Meaghan Spedden

Dr. Meaghan Spedden is a Research Fellow at University College London's Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, specializing in neuroimaging of language processing and motor control. She works within the MEG group at the Functional Imaging Laboratory under Professor Gareth Barnes, developing innovative optically pumped magnetometer (OPM) techniques for concurrent brain-spinal cord imaging.

Her research bridges movement neuroscience and language processing, with dual projects focusing on: (1) developing novel OPM-based scanning for simultaneous brain-spinal cord activity recording to understand neural communication in motor control, and (2) investigating brain activity in deaf children during reading and sign language using OPM technology. Key research areas include neuroimaging methodology, neural communication pathways, developmental motor learning, and cross-modal language processing.

Her publication trends demonstrate expertise in wearable MEG technology, with recent work emphasizing spinal cord biomagnetism, corticomuscular connectivity, and developmental neuroplasticity. Articles reveal strong focus on methodological innovation in neuroimaging, particularly for dynamic natural movements and pediatric populations.

Spedden collaborates extensively with the Visual Communication Group at the Institute for Cognitive Neuroscience and the MEG group at the Functional Imaging Laboratory. Her technical work involves advanced OPM-MEG development, real-time magnetic field correction, and computational modeling for neural source localization.