Dr. Schneider investigates dynamic cortical processing in human behavioral and brain imaging studies and computer simulation models. Behavioral and brain imaging studies focus on the understanding of human learning, executive control and attention.

Research examines cortical areas involved in learning including frontal, parietal, and cingulate cortex, subcortical structures (e.g., hippocampus) and sensory processing areas (e.g., thalamus and visual cortex). The brain imaging research utilizes functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) to produce high 3D spatial resolution (near millimeter) maps identifying the location and relative activation of stages of the visual system and Diffusion Tensor Imaging (DTI) to map cortical connectivity.

These data provide the basis for detailed tracking of the dynamics of cortical processing. We are developing methods to map human network level cortical processing. Behavioral and brain imaging data details how rapidly and in what forms attention moves and what are the component structures of learning (goal popping, memory retrieval, feedback processing). These methods are applied in pre-surgical planning to minimize damage during surgery.