by Gizem Altan
ured I could survive here for another 3-4 years before venturing out into the wide world again.
Whose lab do you work in, and what made you choose to work there? I’ m in the workgroup of Jan Born under the direct supervision of Susanne Diekelmann. This is the group and the topic I already worked on for my master thesis. I stayed because I wanted to know more about my topic, because the conditions were great, and because the supervision was close when I needed it and loose when I wanted it. Another important point was that the lab has a history of creating successful scientists. I had the feeling that, when projects were discussed and decisions were made, my professor also kept the career of his PhD students in mind.
Furthermore, a PhD takes some time. After having moved for my bachelors and then for my masters, I didn’ t want to risk going to a faraway lab and to commit again to a new environment that I could scout only during a short lab visit and some quick talks with potential colleagues.
What is your current research project about? The brain strengthens and transforms new memories during sleep. I look at how brain areas cooperate to accomplish this in humans.
What was your favourite course at the GTC? Evolutionary Cognitive Neuroscience by Andreas Nieder.
What’ s your best discovery in Tübingen? The protestant student accommodation( Evangelisches Stift) has a beautiful garden with vast meadows and apple trees. If you have the chance to spend an afternoon there, maybe for a picnic, go for it!
Renée Hartig is from Long Island, New York, in the USA. She moved to Tübingen for the Master’ s course, and is now beginning her doctoral studies.
What made you decide to come to Tübingen? I was studying at Stony Brook University and found my passion for neuroscience there. After specialising in the field, I knew that the next step in my career path was to earn a doctorate. So, in my pursuit of the right place to do this, I came across the notion to combine my love of Europe with my career. Germany was my top pick, purely from my ancestral descendants, and to hone in a little deeper, I followed the route to the Max Planck Institute( MPI), a place I already knew had an astonishing international reputation.
Whose lab do you work in, and what made you choose to work there? Dr. Henry Evrard, an independent group leader at the CIN( Centre for Integrative Neuroscience) and guest researcher at the MPI for Biological Cybernetics. I decided to work there after attending the lab visit of the first spring semester at the Graduate School. Henry came to talk to us about the research there and even brought us down to see the animal facilities. What I liked most about the lab was that it housed cellular, anatomical and functional components. I was really seeking a lab with this level of diversity.
by Gizem Altan
What is your current research project about? Localising taste in the primate cortex. This involves all tastes, and using fMRI in humans and non-human primates to compare functional localization of this sensory input between humans and non-human primates. Additionally we will do electrophysiology alongside fMRI in the non-human primates. Previous work has only looked separately at data from monkey or humans. This research will allow us to look into comparative activity and function, and through this get more insight into how the cortex, namely the insular cortex, is cytoarchitectonically and topographically organized.
What was your favourite course at the GTC? Neuroregeneration and Tissue Engineering. This is an area of personal interest that one day I hope to incorporate into my work.
What’ s your best discovery in Tübingen? Saints and Scholars – I liked it so much I moved behind it. The owner of Saints and Scholars, Peter Wolf, hosted a charity event that I organized, the Fastnet Spendenlauf, an event I hope to be continued by GTC students interested in raising money for neurological diseases. Note that the drinks are affordably priced and come in a variety of flavours and sizes –“ sehr günstig”. They have good burgers too.
Celia Foster, UK Neural and Behavioural Sciences Master’ s Program,‘ 15 Currently a GTC Doctoral student at the MPI for Biological Cybernetics in the Recognition and Categorization Group of Dr. Isabelle Bülthoff
24 | NEUROMAG | July 2016