of shape processing in neurons in visual area V4, a critical area for both shape processing and attention. Our results force us to reconsider the established notion that neuronal invariance increases as one traverses the cortical hierarchy. I have investigated the causal role of low-frequency correlated variability in neural activity on attentive behavior. Further, I have uncovered the cortical layer-specific organization of attentional modulation in the visual cortex. Together, these studies promise to significantly advance our current understanding of the cortical circuits of attention.

    Appointments

    Other Departments & Organizations

    Education & Training

    Senior Research Associate
    The Salk Institute for Biological Studies (2017)
    Research Associate
    The Salk Institute for Biological Studies (2015)
    Research Associate
    The Salk Institute for Biological Studies (2013)
    PhD
    University of Southern California, Psychology (2010)
    MS
    National Technological University, Electrical Engineering (2002)
    BTech
    Indian Institute of Technology, Electrical Engineering (1994)

    Research

    Overview

    Perception and cognition depend crucially on the ability of our sensory cortical systems to select behaviorally relevant stimuli for detailed inspection while ignoring distractors. Neurons in the neocortex are embedded in a layered (or laminar) structure, and there are stereotypical patterns of anatomical connectivity in this layered cortical architecture and these connectivity motifs are shared across sensory modalities, leading to the idea of a canonical information processing circuit. By studying the functional dynamics of these intricate layered circuits while animals are engaged in challenging visuo-spatial tasks and naturalistic social behaviors, we hope to discover fundamental principles of information flow through the cortex, and how this information flow is modulated by brain and behavioral state. These investigations will significantly advance our understanding of the mechanisms of cognition and ultimately help us understand disease conditions in which information flow is disrupted.

    Medical Research Interests

    Attention; Macular Degeneration; Neurobiology; Neurons; Neurosciences; Prefrontal Cortex; Social Cognition; Visual Cortex

    Research at a Glance

    Yale Co-Authors

    Frequent collaborators of Anirvan Nandy's published research.

    Publications

    2024

    Academic Achievements & Community Involvement

    • honor

      Yale Orthwein Scholar for Visual Science

    • honor

      NARSAD Young Investigator

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    Contacts

    Events

    Apr 202528Monday