Research Meeting: Memory and Attention

Last month saw a meeting of academics from across the UK, and abroad, exploring a common theme: the interaction between attention and memory. 

These are core concepts in cognitive neuroscience, with a rich tradition of research dating back to the seminal behavioural and neuropsychological studies in the early half of last century to more contemporary cognitive neuroscience with all the bells and whistles of brain imaging and stimulation. Yet still, with all the developments, relatively little is known about how these core functions interact. This was the motivation for Duncan Astle (MRC Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit, Cambridge) to propose to the British Academy a two-day meeting between leading academics interested in the interaction between attention and memory. Not to mention, they are just a fun group of people, and therefore a good excuse for a get-together in London...

Speakers were invited to present their latest research concerning links between attention and memory. Although the scope for “memory” is broad (i.e., iconic memory, working memory, long-term memory), most delegates took the opportunity to focus on short-term and/or working memory. Check out the website for more information on individual presentations, including audio and video downloads!