Prof. Yuval Nir
Medicine
We study the electrical activity of the brain during sleep.
Sleep is one of the biggest unresolved mysteries in biology and brain research: we spend a third of our lives sleeping, completely disconnected from the world around us, but we still do not understand what is so crucial about sleep and why our consciousness changes along with changes in brain activity during sleep. To study these questions we use a wide array of cutting-edge methodologies in both human subjects and in rodents.
Animal research includes electrophysiology, fiber photometry, optogenetics, and advanced algorithms to examine signal processing in the brain.
Human research includes pupillometry and gaze estimation, memory performance tests and machine learning methodology.
Medicine
- School of Medicine
Sleep helps our cognitive performance, promoting learning and memory consolidation.
Human memory and sleep project: Use a combination of eye tracking and electrophysiology (EEG).
Sensory processing during sleep, wakefulness and anesthesia project: Use external (auditory) stimuli and examine mice's brain function in the cognitive states of sleep, wakefulness, and anesthesia.
We seek candidates with a Neuroscience/ Cognitive Science/ Exact Sciences background and strong data analysis skills.
The candidate should also be highly independent, have good interpersonal skills, and willing to work in a highly collaborative environment.
Note: You are invited to apply to the BRAVO PhD program for exceptional students. Admitted students are eligible for generous fellowships. Find out more about the program here.
