About Our Graduate Students

Vikranth Rao is a fifth-year graduate student, working on computational neuroscience of sensory perception under Dr. Alexandre Pouget. He came to Rochester with a B.S. degree in Computer Engineering and a B.A. in Cognitive Science from the University of Buffalo.

• "I came to Rochester with the conviction that I would be gaining that training I wanted, in applying computational techniques to the study of the brain, while being part of an excellent department. This conviction has since been vindicated. What sets Rochester apart is the commitment everyone here has to training excellent scientists. In my time here I have always been treated as a peer, I have found nurturing support and guidance, I have found encouragement to leave no stone unturned in my training and I have truly felt like there is room here for me to convert my ideas and efforts into useful research. Anyone walking down the hallways of this department cannot help but notice the feeling of excitement there is about this place—for new ideas, for carrying out research, for academic discovery."

Patricia Reeder is a fourth-year graduate student studying statistical learning and language acquisition under Elissa Newport. She came to Rochester with a B.A. in Computer Science and a B.A. in Psychology from Cornell University.

• "The BCS department appealed to me because of the strong interdisciplinary and collaborative atmosphere. I wanted my graduate education to be in a supportive environment where I could discuss my ideas with people who cared about many different aspects of cognition, and that's exactly what Rochester offers. The BCS community is fueled by people with a wide range of interests and expertise. Discussions and collaborations in this kind of environment are extremely rewarding and enlightening. I am constantly challenged to think about my research in the context of the 'bigger picture,' and this has definitely helped me to grow and participate in the greater scientific community. I've found that Rochester is a great fit for my personal research interests as a language scientist, but it's also a wonderful place to get exposed to how language fits into cognition as a whole."

Laurel Issen is a third year graduate student working on vision rehabilitation of stroke patients with David Knill and Krystel Huxlin. Laurel has B.S. degree in Computer Science from The University of Texas at Austin.

• "I wasn't sold on Rochester until I visited. Several places had interesting projects in vision that I wanted to work on, and David Knill's work was included in that. But unlike a lot of other incoming graduate students who seemed to come in with a focused plan, I came a roundabout way toward studying vision and the brain, and I knew I needed a bit of flexibility in choosing a project. When I visited, I saw that this department was such a great community—all of the scientists were familiar with each others' work and collaborated frequently, and the graduate students were a tight-knit group of friends spanning all the department's disciplines. Having centralized funding from the department was a big deal because as I predicted, my research interests have shifted a bit. I'm finishing up my original project, but there was no red tape about running in a new direction and collaborating with Krystel Huxlin in the medical center. I had an idea, and now I'm able to work on it. To me, that's what science is all about!"

Kevin Dieter is a first year graduate student studying visual motion perception. He came to Rochester after earning a B.A. in Cognitive Science from Johns Hopkins University.

• "My attention was first drawn to Rochester because of its reputation for excellence both as a whole institution and in the particular field of vision science. What I learned when I visited is that this excellence stemmed not only from talented individuals, but from a strong and supportive community with an unparalleled desire to solve problems through collaboration rather than competition. The diversity of research questions and approaches utilized at Rochester also ensure me that I will be well prepared to study whatever research questions I eventually settle on. As a new student, it was extremely comforting to arrive knowing that there was a whole community waiting to support me. And I know that in the future this same community will foster my curiosity and lead me towards exciting discovery."