Lydia Barnes

Interests

I'm interested in how a limited physical system like the brain supports flexible focus on many different tasks. Humans are remarkable for their ability to generalise from what they know to new situations. We now know that a widespread 'multiple-demand' brain network adapts to code task-relevant information across many different tasks. Those same brain regions are causally linked to fluid ability: how well we can solve new problems and do mentally challenging tasks. I study how these population-level adaptive codes change over time, to understand what they contribute to flexible cognition.

I'm also curious about why we sometimes choose to avoid mental challenges, or choose to do simple tasks poorly.

Research Focus

Equipment

Behavioural analysis

Electroencephalography (EEG)

Magnetoencephalography (MEG)