PEOPLE
Principal Investigator
Dr. Andy Lee
Associate Professor of Psychology, University of Toronto Scarborough.
Adjunct scientist, Rotman Research Institute, Baycrest Centre, Toronto.
andych.lee[at]utoronto.ca
Following a B.A. in Psychology, Physiology, and Philosophy at the University of Oxford, I was a Ph.D. student at the Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Cambridge working with Professors Trevor Robbins and Adrian Owen on the role of the human frontal lobes in memory encoding and retrieval. I then undertook a post-doctoral position with Prof. Kim Graham at the MRC Cognition & Brain Sciences Unit, Cambridge, UK, where I became interested in long-term memory and the medial temporal lobes. In 2006, I moved to the Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford on a Royal Society Relocation Fellowship, and became a Wellcome Trust Research Career Development Fellow in 2008. In 2011, I took up a faculty position at the Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Scarborough campus. Outside of science, I love spending time with my wife and children, and making music.
Post-doctoral fellows
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Dr. Zhemeng Wu
Postdoctoral Fellow
zhemeng.wu[at]utoronto.ca
I completed my PhD in Experimental Psychology in University of Oxford, where I used a combined electrophysiology and neuroimaging approach to investigate the interaction between MTL and PFC in recognition memory in non-human primates. I’m interested in what’s the dynamic neural mechanisms operating in macaque hippocampus and PFC and how these mechanisms support memory. Currently, I’m working in both the Ito-Limbic (Dr Rutsuko Ito) and Lee-MTL (Dr Andy Lee) labs to continue my interests on memory. Using a cross-species approach, I aim to investigate the role of MTL in mediating temporal memory and approach-avoidance decision making. In my spare time, I enjoy traveling around the world, making coffee and spending time with my family and friends.
Dr. Sonny Dhawan
Postdoctoral Fellow
sonny.dhawan[at]utoronto.ca
I am a Postdoctoral Fellow in both the Lee-MTL (Dr Andy Lee) and Ito-LiMBiC (Dr Rutsuko Ito) labs. During my PhD at the University of St Andrews (Scotland), I worked with Prof. Verity Brown investigating the role of the subthalamic nucleus in executive functioning – particularly understanding how inactivating this region in the rat impairs the selection of responses necessary for the formation of attentional set. I am interested in both the learning and memory processes exercised during decision making and problem solving, and I am currently exploring the role of the rodent medial temporal lobe in approach-avoidance decision making. In my spare time, I enjoy traveling to new places, eating new food, reading about astronomy, and playing guitar, hockey, and video games.
Graduate students
Shouyu Ling
Graduate Student
shouyu.ling[at]mail.utoronto.ca
I received my B.Sc in Psychology at University of Toronto. I am currently a Ph.D student co-supervised by Dr. Andy Lee and Dr. Adrian Nestor. My research focuses on examining the neural correlates of visual perception and mental imagery. Specifically, I apply various machine learning techniques on neuroimaging data to try to retrieve the content of visual/imagery experiences. Outside the lab, I enjoy reading and spending time with friends.
Willem Le Duc
Graduate Student
w.leduc[at]mail.utoronto.ca
I am a graduate student pursuing a Master’s and PhD in Clinical Psychology, co-supervised by Drs. Andy Lee and Antony Ruocco. I completed a B.A. in Honours Psychology at McGill University, and conducted the research for my undergraduate thesis in the Sheldon Memory Lab, under the supervision of Dr. Signy Sheldon. My undergraduate research focused on how individual differences in remembering styles are reflected in the structure, connectivity and functional dynamics of the hippocampus. My Master’s thesis will examine approach-avoidance conflict processing in patients with hippocampal lesions. My extracurricular interests include rock climbing, cycling, basketball and cinema.
Sonja Chu
Graduate Student
sonja.chu[at]mail.utoronto.ca
I am a PhD student in the clinical program at UTSC, and I am co-supervised by Andy Lee and Vina Goghari. Before joining the lab, I completed my Honours BA in Psychology from McGill University. My research uses fMRI and computational modelling to examine approach-avoidance conflict decision making in GAD and MDD. Outside of the lab, I enjoy volunteering and spending time with my dog.
Cody Cane
Graduate Student
cody.cane[at]mail.utoronto.ca
I am a graduate student in the clinical psychology program at UTSC. I am co-supervised by Anthony Ruocco and Andy Lee. I completed an Honours B.Cog.Sc. in Cognitive Science, specialized in Cognitive Neuroscience at Carleton University. My research uses fMRI to examine response inhibition related brain activity in different clinical populations (specifically individuals with depression and borderline personality disorder). I am also looking at how dimensional traits (e.g., disinhibition, negative affectivity, etc.) may relate to this brain activity. Outside of the lab, I enjoy working out, mixed martial arts, reading, and gaming.
Gahyun Kim
Graduate Student
gh.kim[at]mail.utoronto.ca
I am a direct-entry Ph.D. student in Psychology under the supervision of Dr. Andy Lee. I have received my honours BA in Psychology from the University of Calgary and completed B.Ed in Education and English Education back in Korea. My research interest is investigating the underlying neural representations of memory construct and alteration. My current research project is examining the temporal duration of memory at different emotional levels. Outside of the lab, I like novels, sports, traveling, and having dinner with my family.
Undergraduate Students
Hilary Watson
Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, UK (2010 - 2011), and Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Scarborough, Canada (2011 - 2013).
Graduate students
Danielle Douglas
PhD student (2011 - 2016), Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Canada.
Thesis title: ‘Stairway to nowhere: Structural incoherencies reveal the role of the medial temporal lobe in visual perception’.
Sarah Rudebeck
PhD student (2008 - 2012), Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, UK.
Thesis title: ‘The Human Medial Temporal Lobe, Brain Connectivity, and Recognition Memory’.
Emma Hindley
MSc in Neuroscience project student (2010), Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, UK.
Rebecca Milington
MSc in Neuroscience project student (2009), Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, UK.
Matt Margerison
Co-op Placement student & research thesis student (2017 - 2018), Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Scarborough, Canada.
Karlie Wood
Research thesis student (2017 - 2018), Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Scarborough, Canada.
Abdul
Research thesis student (2016 - 2017), Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Scarborough, Canada.
Olga Carpio
Research Assistant (2015), Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Scarborough, Canada.
Mylann Guevara
Research thesis student (2014 - 2015), Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Scarborough, Canada.
Iris Li
Research thesis student (2014 - 2015), Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Scarborough, Canada.
Katrina Bogus
Research thesis student (2013 - 2014), Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Scarborough, Canada.
Zahraa Chorghay
Research assistant volunteer & NSERC Undergraduate Summer Research Award student (2012 - 2014), Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Scarborough, Canada.
Jenkin Mok
Research thesis student (2013 - 2014), Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Scarborough, Canada.
Peter Rizk
Research thesis student (2013 - 2014), Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Scarborough, Canada.
Sathesan Thavabalasingam
Research thesis student & University of Toronto Excellence Award in the Natural Sciences and Engineering research student (2012 - 2013).
Sonya Dhillon
Research supervised study student (2012 - 2013), Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Scarborough, Canada.
Eropa Stein
Volunteer research assistant (2012 - 2013)
Eva Ta
Summer undergraduate research assistant (2012), Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Scarborough, Canada.
Kathryn Atherton
Summer undergraduate research assistant (2009), Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, UK.
Undergraduates
Sherry Huang
Research thesis student
Specialist in Neuroscience
Sapolnach Prompiengchai
Supervised study & NSERC USRA student
Specialist in Neuroscience
Paula Toro Vargas
Work study student
Specialist in Psychology
Gabrielle Hunter
Work study student
Major in Mental Health Studies and Sociology
Haoyu Zhang
Visiting research student
Major in Psychology, Tsinghua University, China
Katrina Bogus
Research thesis student (2013 - 2014), Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Scarborough, Canada.
Zahraa Chorghay
Research assistant volunteer & NSERC Undergraduate Summer Research Award student (2012 - 2014), Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Scarborough, Canada.
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Alumni
Postdoctoral Fellows
Qun Ye
Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Scarborough, Canada (2019 -2021).
Yuan-fang Zhao
Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Scarborough, Canada (2018).
Ed O'Neil
Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Scarborough, Canada (2015 - 2018).
Hilary Watson
Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, UK (2010 - 2011), and Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Scarborough, Canada (2011 - 2013).
Graduate students
Dylan Yeates
PhD student (2016 - 2022). Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Canada.
Thesis: 'The Role of Extrinsic Connections and Stimulus Identity in Ventral Hippocampus Mediated Approach-Avoidance Conflict Resolution'
Eric Chi-Hsun Chang
PhD student (2015 - 2022). Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Canada.
Thesis: 'Visualizing the Vulnerability of Face Processing Across the Lifespan:An Image Reconstruction Approach'
Dean Carcone
PhD student (2016 - 2022). Department of Psychological Clinical Science, University of Toronto, Canada.
Thesis: 'The Transdiagnostic Relationship of Cumulative Lifetime Stress with Memory, the Hippocampus, and Personality Psychopathology'
Sathesan Thavabalasingam
PhD student (2014 - 2021). Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Canada.
Thesis: 'Human Medial Temporal Lobe Contributions to a Temporal Representation of Sequences in Memory'
Celia Fidalgo
PhD student (2013 - 2018). Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Canada.
Thesis: 'A Representational Account of Memory and Perception Across the Lifespan'
Danielle Douglas
PhD student (2011 - 2016). Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Canada.
Thesis: 'Stairway to Nowhere: Structural Incoherencies Reveal the Role of the Medial Temporal Lobe in Visual Perception'
Sarah Rudebeck
PhD student (2008 - 2012). Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, UK.
Thesis: 'The Human Medial Temporal Lobe, Brain Connectivity, and Recognition Memory'
Emma Hindley
MSc project student (2010). Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, UK.
Thesis: 'Conditioned Pattern Preference Learning and the Effect of Hippocampal Lesions'
Rebecca Millington
MSc project student (2009). Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, UK.
Thesis: 'Role of the Fornix in Recognition Memory'
Undergraduate Students
Tolu Faromika
Research thesis student (2021-2022), University of Toronto Scarborough, Canada.
Sahar Popal
Research thesis student (2021-2022), University of Toronto Scarborough, Canada.
Mariam Rahman
Supervised study and UTEA student (2021-2022), University of Toronto Scarborough, Canada.
Erin Butler
Research thesis student (2020-2021), University of Toronto Scarborough, Canada.
Kayla Smith
Research thesis student (2020-2021), University of Toronto Scarborough, Canada.
Theodore Aliyianis
Supervised study student (2020-2021), University of Toronto Scarborough, Canada.
Hira Fatima
Supervised study student (2020-2021), University of Toronto Scarborough, Canada.
Kiah Spencer
Research assistant volunteer (2020-2021), University of Toronto Scarborough, Canada.
Sukhan Zehra
Research thesis student (2019-2020), University of Toronto Scarborough, Canada.
Maryam Sorkhou
Lab manager (2019-2020) & NSERC USRA (2019), University of Toronto Scarborough, Canada.
Sanaya Engineer
Lab Manager (2019-2020) & NSERC USRA (2018), University of Toronto Scarborough, Canada.
Fatima Syed
Research thesis student (2018-2019), Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Scarborough, Canada.
Supreet Aashat
Lab Manager (2018-2019), Research supervised study (2016-2017), & thesis student (2017-2018), Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Scarborough, Canada.
Luis-Eduardo Munoz Alvarado
Lab manager & research supervised study student (2017 - 2018), Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Scarborough, Canada.
Matt Margerison
Co-op Placement student & research thesis student (2017 - 2018), Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Scarborough, Canada.
Karlie Wood
Research thesis student (2017 - 2018), Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Scarborough, Canada.
Ming Wu
Lab Manager (2016-2017), Research Assistant (2017-2018) Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Scarborough, Canada.
Arshiya Choudhury
Research assistant (2016 - 2017), Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Scarborough, Canada.
Abdulwahab Sidiqi
Research thesis student (2016 - 2017), Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Scarborough, Canada.
Olga Carpio
Research Assistant (2015), Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Scarborough, Canada.
Mylann Guevara
Research thesis student (2014 - 2015), Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Scarborough, Canada.
Iris Li
Research thesis student (2014 - 2015), Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Scarborough, Canada.
Katrina Bogus
Research thesis student (2013 - 2014), Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Scarborough, Canada.
Zahraa Chorghay
Research assistant volunteer & NSERC Undergraduate Summer Research Award student (2012 - 2014), Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Scarborough, Canada.
Jenkin Mok
Research thesis student (2013 - 2014), Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Scarborough, Canada.
Peter Rizk
Research thesis student (2013 - 2014), Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Scarborough, Canada.
Sathesan Thavabalasingam
Research thesis student & University of Toronto Excellence Award in the Natural Sciences and Engineering research student (2012 - 2013).
Sonya Dhillon
Research supervised study student (2012 - 2013), Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Scarborough, Canada.
Eropa Stein
Volunteer research assistant (2012 - 2013)
Eva Ta
Summer undergraduate research assistant (2012), Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Scarborough, Canada.
Thushana Karunanithy
Summer undergraduate research assistant (2012), Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Scarborough, Canada.