Lab Members
Graduate Students
Name: Alexandria Barlowe (she/hers)
Title: PhD Student
Hometown: Long Island, New York
Program: Brain, Behavior and Cognition
I am a PhD student here at BU working with Dr. Caldwell-Harris. I have an extensive research background in many fields, from botany to systems neuroscience. I am interested in the neural correlates of behavior and am developing a project examining the pupillary light response to non-visual stimuli such as physical exertion or bilingual switching tasks. I think subcortical structures like the locus coeruleus and cerebellum contribute to higher-level cognitive processes much more than we give them credit for, and I am interested in the behavioral and social computations they contribute to in neurodivergent populations.
Name: Yilin (Cici) Zhao (she/hers)
Title: Project Coordinator, Graduate Research Assistant
Project: Media Exposure and Attitude Dynamics Research, Explaining Advice Research, AI-Integrated Pedagogy in Research Methods Research
Email Address: yilinz@bu.edu
Name: Ziying (Darren) Chen (he/his)
Title: Co-Lab Manager, Co-Project Coordinator, Graduate Research Assistant
Project: Media Exposure and Attitude Dynamics Research, Explaining Advice Research, AI-Integrated Pedagogy in Research Methods Research
Email Address: zchenbu@bu.edu
My name is Ziying (Darren) Chen, and I am a Master’s student in Emerging Media Studies at Boston University. My academic interests span media processing, with a preliminary interest in how basic sensory features influence attention within the LC4MP framework.
Post-Baccalaureate
Name: Dawson Xuan (he/his)
Title: Lab Manager, Post-Baccalaureate Research Assistant
Email Address: djxuan@bu.edu
Name: Natalie Strayton (she/hers)
Title: Project Coordinator, Post-Baccalaureate Research Assistant
Project: Media Exposure and Attitude Dynamics Research
Email Address: stray22n@mtholyoke.edu
Hi! I’m Natalie! I graduated from Mount Holyoke College in 2025, where I studied psychology and cognitive neuroscience. My research interests include emotions, emotion regulation, and how language shapes how we interpret and express emotions. I am a Project Coordinator on the Chinese Film Project!
Undergraduate Students
Name: Junze Ke
Intern for Social Media Analysis Project
Email address: junzeke@bu.edu
Name: Selah Nieratko (she/hers)
Title: Undergraduate Research Assistant
Email Address: selahun@bu.edu
Name: Sining Guo (she/hers)
Title: Co-Project Coordinator, Undergraduate Research Assistant
Project: Media Exposure and Attitude Dynamics Research, The Autism and Schizophrenia Research
Name: Favour Adiagwai (she/hers)
Title: Undergraduate Research Assistant
Project: AI-Integrated Pedagogy in Research Methods Research
Email Address: favadiag@bu.edu
Name: Xinyi Zheng (she/hers)
Title: Undergraduate Research Assistant
Project: Media Exposure and Attitude Dynamics, Research Explaining Advice Research
Email Address: cxzheng@bu.edu
Name: Victoria Spignolio (she/hers)
Title: Undergraduate Research Assistant
Project: Media Exposure and Attitude Dynamics, Research Explaining Advice Research
Email Address: vic1114@bu.edu
Name: Mai Hoang
Title: Undergraduate Research Assistant
Project: Explaining Advice Research
Email Address: maihoang@bu.edu
Name: May Amelie Inui (she/hers)
Title: Undergraduate Research Assistant
Project: Media Exposure and Attitude Dynamics Research, Explaining Advice Research
Email Address: mayinui@bu.edu
Name: Yanyu (Sylvia) Chen (she/hers)
Title: Undergraduate Research Assistant
Project: AI-Integrated Pedagogy in Research Methods Research
Email Address: sylvia09@bu.edu
Name: Eri Murayasu (she/hers)
Title: Undergraduate Research Assistant
Email Address: muray05e@bu.edu
Name: Yanzi Li (she/hers)
Title: Undergraduate Research Assistant
Major: Psychology, Media Science
Project: Explaining Advice Research
Email Address: kk0902@bu.edu
Name: Yitong (Ruby) Liu (she/hers)
Title: Undergraduate Research Assistant
Project: AI-Integrated Pedagogy in Research Methods Research
Email Address: rubygo33@bu.edu
Name: Beining (Betty) Bao (she/hers)
Title: Undergraduate Research Assistant
Project: Explaining Advice Research
Hometown: Shanghai, China
Major: Psychology
Email Address: beining@bu.edu