Stephen L. Macknik, PhD
Principal Investigator, Laboratory of Behavioral Neurophysiology
Dr. Macknik is the Director of the Laboratory of Behavioral Neurophysiology at Barrow. He studies the neural underpinnings of visual and olfactory perception in the brain. His primary interest in sensory processing is to understand how networks of neuronal cells in the brain form circuits that allow us to be aware of our surroundings. A recent project builds on these interests by determining the brain correlates of the perception of flicker fusion in the visual system. Dr. Macknik promotes public awareness of his and other scientific discoveries by working with several organizations that bring together scientists and the public.
Dr. Macknik received his Ph.D. in neurobiology in the laboratory of Margaret Livingstone at Harvard University. He then worked at Harvard Medical School with David Hubel (who received a Nobel Prize in 1981) on visual neurophysiology. He completed a second postdoctoral position in olfactory brain imaging with Zachary Mainen at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory. Before joining the faculty of neurosurgery and neurobiology at Barrow, Dr. Macknik directed a laboratory in the Visual Science Department at University College London.
