Tamar.Makin@mrc-cbu.cam.ac.uk
01223 766 166
I'm a professor of Cognitive Neuroscience at the MRC Cognition and Brain Unit. My main interest is in understanding the key drivers and limitations of reorganisation in the adult brain. My primary model for this work is studying differently abled individuals. A particular focus is on how habitual behaviour, such as prosthesis usage or motor augmentation, shapes brain reorganisation. For this purpose, I integrate methods from the fields of neuroscience, experimental psychology, engineering and rehabilitation. I hope my research will enable clinical populations and those relying on motor augmentation to take advantage of the benefits of brain plasticity, rather than to suffer from their adverse effects.
Tamar graduated from the Brain and Behavioural Sciences programme at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem in 2009. She was then awarded several career development fellowships to establish her research programme on brain plasticity at the University of Oxford, first as Research Fellow and later as a Principle Investigator. In 2016 Tamar joined the faculty of UCL where she was later appointed Professor of Cognitive Neuroscience. In 2022 she moved to Cambridge to continue her research. She is currently supported by the European Research Council (Starting Grant), UKRI (Horizon Europe guarantee to underwrite her successful ERC Consolidator Grants), the Wellcome Trust (Senior Research Fellow) and the UK Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council.
https://plasticity-lab.com/Allen, K.R., Smith, K.A., Bird, L.A., Tenenbaum, J.B., MMAKIN, T. R., Cowie, D. (2023) Lifelong learning of cognitive styles for physical problem-solving: The effect of embodied experience., Psychonomic Bulletin & Review, 04 Dec 2023, 31(3):1364-1375 [Open Access]