Daniel Baldauf
Associate professor
Center for Mind/Brain Sciences - CIMeC
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Education |
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2019 – present Associate Professor at the Center for Mind/Brain Sciences (CIMeC), University of Trento, Italy. 2017 Habilitation for Associate Professor 2016 – 2019 Assistant Professor at the Center for Mind/Brain Sciences (CIMeC), University of Trento, Italy. 2016 – 2020 Director of the MEG facility at the Center for Mind/Brain Sciences (CIMeC), University of Trento, Italy. 2014 – 2018 Research Scientist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), McGovern Institute for Brain Research. 2009 – 2014 Postdoctoral Scholar at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), McGovern Institute for Brain Research, under supervision of Dr. Robert Desimone. 2008 – 2009 Postdoctoral Scholar in the EU-project "Grasp" with Dr. Heiner Deubel and Junior Lecturer in the Master program "Neuro-Cognitive Psychology", Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich, Germany. 2006 – 2007 Research as Fulbright fellow at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech), under supervision of Dr. Richard Andersen. 2005 – 2008 DFG-Graduate School "Orientation and Motion in Space" and dissertation under supervision of Dr. Heiner Deubel, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Germany. Thesis: 'Visual selection of multiple movement goals'. 2005 Diploma in Psychology, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Germany. 2004 – 2005 Research Assistant of Dr. Marc Wittman and Dr. Ernst Poeppel at the Centre for Human-Machine-Interaction of the Generation Research Program, Germany. 2001 – 2005 Research Assistant of Dr. Heiner Deubel, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Germany. 2000 – 2005 Undergraduate and graduate studies of Psychology and Neurobiology (minor), Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Germany. |
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Academic career and teaching activities |
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2019 – present Associate Professor at the Center for Mind/Brain Sciences (CIMeC), University of Trento, Italy. 2017 Habilitation for Associate Professor 2016 – 2019 Assistant Professor at the Center for Mind/Brain Sciences (CIMeC), University of Trento, Italy. 2016 – 2020 Director of the MEG facility at the Center for Mind/Brain Sciences (CIMeC), University of Trento, Italy. 2014 – 2018 Research Scientist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), McGovern Institute for Brain Research.
Past teaching activities:
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Research interests |
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The communication between distant brain areas and the information flow between them is one of the most urgent and most fascinating questions of modern neuroscience. We use human brain imaging techniques to study the communication between brain areas by means of neural oscillations and synchrony. Magnetoencephalography(MEG/EEG) allows us to capture the highly dynamic interactions in large-scale networks with millisecond precision. We seek to understand the general principles by which the directed communication between different brain areas may help orchestrate perception and sensorimotor control.
My current research at the Center for Mind/Brain Sciences (CIMeC, University of Trento) investigates the general principles by which the directed communication between different brain areas may help orchestrate perception and sensorimotor control. Hereby we focus on fundamental psychological functions, such as
To investigate these functions, we use a multi-modal neuroimaging approach in the lab, which involves classical psychological research methods such as behavioral task performance measures (testing reaction times, discrimination accuracy) and eye-tracking, but also magnetoencephalography (MEG), electroencephalography (EEG), and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). Often, we combine these tools within the same experimental subjects to complement spatial (e.g., fMRI) and temporal resolution (as in MEG), or to confirm measures of functional connectivity (i.e., coherent neural oscillations in two or more areas) with the subject’s individual anatomical connectivity by means of diffusion tractography (DTI). Our analyses focus on the communication between distant brain areas and the information flow between, which is one of the most urgent questions of modern neuroscience. We use this combination of various human brain imaging techniques to study the communication between brain areas by means of neural oscillations and synchrony. In particular, the magnetoencephalography (MEG/EEG) allows us to capture the highly dynamic interactions in large-scale networks with millisecond precision.
Since 2016 I’ve been appointed as the director of CIMeC’s MEG facility and head of the ‘Attention Network Group’ (for more information see: https://www.cimec.unitn.it/541/attention-network-group). Our current research activities are structured in the following five main research projects:
1. Top-down mechanisms of visual and auditory attention In this project, we use magnetoencephalography (MEG) recordings to investigate top-down mechanisms of visual attention. The superb temporal resolution and the whole-head coverage of MEG allows us to study interactions of wide-spread neural networks by means of neural oscillations and synchrony. In particular, we became interested in mechanisms subserving non-spatial attention, e.g. when searching for a certain color (see Marinato & Baldauf, 2019; Baldauf, 2018; Schwedhelm et al., 2017; Baldauf & Desimone, in rev.; Baldauf & Desimone, 2014).
2. Frequency tagging functionally specialized brain areas In MEG and EEG recording we often use frequency-tagged stimuli, i.e. different aspects of a visual scene are updated periodically at slightly different presentation rhythms. After Fourier-transforming the whole brain activity, we can identify areas that picked up the stimulus’ oscillation patterns and study their role in processing certain aspects of the layout. In this project, we also developed a 2D-Fourier based frequency-tagging approach that allows tagging different aspects of a scene simultaneously and retrieving phase-locking values and information about the relative phase-lags (‘latencies’) for various functional compartmentalizations in high-level visual cortex (see DeVries & Baldauf, in rev.) and auditory cortex (Marinato & Baldauf, 2019; Baldauf & Desimone, in rev.; Baldauf & Desimone, 2014).
3. Functional and anatomical connectivity When we study patterns of functional connectivity, e.g. in terms of coherent oscillatory activity in two brain regions, we also try to pinpoint the anatomical basis of these functional connectivities. To do so we analyze DTI scans in our participants and reconstruct fiber bundles in the white matter that connect the respective sites of activation. This project is an ongoing collaboration with the Neuroinformatics group at Fondazione Bruno Kessler.
4. Visual attention during the preparation of sequential behavior Much of human intelligent and complex behavior is based on the skillful combination of motor primitives and sequential organization. In this line of experiment human participants are asked to prepare for behavioral sequences. We observe that attention processes play an important role in the preparation and planning of such sequences. For example, attention splits into multiple foci as to cover several (up to three) subsequent goal positions in parallel (see Baldauf, 2018; Baldauf, 2011; Baldauf & Deubel, 2010; Baldauf et al., 2008a, 2008b).
5. Changes to the patterns of functional connectivity in various states of resting wakefulness and sleep. In this project, we explore with high-resolving magnetoencephalography signals the dynamic changes in brain communication as the human participants are in various states of resting wakefulness or as they undergo cycles of various sleep stages (see Brancaccio et al., in rev.). |
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Research work |
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Magnetoencephalography (MEG) Brain oscillations and neural synchrony Visual Attention
find more information on: www.danielbaldauf.org
My main research activities are: 1. Top-down mechanisms of visual and auditory attention In this project, we use magnetoencephalography (MEG) recordings to investigate top-down mechanisms of visual attention. The superb temporal resolution and the whole-head coverage of MEG allows us to study interactions of wide-spread neural networks by means of neural oscillations and synchrony. In particular, we became interested in mechanisms subserving non-spatial attention, e.g. when searching for a certain color (see Marinato & Baldauf, 2019; Baldauf, 2018; Schwedhelm et al., 2017; Baldauf & Desimone, in rev.; Baldauf & Desimone, 2014).
2. Frequency tagging functionally specialized brain areas In MEG and EEG recording we often use frequency-tagged stimuli, i.e. different aspects of a visual scene are updated periodically at slightly different presentation rhythms. After Fourier-transforming the whole brain activity, we can identify areas that picked up the stimulus’ oscillation patterns and study their role in processing certain aspects of the layout. In this project, we also developed a 2D-Fourier based frequency-tagging approach that allows tagging different aspects of a scene simultaneously and retrieving phase-locking values and information about the relative phase-lags (‘latencies’) for various functional compartmentalizations in high-level visual cortex (see DeVries & Baldauf, in rev.) and auditory cortex (Marinato & Baldauf, 2019; Baldauf & Desimone, in rev.; Baldauf & Desimone, 2014).
3. Functional and anatomical connectivity When we study patterns of functional connectivity, e.g. in terms of coherent oscillatory activity in two brain regions, we also try to pinpoint the anatomical basis of these functional connectivities. To do so we analyze DTI scans in our participants and reconstruct fiber bundles in the white matter that connect the respective sites of activation. This project is an ongoing collaboration with the Neuroinformatics group at Fondazione Bruno Kessler.
4. Visual attention during the preparation of sequential behavior Much of human intelligent and complex behavior is based on the skillful combination of motor primitives and sequential organization. In this line of experiment human participants are asked to prepare for behavioral sequences. We observe that attention processes play an important role in the preparation and planning of such sequences. For example, attention splits into multiple foci as to cover several (up to three) subsequent goal positions in parallel (see Baldauf, 2018; Baldauf, 2011; Baldauf & Deubel, 2010; Baldauf et al., 2008a, 2008b).
5. Changes to the patterns of functional connectivity in various states of resting wakefulness and sleep. In this project, we explore with high-resolving magnetoencephalography signals the dynamic changes in brain communication as the human participants are in various states of resting wakefulness or as they undergo cycles of various sleep stages (see Brancaccio et al., in rev.). |
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Memberships in societies and scientific committees |
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Editorial Board Membership: Nature Scientific Reports
Reviewing: Attention, Perception & Performance Brain & Cognition Cerebral Cortex Experimental Brain Research Human Factors International Journal of Psychophysiology International Journal of Social Robotics Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience Journal of Experimental Psychology: HPP Journal of Vision Journal of Neurophysiology Journal of Neuroscience Nature Scientific Reports Neuroimage Neuropsychologia Neuron Philosophical Transaction of the Royal Society Science Vision Research
Membership: Society for Neuroscience (SfN) Vision Sciences Society (VSS) |
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Awards and honours |
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Grants & Awards: Grant for Doctoral studies of the German Research Council (DFG), 2005-2008 Grant of the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) for studies abroad, 2006-2007 Fulbright Commission Travel-Grant, 2007
Student Investigator Award of the Vision Science Society (VSS), 2007 |
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Conferences and lectures |
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Meeting of the Vision Science Society (VSS), USA, 2018 IOP, Lucca, Italy, 2018 ECVP, Trieste, Italy, 2018 Biomag, USA, 2018 SIPF, Rome, Italy, 2017 Meeting of the Vision Science Society (VSS), USA, 2017 Meeting of Society for Neuroscience (SfN), USA, 2017 Meeting of the Vision Science Society (VSS), USA, 2016 Meeting of Society for Neuroscience (SfN), USA, 2016 Meeting of the Vision Science Society (VSS), USA, 2015 Meeting of Society for Neuroscience (SfN), USA, 2015 Meeting of the Vision Science Society (VSS), USA, 2014 Biomag, Halifax, Canada, 2014 Meeting of Society for Neuroscience (SfN), USA, 2014 Meeting of the Vision Science Society (VSS), USA, 2013 Meeting of Society for Neuroscience (SfN), USA, 2013 Meeting of the Vision Science Society (VSS), USA, 2012 ECVP, Sardinia, Italy, 2012 Biomag, Paris, 2012 Meeting of Society for Neuroscience (SfN), USA, 2012 Meeting of the Vision Science Society (VSS), USA, 2011 Meeting of Society for Neuroscience (SfN), USA, 2011 Meeting of the Vision Science Society (VSS), USA, 2010 Meeting of Society for Neuroscience (SfN), USA, 2010 Meeting of the Vision Science Society (VSS), USA, 2009 Meeting of Society for Neuroscience (SfN), USA, 2009 Meeting of the Vision Science Society (VSS), USA, 2008 Meeting of Society for Neuroscience (SfN), USA, 2008 Meeting of the Vision Science Society (VSS), USA, 2007 Meeting of Society for Neuroscience (SfN), USA, 2007 Meeting of the Vision Science Society (VSS), USA, 2006 |
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Notes |
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Nothing to note here |
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Attachments |
Baldauf_CV_022019.pdf (45.73 KB)