Cognitive Neuroscience

Ken Paller holds the James Padilla Chair in Arts & Sciences in the Department of Psychology at Northwestern University. He also runs the Training Program in the Neuroscience of Human Cognition, which is funded by NIH and charged with training the next generation of cognitive neuroscientists.

His research focuses on the human mind and the intricate relationships between brain activity and conscious experience. He seeks to uncover the processes whereby memories are formed, stored, and later re-experienced — sometimes influencing our thoughts and actions unconsciously. He and his trainees developed new methods to strategically influence memory during sleep, which in turn can improve many aspects of the waking mind, including memory, creativity, and psychological well-being. He believes that research can reveal additional ways to harness the sleeping mind to improve people’s lives.