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Dr.
Phil Best
Professor of Psychology |
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| University Affiliations Education Ph. D., 1965 Princeton University Service Co-director, Center for Neuroscience, 1995-present Department Chair, 1990-1995 |
Phillip J. Best, Ph. D.Department of Psychology 122 Psychology Building Miami University Oxford, Ohio 45056 (513) 529-2421 (voice) (513) 529-2420 (fax) bestpj@muohio.edu (e-mail) www.users.muohio.edu/bestpj/ (personal homepage) |
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Research
Interests
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My research has examined the rules governing how the brain processes information about the environment to foster effective navigation. I have been interested in how that information is acquired, processed, stored, and retrieved. The research has concentrated on one area of the brain, the hippocampus, which appears to play a critical role in such spatial cognitive processing. Recording the activity of individual neurons as the animal navigates in specific environments, permits us to investigate the nature of the information that drives these cells. We are also examining the effects of lesions of specific pathways on cellular activity and navigational behavior help us understand the pathways by which this spatial processing is relayed to guide the animal's behavior. My lab has also studied the loss of cognitive spatial function under alcohol, to determine if it is due to alcohol's effects on the hippocampus. In addition, I have been studying computational models of hippocampal activity to better explain the ongoing processing. |
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Representative
Publications
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Doboli, S., Minai, A.A., & Best, P.J. (2004) A Hippocampal model of the interaction between external and internal sensory cues for the control of place cells. Neural Computation. 2004 Constantinidou, F., Thomas, R. D. & Best, P.J. (2003). Principles of cognitive rehabilitation, an integrative approach. Traumatic Brain Injury: Rehabilitative Treatment and Case Management, 2nd ed., Ashley, M. J.(. (Ed) 2003 Matthews, D.B., & Best, P.J. (2002). Impairments in the use of partial memory by acute ethanol administration are not due response perseveration. Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research. 2002 Best, P. J., White, A. M., & Minai, A. A. (2001). Place field activity of hippocampal neurons. Annual Review of Neuroscience, 24, 459-486. Doboli, S., Minai, A. A., & Best, P. J. (2001). Different hippocampal place cell maps for different environments. In Sharp. P. (Ed.) Neural basis of navigation. White, A. M., & Best, P. J. (2000). Effects of ethanol on hippocampal place-cell and interneuron activity, Brain Research, 876, 154-165. |
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Updated
on Friday 4 August 2006, © Dept. of Psychology, all rights reserved.
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