People – Cognitive Neuroscience Research Internship

Current CNRI Leadership Team

Jenna Merenstein | Program Leader

Jenna (she/her) is a postdoctoral researcher working in the Brain Imaging and Analysis Center with Dr. Dave Madden. She uses MRI to study the effect of brain aging on different cognitive abilities (learning, memory, attention), especially in advanced age groups (individuals beyond age 80). Jenna believes that mentoring has been fundamental to her career from the undergraduate through postdoctoral stages and hopes to facilitate similar successful mentor-mentee relationships through her participation in CNRI. Beyond research, Jenna loves hanging out with her two dogs and two cats or being outside near the mountains.

Tyler Reekes | Program C0Leader

Tyler is a postdoctoral researcher working in the Department of Anesthesiology at Duke interested in neuroimaging as it applies to postoperative delirium.

Nitisha Desai | Visibility & Recruitment Leader

Nitisha is a postdoctoral researcher in the Psychology and Neuroscience Department working in the Huettel Lab. Nitisha uses computational modeling and process-tracing techniques, such as eye-tracking and mouse-tracking, to understand the social decision-making process. Nitisha participants in CNRI by working on visibility & recruitment and also as a mentor and lecturer.

Jade Terry | Graduate Student Mentor Representative

Jade is a Ph.D. student in the Psychology and Neuroscience Department. In May 2022, she obtained her M.S from Arizona State University where she used neuroimaging to investigate functional differences within the dopaminergic pathways. She is currently studying trauma and its influence on decision-making. She likes to cook, watch documentaries, do DIYs, and hike in her spare time.

Anjou Sharma | Undergraduate Intern Representative

Anjou earned her B.S. in Neuroscience and B.A. in Philosophy and Computer Science from the University of Miami in 2022, where she worked as a research assistant at the Child and Adolescent Mood and Anxiety Treatment Program under Jill Ehrenreich-May. Now, she manages the Imagination and Modal Cognition Lab and coordinates the Summer Seminars in Neuroscience and Philosophy. She is interested in memory and forgiveness, counterfactual thinking, and exploring the intersection between philosophy and neuroscience.

Miles Martinez | Python Programming Co-Instructor

Miles (he/him) is an Electrical & Computer Engineering PhD student working in the Pearson Lab. His research interests are centered around building computational models to describe the brain and behavior. He participates in CNRI as both an instructor of the Python course and as a mentor, and he enjoys the opportunity to introduce students to computational research in a more welcoming way than he experienced. Beyond research, he really likes either hiking outside or bouldering inside!

Joyce Park | Python Programming Co-Instructor

Joyce is a PhD student in the Psychology & Neuroscience program. She works with Dr. Elizabeth Marsh and researches topics surrounding memory, learning, and metacognition. Recently, Joyce has been exploring the effect of nudges on self-regulated learning as well as exploring the metacognitive mechanisms behind collaborative learning processes.