Joaquin A. Anguera, Ph.D
Director of Clinical Division - Neuroscape
Associate Professor - Neurology and Psychiatry
Address:
Room 502UCSF – Mission BaySandler Neuroscience CenterMC 0444, 675 Nelson Rising LaneSan Francisco, CA 94158
Email:
Curriculum Vitae:
Biography:
Joaquin grew up in San Diego, and in 2000 completed his undergraduate degree in Animal Physiology/Neuroscience at UCSD. While working on his Bachelor’s of Science and for some time after, he worked in a physical therapy clinic where the majority of the patients were older adults. At this clinic, there were some patients that made very little improvements, and it was not always clear why certain interventions worked better for some patients and not others. Intrigued by this, he decided to continue his education at California State University at Northridge where he completed a Master’s degree in Kinesiology in 2004. There he studied the biomechanical aspects of walking and realized that he was interested in pursuing a career in academia. Eager to see how the weather might differ outside of southern California, Joaquin worked towards his PhD in the School of Kinesiology at the University of Michigan, examining how different cognitive processes contribute to motor learning in both young and older adults, primarily using fMRI and EEG methodologies to probe these questions. After graduating in the fall of 2008, Joaquin searched for a group where he would gain more experience in the realms of cognitive characterization and remediation…and came across Adam Gazzaley's group, where he has been since January of 2009.
The body of research Joaquin has developed since then has focused on characterizing & augmenting aspects of cognitive control, using behavioral and neuroimaging technologies to elucidate the underlying neural signals involved. This has involved creating i) advanced training tools to remediate cognitive deficiencies and ii) using mobile technology to robustly characterize (and enhance) distinct cognitive abilities outside of the laboratory. These efforts have required developing a unique expertise in being able to navigate between academia and industry when developing tools for research endeavors. The sum of these experiences have allowed Joaquin to work with a number of distinct populations (and collaborators), including healthy children, young and older adults, as well as clinical populations involving ADHD, dyslexia, autism, and depressed individuals amongst others.