Principal Investigator:
Contact Information:
Brain Plasticity, Learning & Neurorehabilitation
The research in my Lab is focused on the fields of neuroplasticity, brain mechanisms of art and learning, neurorehabilitation of blindness, memory and spatial cognition, navigation, vision deficits in TBI, and multimodal sensorimotor processing across levels of visual impairment. For this research we integrate multiple brain imaging techniques, including functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), diffusion tensor imaging (DTI), tensor-based brain morphometry (TBM), and electroencephalography (EEG), as well as virtual reality, motion-capture, and specialized remote-research systems.
Publications
Projects
iVEERS blind navigation system with the iPhone-based Virtual Environment in Empty Real Space
The iVEERS blind navigation system (standing for iPhone-based Virtual Environment in Empty Real Space) is a patent-pending system providing auditory cues to a virtual environment in an empty space, designed for testing and training navigational skills in those without sight.
Learning in the Sighted and the Blind through Different Sensory Modalities: Structure and Dynamics of Cortical Reorganization
This project focuses on the emerging area of the neuroscience of art learning. It addresses the important issue of how the brain learns complex skills, specifically the process of drawing, through two different sensory modalities. Visual art, and drawing in particular, engages an orchestrated system of cognitive elements extending beyond mere visual perception. This brain system involves an array of cross-cognitive interactions for advanced learning in diverse sensory environments. However, there is a lack of systematic studies of the neural mechanisms of learning in visual art, or of the…
Human Oculomotor Functions & Their Deficits in Traumatic Brain Injury
Recent studies have established that a high proportion of patients diagnosed with mild (or diffuse) traumatic brain injury (mTBI) exhibit binocular vision dysfunctions, particularly, deficiencies in the binocular coordination of eye movements.
Encoding of 3D Structure in the Visual Scene: A New Conceptualization
The multidisciplinary goal was to develop an integrated conceptualization of the mid-level encoding of 3D object structure from multiple surface cues
Stereoscopic motion-in-depth perception: fMRI and neurophysiological studies
This project is designed to advance the integration of high field fMRI in alert macaque monkeys with “informed” neurophysiology, and to apply it in addressing a long-standing research question regarding the neural processing of stereoscopic 3-D motion.
Advanced Spatiomotor Rehabilitation in Blindness and Visual Impairment
We propose a multidisciplinary approach to effective spatiomotor rehabilitation in blindness and visual impairment. For those who have lost vision, the eye-hand coordination normally available for the manipulation of objects for everyday activities is unavailable and has to be replaced by information from other senses
Mechanisms of Photophobia in Mild Traumatic Brain Injury in Human Subjects: Therapeutic Implications
The purpose of this grant is to identify the mechanisms responsible for generating photophobia in patients who have suffered mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI). Currently, estimates indicate that this painful condition persists in about 60% of those who suffered from blast-related traumatic brain injury and 30% of those who suffered non-blast-related concussive injuries.
Harnessing the Power of Drawing for the Enhancement of Learning across Levels of Vision Function
Recent scientific findings about art and drawing suggest that drawing can facilitate learning in a wide variety of domains. The proposed collaboration will develop an interdisciplinary research program aimed at harnessing the power of drawing to enhance learning across fields of intellectual endeavor.
Advanced Spatiomotor Rehabilitation for Navigation in Blindness & Visual Impairment
Successful navigation requires the development of an accurate and flexible mental, or cognitive, map of the navigational space and of the route trajectory required to travel from the current to the target location. The Cognitive-Kinesthetic (C-K) Rehabilitation Training that we have developed in the preceding period utilizes a unique form of blind memory-guided drawing to develop cognitive mapping to a high level of proficiency.
People
Fundings
News
SKERI Scientists Present Groundbreaking Research at the 24th Annual Vision Sciences Society MeetingThe Smith-Kettlewell Eye Research Institute (SKERI) is proud to announce its extensive participation in the 24th Annual Meeting of the Vision Sciences Society (VSS), held from May 17 to May...
SKERI Scientist Leads Art/Science Symposium at IS&TOn January 22, 2024 Dr. Lora Likova chaired an interdisciplinary art/science symposium at this year’s annual meeting of the Society […]
Harnessing the power of visual art for blind rehabilitationA Smith-Kettlewell scientist, Dr. Lora Likova, develops unique art training to drive brain plasticity in totally blind and visually impaired people.
Get Involved
If you are interested in vision science or want to learn more about low vision and blindness, there are many opportunities to get involved at The Smith-Kettlewell Eye Research Institute.
