How It's Made: Neuroscience
Welcome to the 2025 How It’s Made: Neuroscience series! This series offers a behind-the-scenes look inside cutting-edge neuroscience labs, giving you the opportunity to explore how researchers study the brain and bridge the gap between science and society.
Fruit Fly Neurosci
Katherine Thompson-Peer, Ph.D., is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Developmental & Cell Biology at UC Irvine’s School of Biological Sciences. Katherine and her lab conducts research to understand how neurons develop, function, and repair, using the common fruit fly, Drosophila melanogaster, as a model organism.
Your Brain’s GPS
Liz Chrastil, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor in the Department of Neurobiology and Behavior at UC Irvine’s Charlie Dunlop School of Biological Sciences. Liz and her lab conduct research to understand how humans form, store, and retrieve spatial and episodic memories, investigating how the brain encodes experiences and supports navigation in everyday life.
Rats & Smells & AI OH MY!
Keiland Cooper is a PhD Candidate the Fortin Lab at the UCI Center for the Neurobiology of Learning and Memory. The lab studies how animals learn and remember sequences of smells, sights, and sounds, linking memory and decision-making to brain activity. Keiland conducts research to measure neural activity in real time and analyze how brain signals give rise to complex cognition.
Big Data & Small Cells
Nellie Kwang is a MD PhD student in the Green Lab at the UCI Center for the Neurobiology of Learning and Memory. The lab uses advanced imaging and computational tools to study the cellular and molecular changes that occur in the brain during Alzheimer’s disease. Nellie conducts research to understand how immune cells called microglia interact with amyloid beta plaques and how these interactions impact learning and memory.
About the Series
The How It’s Made: Neuroscience videos were created as part of science awareness initiatives at the University of California, Irvine Center for the Neurobiology of Learning and Memory. This series highlights cutting-edge neuroscience techniques and gives viewers a front-row seat to the experiments and discoveries that shape our understanding of the brain.
Supporting Partners
The CNLM Ambassador Program aims to connect science and society through initiatives like the How It's Made: Neuroscience videos. This series is proudly supported by the Friends of the CNLM. To help support the Center’s research and educational programs, visit Friends of the CNLM.
Produced and Developed by Jessica Ha
