Cynthia Tedore
| vCard Cynthia Tedore | |
|---|---|
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| Affiliation: | Duke University |
| Homepage: | http://www.biology.duke.edu/johnsenlab/people/cynthia.html |
I am interested in how tiny brains process sensory input in a world chaotic with sensory information. How do simple nervous systems make sense of the myriad of colors, patterns, contours, movements, odors, tastes, vibrations, sounds, and textures clamoring for attention in natural environments? Do complex behaviors require complex cognition, or just simple sets of rules that work most of the time? Jumping spiders, namely Lyssomanes viridis, are my model system because of their apparently complex behaviors in competitive, courtship, and predatory contexts. I use a combination of correlative and experimental approaches, including life-size computer animations shown on a high pixel density display, to determine which features of the environment are important and which are ignored.
