Post-Docs
Manda Fischer, Postdoctoral fellow
I am a cognitive neuroscientist (and musician) fascinated by the dynamic interplay between memory and perception in moulding our experience of the world. As a BrainsCAN Postdoctoral Fellow at Western University working with Dr. Ingrid Johnsrude, my research centres on understanding how long-term memory for voices can enhance speech intelligibility under challenging listening conditions. This work forms part of my broader scope, combining perspectives from memory research, auditory neuroscience, and music perception. I mainly use converging behavioural, neural (EEG), and statistical modelling techniques to understand how memory guides attention to facilitate successful auditory perception.
My research journey began with two honours theses exploring how acoustic factors and musical expertise influence sound segregation in orchestral music, working with Dr. Stephen McAdams (B.Sc., McGill University). After having been “bitten” by the research bug, I expanded my focus to investigate the cognitive and neural processes that support auditory memory formation and retrieval in order to uncover how cognitive factors like memory and attention shape auditory perception in real-world soundscapes, working with Drs. Claude Alain and Morris Moscovitch (M.A. and Ph.D., University of Toronto).
