Arnob Dam #1 - Starting out in my lab

I was introduced to my lab last week as well as a new life in the city for two months. My lab is situated in part of the top two floors of the College of Physicians and Surgeons in the Columbia Medical Center Campus. There are six main rooms to the lab. The lab almost gives off an office-like feeling because most of the rooms are just filled with desks and computers (besides the lounge and kitchen). It is a Neuroscience lab, but the actual experiments are computer based with a big emphasis on MATLAB.  I am at the lab from about 9:30 to 4, and multiple hours of the day is spent analyzing the data of experiments on MATLAB.

My usual work-screen.

The work I do on MATLAB is very challenging and can be both exciting and frustrating. For the past couple months I have been learning how to use the program, but within the first hour of my first day of my lab I started learning new stuff on MATLAB. I enjoy using it because it takes many problem solving skills which keeps me very occupied. When I get stuck my graduate student Yul is always ready to assist me which is reassuring.

 My specific research entails piloting an experiment for my PI, Mike. The experiment's hypothesis is 'changes of mind has a higher probability of leading to the correct solution than leading to the incorrect solution'. The experiment is conducted when a human subject plays this very simple computer game (made in MATLAB) where he or she selects which way a collection of dots on the screen is moving. It is more challenging than it sounds. The subject is also hooked up to a machine which tracks his or her eyes to make sure the subject is focusing on the dots while making the selection. 

My lab space, including the equipment that tracks eye movement (on the right)

This cool staircase in the lab

All in all, it has been a challenging but fun first week. I am close to learning all the MATLAB that I will need to successfully pilot the experiment and I am looking forward to actually starting doing trials. For my next blog post, I think I will write about how living by myself in New York has been as well as my impressions of my other lab members.