Author Archives: Alex

About Alex

Alex Konkel is currently a doctoral candidate at the University of Illinois where he works with Neal J. Cohen and Aaron Benjamin. His research focuses on the cognitive and neural bases of memory and meta-memory.

Memory and the Media

Posted on March 15, 2011 by Alex

You may have seen commercials for Limitless, a movie opening this weekend.  The trailers show a disheveled Bradley Cooper taking a pill that will allow him to use 100% of his brain instead of the 20% that everyone else putters … Continue reading →

Posted in Cognitive Neuroscience, Cognitive Psychology, Uncategorized | 4 Comments

Exercise Your Body, Exercise Your Brain

Posted on March 3, 2011 by Alex

It’s all downhill after 20.  Not only do workouts leave you feeling more sore than they used to, but memory, creative thinking, and mental speed all start to decrease around the time most people finish college.  Not surprisingly, the brain … Continue reading →

Posted in Cognitive Neuroscience, Cognitive Psychology | 4 Comments

Have Something Important to Remember? Sleep On It

Posted on February 7, 2011 by Alex

Students often hear that they should get a good night’s sleep before a test.  Even if you load up on coffee and Red Bull to study all night you’ll be wired and stressed, and that certainly isn’t going to help.  … Continue reading →

Posted in Cognitive Neuroscience, Cognitive Psychology | 3 Comments

Lies, Damn Lies, and Memory

Posted on February 2, 2011 by Alex

Last week marked the 25th anniversary of the Challenger space shuttle explosion, a tragedy that took 7 lives and is a landmark moment for many people. Yahoo! asked readers to send in their memories of that day, and many were … Continue reading →

Posted in Cognitive Psychology | Leave a comment

Weapon of Choice

Posted on January 26, 2011 by Alex

If you see psychology research in the press these days, chances are it comes complete with a pretty fMRI picture, the ones with the brain covered in lights showing which parts are working more.  It’s less likely that you’ve seen … Continue reading →

Posted in Cognitive Neuroscience | 4 Comments