l a b    m e m b e r s

Deanna Greene

Title: Principal Investigator | Email: deannagreene@ucsd.edu

I am an Associate Professor in the Cognitive Science Department at UCSD. I received my BA from UCSD and my PhD from UCLA in the Psychology Department with a focus on Cognitive Neuroscience. I then received postdoctoral training at Washington University in St. Louis. The neuroimaging community at Wash U is fantastic, so I stuck around as faculty in the Psychiatry department. After 10 exciting years at WashU, I made my way back to my alma mater and home state in 2020. My lab studies brain development, network organization, and what goes awry in neurodevelopmental disorders, using a cognitive neuroscience approach. When I am not doing research, I enjoy spending time with my family, eating good food, and watching basketball.

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Damion Demeter

Title: Postdoctoral Scholar | Email: ddemeter@ucsd.edu

I am a postdoc at UCSD and very happy to be working with Dr. Greene and everyone in the lab. I am a west coast native, a first gen college student, and recently "ended" my extremely non-linear academic journey by earning my PhD under the supervision of Dr. Jessica Church at UT Austin. My main research interests orbit around quantifying how functional brain networks organize during development. I am especially interested in how specific aspects of functional network organization may vary in clinical populations and in relation to cognitive performance. I am also very passionate about providing resources for other first gen students and being involved in the "brain hack" community. Outside of science, I enjoy home-roasting coffee beans, overly complex board games, and medium format photography.

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Matthew Feigelis

Title: Graduate Student | Email: mfeigelis@ucsd.edu

I’m currently a PhD Candidate in Cognitive Science at UC San Diego supported by an HDSI Data Science Fellowship. My research uses neuroimaging, computer science, and statistics to understand individual-specific brain circuitry in children, adults, and participants with brain disorders. Before my PhD, I majored in mathematics and statistics at Rutgers University, and researched movement disorders using math and accelerometry. In my free time, I enjoy exploring new cultures and foods, exercising, reading books, and watching sports.

GitHub   Website

Sana Ali

Title: Graduate Student | Email: s5ali@uscd.edu

I am a third year PhD student in the Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience Lab at UCSD. I completed my undergraduate degree in Psychology from Stony Brook University in NY. Shortly after, I had the opportunity to work as a clinical research coordinator at The Zucker Hillside Hospital where I had the primary responsibility of managing large-scale neuroimaging studies that focused on causes and treatments of major psychiatric disorders. My research objectives are to utilize neuroimaging techniques to better understand the relationship between brain organization and mental health symptoms. Specifically, I would like to use resting-state fMRI to study the interplay of functional and structural connectivity networks to neurodevelopmental disorders. In my free time, I enjoy cooking, traveling and dancing!

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Emily Koithan

Title: Graduate Student | Email: emkoithan@ucsd.edu

Before joining UCSD’s Cognitive Science PhD Program in 2022, I completed my Bachelor of Science in Mathematics and Psychology at the University of Minnesota. During and after college, I assisted with research that used fMRI to examine brain alterations in eating disorders and substance use disorders. I plan to learn more about neuroimaging and machine learning in graduate school, which I hope to use to gain insight into the functional organization of the brain, predict outcomes, and uncover the neural bases of psychiatric and neurological disorders and symptoms. In my free time, I like to read, travel, and run.

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Abigail Baim

Title: Staff Research Associate | Email: abaim@ucsd.edu

I was born near Gießen, Germany and lived in 9 different places across the US and Germany before ending up in San Diego. I graduated from UCSD in 2022 with a B.S. in Cognitive and Behavioral Neuroscience. Before joining the Greene Lab I worked in two other labs on campus where I learned more about both typical and atypical development. These experiences grew my interest in learning about development through neuroimaging, and led me to the Greene Lab! In my free time I like to climb, go on walks, crochet, and read.

Salma Zreik

Title: Staff Research Associate | Email: szreik@ucsd.edu

I was born in Venezuela and grew up in Miami, Florida before moving to San Diego. I graduated from UCSD in 2023 with a B.S in Cognitive Behavioral Neuroscience and a minor in Computer Science. My research interests include using MRI data to study the neural circuits that underlie neurological disorders, as well as using machine learning to find correlations between neural features and behavioral characteristics. I am particularly interested in how we can use this information to improve treatment outcomes. I joined the Greene Lab in January 2023 as a research assistant working on a project using pose estimation software and machine learning to detect and classify various types of tics from videos. Outside of neuroscience, I enjoy painting, making pottery, and tending to my plants.

Skyler Xijin Zheng

Title: Undergraduate Research Assistant

I joined the Greene Lab as an undergraduate research assistant in March of 2022, during my second year pursuing a B.S in Cognitive and Behavioral Neuroscience at UC San Diego. I am especially interested in exploring more about neuroimaging methodologies within the scope of cognitive functioning to examine developmental disorders of the brain. My recent research project focuses on investigating the anatomical differences in pediatric and adult Tourette syndrome. Besides studying the brain, I enjoy dancing, hiking, landscape and portrait photography, and trying out new post-processing techniques.

Jared Stearns

Title: Undergraduate Research Assistant

I am a San Diego native and currently a senior pursuing a B.S. in General Biology. I first joined the Greene Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience lab as an undergraduate research assistant through a summer fellowship program called Colors of the Brain in 2023. I am interested in exploring neurodevelopmental disorders, and acquiring insight about the structural differences in the brain visualized through neuroimaging techniques. My current project in the lab examined the correlation between subcortical volumes and tic severity in patients with Tourette Syndrome. In my free time, I enjoy reading, writing, and attending concerts.

Sarita Raghunath

Title: Undergraduate Research Assistant

I am a fourth-year Cognitive Science major specializing in Machine Learning and Neural Computation. I am interested in how neurological disorders might present structurally in the brain. I am originally from New Jersey!

Abby Harmatz

Title: Undergraduate Research Assistant

I grew up in Long Beach, California before moving to San Diego for my undergrad. I am currently a senior working towards earning a B.S. in Cognitive and Behavioral Neuroscience. I am interested in both cognitive neuroscience and developmental neuroscience, and hope to further explore cognitive functioning in patients with neurodevelopmental disorders across different age groups. My future goals include earning my PhD and finding a career in research with a focus on cognitive science, neuroscience, or psychology. Outside of the Greene Lab, I sing in an a capella group on campus and I often watch movies with my roommates.

Julia Wang

Title: Undergraduate Research Assistant

I am a freshman at UCSD studying Cognitive and Behavioral Neuroscience, planning to minor in Health Care - Social Issues. Before joining the Greene Lab in the Fall Quarter of 2023, I was an Undergraduate Research Assistant at the University of North Texas Kristin Farmer Autism Center (UNT KFAC), where I helped with a project on Noun-Verb Tacts and evaluated the efficacy of a podcast program that teaches positive reinforcement skills to caregivers of children with autism. Since I mainly had experience looking at the Applied Behavior Analysis side of neurodevelopmental disorders, I wanted to learn more about the computational aspect, which is what led me to join the Greene Lab! I am currently working on score analysis for the Precision Tics study. In addition to research, I love dancing, traveling, and composing music!

Bianca Reyes

Title: Undergraduate Research Assistant

I am from Los Angeles and currently a sophomore studying Cognitive Behavioral Neuroscience. My dreams for the future include earning my PhD along with being a pediatric neurologist because I really enjoy helping children navigate through difficult times. I am really interested in understanding different neurological networks in the brain and how they connect to each other along with completing meta analysis to derive conclusions about results of previous research papers. I am also a coffee enthusiast along with a love for true crime shows.

Ishika Rathi

Title: Research Assistant

I recently graduated from UC San Diego with a BS in Cognitive Science - Neuroscience and a BA in Literature/Writing. While I came into UCSD intending to pursue literature, my academic experience in Cognitive Science and my practical experience as research assistant in various cognitive science labs gave me a new appreciation for neuroscience, linguistics, and research. Now, I have the ultimate goal of pursuing a PhD in Cognitive Neuroscience. I joined the Greene Lab as a Cognitive Science Summer Fellow, as I was hoping to learn more about clinical research, gain experience with neuroimaging techniques (fMRI), and answer personal questions about my career path and growth-timeline. I’m incredibly grateful for the Greene Lab and everyone here for helping me achieve these goals. Outside of my professional life, I am a cross-genre writer, and enjoy reading, crocheting, taking walks, and planning everyday adventures.

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Emily Bihun

Title: Clinical Research Coordinator

I grew up in Clayton, Missouri, blocks from Forest Park, with ample opportunity to explore its amazing museums and bounteous gardens. I graduated from Clayton High School and studied psychology as an undergrad at UW-Madison. Several years and a lot of real-world experience later, I attended UM-SL to obtain a graduate degree in counseling. At Washington University, I am a Clinical Research Coordinator for the Greene and Black Labs. I am especially interested in movement disorders, somatic awareness approaches, and maximizing quality of life for people of all ages. Outside of work, I am thoroughly entertained by my three kids and their crested gecko, Mordecai.

Kristen Scheidter

Title: Clinical Research Assistant

I grew up in O’Fallon, Missouri and graduated in 2017 from the University of Missouri – St. Louis with a BA in Psychology, minor in social work, and certificates in neuroscience and trauma studies. As a student, I had the opportunity to assist in two labs at UMSL, and through this discovered my interest in research and brain imaging methodologies. I have experience in the mental health and social service fields, and in 2019 came to Washington University to work in the Dosenbach lab as a Clinical Research Assistant. I have the honor of working together with our study participants, running the MRI scanner, and supporting lab and research functions. Outside of lab I enjoy singing, playing around on my guitar, and community.

Jaridd Albert

Title: Clinical Research Study Assistant

In mid-October of 2021, I joined the Greene, Black, and Hershey Labs at Washington University School of Medicine as a Clinical Research Study Assistant. I received my BS in Clinical Psychology from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and my MS in Clinical Psychology with a focus in Applied Research from Capella University. I plan to pursue a PhD to focus on research exploring the effects of integrative psychotherapy methods, mostly derived from Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Positive Psychotherapy, and Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy, on symptoms of depression in adolescents and young adults. Additionally, I am passionate about providing mental health outreach and education to the general population to promote mental wellness and investigating methods of increasing accessibility to mental health services. In my free time I enjoy going on hikes, playing tennis, writing, and traveling.

Amanda Arbuckle

Title: Clinical Research Study Assistant | Email: amanda.arbuckle@wustl.edu

I joined the Greene Lab as a Clinical Research Study Assistant in June 2021. I received a B.A. from Washington University in St. Louis in May 2021, graduating with a double major in Cognitive Neuroscience and English and a minor in Religious Studies. Currently, I help to recruit participants and conduct clinical and fMRI scan visits for our Longitudinal Tourettes Study (LoTS). In addition, I work as a clinical research study assistant in the Black Lab, led by Dr. Kevin Black, at Washington University in St. Louis, recruiting participants and conducting visits for our Median Nerve Stimulation and New Tics studies, and aiding in data collection and analysis. In my free time, I enjoy reading, writing, drawing, walking my Black lab, Brock, and attending local opera and plays.