This the most general question that my research concerns.
More particularly, I am interested in how two crucial parts of the mind work: memory and imagination. What processes and mechanisms are involved when we remember or imagine? To answer this, I'm trying to build a cognitive architecture of the mind. I take an interdisciplinary approach to these questions where I combine philosophy, psychology, computer science, and neuroscience to find an answer.
Here's what I'm up to right now:
Some of my research concerns the condition aphantasia, a condition where people have weak or no mental imagery. I suggest that this is due to impairments in the episodic memory system. If you want to read an accessible article on my theory, check out this on Psychology Today. For the academic version, have a look here.
I am also interested in mental imagery more in general, especially how it is produced. To what extent are perceptual processes involved? To what extent are episodic memory processes involved? I try to map this out to understand the relationship between mental imagery and episodic memory.
I also find it fascinating to think about philosophy of memory. Right now, I'm interested in the storage question: how are memories actually stored in the brain? Here, I'm attempting to develop a new view based on what we know from computer science and Artificial Intelligence.
Publications
Drafts available on request. Some of my research is also published as accessible blog posts on the Junkyard of the Mind – I have one on aphantasia, and one on affective forecasting.
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Selected Talks
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