Duke Neuroscience Mentoring Program

Welcome to the Duke Neuroscience Mentoring Program!

Fill out Monthly Reflection Form here!!

Are you interested in neuroscience? Unsure as to how to navigate the many neuroscience opportunities at Duke? Would you like to learn firsthand from an upperclassman mentor how to find a research laboratory, conduct an independent study research project, select neuroscience courses, apply for graduate/medical school, and navigate neuroscience resources at Duke? If yes, we encourage you to apply to be a mentee with the Neuroscience Majors’ Union and Summer Neuroscience Program’s Peer Mentoring Program!

After carefully matching mentees and mentors, the Program will host  dinner talks and social opportunities to facilitate bonding between the pairs. Resources will also be provided to mentees and mentors throughout the year to ensure a supportive experience for both.

Now accepting 2020-2021 mentor applications until September 27, 2020! Apply here: https://forms.gle/P3A8FGSJbRA4C8w88

Mentee applications for this program will become available the first week of October.

On the application, you will have the option to include the name of your preferred mentor. Please read the below bios of our 2019-2020 mentors to learn about their interests and research. We cannot guarantee that you will be paired with your preferred mentor; however, the program will try to ensure the best match between mentees and mentors.

Please email Sophie Hurewitz (srh69@duke.edu), Priyanka Rao(pr96@duke.edu), Jason Zhang(jhz5@duke.edu), or Dr. Thomas Newpher (thomas.newpher@duke.edu) with any questions you may have.

 

2019-2020 Mentor Bios

Annika Sharma

I’m a senior from Bangalore (India). I am majoring in  Neuroscience & Evolutionary Anthropology. 

I’m currently working towards a senior thesis in Dr. Christine Drea’s lab on a comparative neuroanatomy project studying central oxytocin receptor differences between pairbonding and non-pairbonding lemurs within the genus Eulemur.

My favorite non-academic hobby is photography! I head The Chanticleer which means I get to shoot a ton of cool sporting events (including basketball!).

If I were a kitchen object, I would be a blender for — lots of intellectual reasons, but also… smoothies…

Anshu Jonnalagadda

I am a junior from Princeton, New Jersey.  I am majoring in Neuroscience with a minor in Computational Biology and am pre-med. My research involves studying the visual system to better understand the TMS-Dose response relationship in the brain. My favorite non-academic is dancing. If I were a kitchen object I would be a bowl because it has the most utility. 

Ben Thier

I am a Senior from New York City studying Neuroscience and Education. Combining these two interests, I am pursuing a career in learning science and educational technology. Unlike most Neuro majors, I am not pre-med, but I still had to take 2 semesters of Physics. I am currently applying to graduate programs focusing on learning analytics, cognition, and ed tech.

I work with Dr. Ng and Dr. Newpher on the interdisciplinary Bass Connections team titled “Collaborative Learning in STEM,” which focuses on how collaborative environments can increase motivation, retention, and sense of community for students. I am also an intern in the Learning Innovation department, where I have conducted literature reviews on implicit bias and am helping Dr. Seli run his mindwandering and attention lab.

My favorite non-academic hobby is scuba diving. If I were a kitchen object I would be a pasta strainer; I imagine the hot water would feel pretty relaxing.

Brielle Tobin

I am from Casper, Wyoming, I’m a senior pursuing the Neuroscience B.S. and Chemistry minor, and I’m premed.

Currently, I’m part of the Emergency Medicine Acute Care Research Team at Duke Hospital. I administer surveys for studies on pain management, with a focus on identifying psychosocial factors that may indicate risk for developing chronic pain following acute injury. We also have the goal of developing mobile pain-coping interventions for the ED population.

My favorite non-academic hobby is playing on Swerve, Duke Club Women’s Ultimate Frisbee team! If I were a kitchen object, I’d be a salt shaker because it makes everything taste 100% better.

Devika Naphade

Hi, my name is Devika Naphade, and I am from Lynchburg, Virginia. I am a junior majoring in Neuroscience and Linguistics and minoring in Asian and Middle Eastern Studies! I hope to pursue medicine, and possibly research as well.

I work in Dr. Andrews’ Lab where we study the impact of musicianship and multilingualism on delaying the behavioral symptoms of dementia through fMRI scanning and behavioral data (like interviews and recordings).

I love learning new languages and reading! I also really enjoy learning/listening to Indian Classical music/Bollywood songs. If I were a kitchen object, I would be a freezer because I love eating ice-cream.

Diwas Gautam

I am a junior from Salt Lake City, Utah studying neuroscience and global health. I work in the Anne West Lab. My work is involved with understanding how chromatin regulation affects neuronal maturation and synapse development. I like to play soccer and cook. If I were a kitchen object I would be a pan, because a lot of stuff is mixed to create something good.

Dominic Tanzillo

I’m a senior from Redwood City California. I’m a double major in neuroscience and math interested in becoming a military trauma or flight surgeon.

Since sophomore year I have worked in the Wang Neurobiology Lab studying synaptic transmission of pain and somatosensation signals. I worked at UCSF to study Parkinson’s Deep Brain Stimulation Treatments. I have a math lab studying ECG signals and better ways of filtering noise from signals.

I love dystopian books, movies and TV shows. I also love playing Smash Ultimate. If I were a kitchen object, I would be a knife because of my cutting humor. 

Edem Asamoa

I am a junior from West Chester, PA studying Neuroscience and am pre-med. I am investigating brain biomarkers associated with projectile interception and tracking. My favorite non-academic hobby is music production/singing. If I were a kitchen object, I would be a dishwasher because it is the most clean object.

Grace Carlson

Hi! I’m a senior from the Boston area and am majoring in Neuroscience with a minor in french. I have been following a premed track for most of undergrad but am currently planning on taking a few gap years to develop some outside professional experiences before continuing on to medical school.

I work in the Woldorff Lab, which is a cognitive neuroscience lab focused on using EEG to better understand the neural processes underlying attention, learning, perception, and cognition. My thesis focuses specifically on how spatial reward is processed and updated in the brain in feedback-based learning environments.

I love listening to music (favorite bands and artists include Alabama Shakes, Young the Giant, Tame Impala, and more recently Still Woozy) and also enjoy running a lot! If I were a kitchen object, I would be a salt shaker – self-explanatory.

Grace Smith

I’m a senior from Columbia, SC, majoring in Neuroscience with minors in Psychology and Religion. My general passions are centered on mental health, survivors of trauma, and healthcare ethics, with a focus on the dis/advantages of the current healthcare system and the relationships between culture, language, healing, and health (though my research on that is less structured at the moment). I’m also a member of Dr. Rae Jean Proeschold-Bell’s lab, which focuses mainly on promoting mental health/flourishing among caregivers; the current project works with ministers in NC as part of the Clergy Health Initiative.

My favorite non-academic hobby is swimming! If I were a kitchen object, I would be a Slow Cooker – because I think slowly and thoroughly, and find joy in learning from (combining the flavors of) many different things!

Hamza Malick

I am from Farmingdale, NY majoring in Neuroscience and minoring in Biology and Chemistry. I am also pre-med. 

I am currently doing research in Todd Purves’s Lab and am focusing on the induction of depressive symptoms in rats as a result of peripheral diseases such as Bladder Outlet Obstruction and Interstitial Cystitis. I am studying depression in rats using the sucrose preference assay and forced swim assay and measuring neuroinflammation that is induced through peripheral diseases through microglial quantitation as well as neurogenesis in the hippocampus.

My favorite non-academic hobbies include playing basketball and training jiu-jitsu! If I were a kitchen object, I would be a blender because mixing separate things into one can create something beautiful.

Ilayda Arslan

I’m an international student from Istanbul, Turkey, due to graduate in 2021. I major in Neuroscience and minor in Evolutionary Anthropology.

I work on a project that aims to phenotype Misophonia and create a diagnostic scale for it. I am also interested in inter-special commonalities in emotional responses and regulatory circuits.

My favorite non-academic hobby is painting and if I were a kitchen object I would be a blender.

Jason Zhang

I am a junior from Gainesville, Florida! I am majoring in Neuroscience and Biology and am Pre-Med. My research focuses on cognitive neuroscience of emotion regulation and neurobiology of depression. 

My favorite non-academic hobby is tennis! If I were a kitchen object I would be an automatic mixer cause those things put in serious work. I also like to bake but I really suck at whipping egg whites so I always wish that I could have a mixer.

Jeffrey Gu

I’m a senior from New Port Richey, Florida. I am majoring in neuroscience and minoring in chemistry, while pursuing the premed track.

In the Chiba-Falek lab in Duke’s Department of Neurology, I study the epigenetic regulation of the alpha-synuclein (SNCA) gene, which is a gene highly associated with Parkinson’s disease. My research focuses on the intron1 region of the SNCA gene, where I have worked on down-regulating the expression of SNCA through increasing the methylation levels of the CpG islands in the intron1. More recently, my senior thesis project is centered around analyzing the neuronal methylation profiles of the intron1 region in post-mortem human brain tissues. My goal is to see whether there are significant differences between control, Parkinson’s disease, and dementia with Lewy bodies samples.

I love to go on spirited drives around town and explore! If I were a kitchen object, I would be a garlic press – it’s so underrated and makes your life so much easier. It also adds that extra flavor to your dishes, garlic should be in everything change my mind.

Junette Yu

Hello! I am a senior this year majoring in Neuroscience and Linguistics, and doing a certificate in Marine Science & Conservation Leadership. After graduation, I want to spend a few years pursuing work in applied sciences and use my academic interests and training to make concrete impacts in real world contexts. Through those experiences, I hope to have a clearer and more specific idea of what I want my career to be like before applying to graduate school.

I work in Dr. Elika Bergelson’s lab on infant language acquisition, specifically, how the linguistic environment of infants with visual impairments influence their language development.

My favorite non-academic hobby is going to the beach/anywhere near the ocean. If I were a kitchen object I would be the window because I like to engage with challenging questions, and try to offer a refreshing perspective in conversations.

Katie Freedy

Hi! My name is Katie Freedy and I’m a senior originally from Clearwater, Florida. I am majoring in Neuroscience, with a chemistry minor and after taking a gap year or two, I plan on attending medical school. I am interested in neuroscience because I love how interdisciplinary the field is and how the brain quite literally impacts all aspects of our lives. Also, my junior fall, I went abroad to Copenhagen and took a fairly neuroscience heavy schedule there, so please feel free to talk to me about abroad options for neuroscience majors!
I currently work in Dr. Ahmad Hariri’s Lab investigating how differences in neural functional connectivity patterns can predict individual differences in sleep disruption, with a specific focus on the Default Mode Network (DMN), and how these associations relate to symptoms of depression and anxiety. This work is especially interesting for me because our study is done using data from Duke students, making our work relevant to my peers and myself.
Outside of school, I love doing anything outdoors, specifically hiking and climbing (catch me working at the Duke climbing wall!). I also love to cook and work with kids! If I were a kitchen object, I would be a coffee maker because I love coffee, and I’m generally a very energetic person.

Maya Samal

Hi I’m a senior from Lincoln, Nebraska! I am a neuroscience major with a minor in chemistry, on a pre-med track. Within neuroscience, I am interested in the process of emotion recognition in individuals with neurological disorders.

I work in the Keefe Lab where we are assessing auditory perception and emotion recognition in young adults at clinical high risk for Schizophrenia. Outside of school, I love listening to ted talks and playing with dogs, and if I were a kitchen object, I would be a can opener because I’m really strong.

Meriwether Morris

I’m a Neuroscience BS major with a certificate in Innovation and Entrepreneurship from Baltimore, Maryland. I’m hoping to work in applied behavioral science for impact.

My research focuses on analyzing the reliability of various mathematical modeling (graph theory) and imaging methods (task and resting-state fMRI) as indicators of individual differences with the hope of increasing replicability of findings in the pursuit of biomarkers for psychopathology.

My favorite non-academic hobby is equestrian show jumping. If I were a kitchen object, I would be one of the spinning spaghetti forks. I think if you’re making life more efficient and more fun at the same time, you’re doing it right!!!!

Molly Monsour

I am a junior from Tampa, FL! I moved to Tampa about 8 years ago, but I lived in Chapel Hill, NC for 12 years. I’m studying Neuroscience and Psychology. I’m currently pre-med, but also considering getting an MD/PhD.

I work in Dr. Morey’s Neuroimaging lab studying how PTSD impacts Brainage. Brainage measures changes in white matter volume, grey matter volume, brain morphology changes, and more. Using T1 MRI scans, these changes are calculated using voxel-wise analysis and pre-processed structural scans. The final Brainage calculation is subtracted from the subject’s actual age in order to determine whether PTSD has impacted their brain morphology.

I love running and trying new exercise classes at Wilson! I also love cooking and eating with friends or trying new Durham restaurants. If I were a kitchen object, I would be a blender! I love making smoothies, acai bowls, and pasta sauces in my blender! I also sometimes use it to make baked goods.

I’m currently abroad for the semester but am happy to communicate via messaging or facetime!

Natalie Benderly

I am a senior from New York City studying Neuroscience and Innovation and Entrepreneurship. I am the Executive Vice President of the Tamid Group and a two-time project manager. Outside of Tamid, I am an intern at DuWell, a fellow for the Duke Innovation and Entrepreneurship Initiative, and sit on the Duke Student Alumni Board. This past summer, I worked in NYC as a strategy intern for Teneo, an advisory firm for CEOs.

I have never worked in a lab, but I am currently writing a thesis on the value of cognitive diversity on corporate boards. I am interested in behavioral/neuroscience applications to business.

My favorite non-academic hobby is tennis and knitting. If I were a kitchen object, I would be a blender. I love Daily Harvest smoothies and make them every morning.

Priyanka Rao

Hi! I am from Columbia, SC. I am currently a junior and will graduate with the class of 2021. I am majoring in Neuroscience with a minor in Chemistry and a Documentary Studies Certificate. I am on the pre-medicine track.

I work in a research lab called the Translational Center for Stress Disorders. The lab is located in the Carmichael building on 300 N Duke St, Durham, NC, 27701. During the past semester (Spring 2019) and the current semester, I am conducting research on the role of an enzyme called tryptophan hydroxylase 2 in inflammation in a mouse model of depression. Tryptophan hydroxylase (TPH2) is an enzyme used for the synthesis of serotonin in the brain. Serotonin is a hormone and neurotransmitter that has been found to play a role in emotion-regulation. Decreased levels of TPH2 have been found to lead to disorders such as anxiety and depression and deficits in cognitive control and emotion regulation. This project will use TPH2-knock in mice which are deficient in the TPH2 enzyme and already display the depressive phenotype in their naïve state.The purpose of the study is to pinpoint the causes of depression by aiming to determine if there are differences in neuroinflammation between the TPH2 knock-in mice and the control wild type mice.

Outside of Neuroscience, I love filming and editing. I am hoping to get the documentary studies certificate and I have loved the classes I have taken so far. In high school, I did publicity for various organizations in our school and through that, I was able to learn how to film and edit videos. In college, I continued this passion but am now learning about documentary work outside of just filming. For example, I am in a documentary poetry class and so far, it has been incredible. I love being able to have a space where I can be free and creative.

If I were a kitchen object, I would most likely be a pot. Pots are used typically to make a delicious blend of a lot of different substances. I really try to make sure I try to be as well-rounded as possible. Even though I love science, I also want to explore writing and photography to ensure that I have tried all sorts of experiences. I also want to make sure that college is more than just school. I have been really trying to use each and every moment of these four years to its fullest to ensure that I get a great college experience.

Rehan Khan

I am a junior from Hopkinsville KY majoring in Neuroscience and Chemistry and am Pre-Med. 

I use an array of optogenetic and biochemistry techniques to determine the mode of circuit induced neurogenesis in the postnatal mouse brain. 

My favorite non-academic hobby is binge watching an entire Netflix show. If I were a kitchen object, I would be a fork. In my opinion, a fork is the most versatile utensil. You can eat noodles with it, you can cut food with it if you do not have a knife, and if you want you can even eat cereal with it if you do not have a spoon. I like to think of myself as versatile…most of the time.

Rhianne Hsu

My name is Rhianne and I am a senior from Wilmington, NC majoring in BME & Neuroscience with a Psychology Minor. After graduating, I hope to work in the medical device industry with devices for neurological and/or cardiac applications.

I am a research assistant in the Naumann Lab where I assist with engineering projects, including design, construction, and design documentation of a custom 2-photon microscope.

Outside of school, I enjoy playing the guitar, singing, and photography. If I were a kitchen object, I would be a toaster oven.

Samantha Bouchal

I am a senior from Queen Creek, AZ majoring in Neuroscience and minoring in biology and chemistry planning on pursuing MD/PhD. 

At Duke, I study the cell signaling that enables inflammatory breast cancer to metastasize to the brain. At Mayo Clinic, I study the cellular and molecular bases for regenerative therapies in spinal cord injury and multiple sclerosis.

My favorite non-academic hobbies include playing piano and hanging out with dogs. If I were a kitchen object, I would be a coffee machine, to stay consistently caffeinated!

Shenyang Huang

My name is Shenyang and I’m from Hangzhou, China. I’m currently a senior double majoring in neuroscience and mathematics. I’m broadly interested in higher-level cognition like learning and memory, and I am planning on pursuing a PhD in cognitive neuroscience or psychology after graduating from Duke.

I’ve been working with Dr. Felipe De Brigard in his IMC lab and investigated questions related to causal reasoning, autobiographical memory, and moral cognition. My thesis will focus on what resting-state fMRI might reveal with regards to people’s performance in a range of psychological/cognitive tasks.

My favorite non-academic hobby is basketball! If I were a kitchen object, I would be a dishwasher – when you dump all tasks aside, chill/procrastinate, and try to finish all of them in one go.

Shreya Bhatia

I’m a senior from Great Falls, Virginia and am a Neuroscience Major with minors in Chemistry and Psychology! I am also pre-med. 

I work in the Woldorff lab and am working on my senior thesis. I use EEG methodology to study prospective memory and attention.

I sing Indian Classical and Bollywood music! If I were a kitchen object, I’d be a spork because of how versatile it is!

Shun Li

I was born and raised in Guangzhou, China. I’m a junior majoring in Neuroscience and minor in computer science and psychology. After graduating, I plan to pursue a career path in neuroscience research and its integration with technology.

I’m researching in Wang Lab of under Dr. Fan Wang. I’m currently doing two projects that explores potential neural mechanisms of motor coordination between orofacial movement. Malfunctions in one or multiple neural circuits involved in orofacial movements, such as swallowing, breathing, or tongue control, can have detrimental results to the patient. One of my projects is about developing an automated computer-based workflow that can detect and analyze orofacial movement, swallowing and licking specifically, from high-speed videos using neural network. Another is trying to optogenetically manipulate premotor neurons in the brainstem that are potentially responsible for rhythm generation of the tongue, with the goal of uncovering cellular profiles of these central pattern generators (CPG) of licking.

I’m a member of Duke Badminton club and love basically every sport, especially billiard and basketball. I am a Barca fan and love watching Korean variety shows.

If I were a kitchen object, I’m not sure what I would be (cuz I really love cooking!), but definitely gonna stay away from any processing of fresh animals since I’ve already been trapped in anatomy-related stuffs for sufficient amount of time in the lab.

Sophia Li

My name is Sophia Li, and I am a junior from Acton, MA. I am majoring in Neuroscience and pursuing a minor in Political Science. 

I conduct research in the Woldorff Lab in the Center for Cognitive Neuroscience, using EEG/ERP methodologies. My projects mainly focus on attention and memory. I also have research experience in tactile stimulation and somatosensory cortex plasticity.

My favorite non-academic hobby is photography. If I were a kitchen object, I would be a pressure-cooker because I am always unnecessarily hyperstressed!!!!!

Vivian Chen

I am a senior from Dusseldorf, Germany majoring in Neuroscience, minoring in chemistry, and am pre-med. 

I work in a neurology lab (Chiba-Falek lab) studying the genetic and molecular mechanisms underlying neurodegenerative diseases. More specifically, I study the mechanistic role of alpha-synuclein protein in the pathology of Parkinson’s Disease. We use human-induced pluripotent stem cell models and I do a lot of immunostaining experiments and confocal imaging. I’m passionate about aging research and would be more than happy to talk about it or answer any questions!

My favorite non-academic hobbies are traveling and karaoke (it’s really a toss up). If I were a kitchen object, I’d be a toaster oven! They’re so versatile, easy to use (especially for the amateur cook like me) and they warm up quickly and efficiently.

Ziwei Zhang

I’m a senior majoring in Neuroscience B.S. and Psychology B.A. I’m from Tianjin, China. I’ve been working in the Egner Lab since my sophomore year. I plan to pursue a Ph.D. degree in cognitive neuroscience to combine behavioral, neuro-imaging and computational methods to answer my question of interests.

My current research focuses on cognitive control, especially how it varies across contexts. Moving on to grad school, I’m interested in how attention, memory and learning interact dynamically with each other to help us carry out goal-directed behavior in a multi-dimensional world. If you are interested in discussing human cognitive ability, definitely talk to me:)

I sing in an Acapella group:) Also enjoy doing Yoga and drinking tea b/c they help me find that body-mind balance. If I were a kitchen object, I would be an egg beater b/c egg is my favorite ingredient. Everything is so good if you add an egg, or 2,3,4…