معرفی
Sarah M.N. Woolley, PhD is a Professor of Psychology at Columbia University's Faculty of Arts and Sciences and a Principal Investigator at Columbia's Zuckerman Institute. She serves as Codirector of the Center for Integrative Animal Behavior and is a Member of The Kavli Institute for Brain Science. Dr. Woolley also participates in the Doctoral Program in Neurobiology and Behavior as Executive Committee and Training Faculty, and serves on the Advisory Committee and as a Scholar Mentor for the Presidential Scholars in Society and Neuroscience program.
Her research focuses on understanding how songbird auditory circuits give rise to song perception and control vocal motor circuits during song learning and production. Like humans, songbirds rely on hearing to learn, perceive and produce vocalizations for communication. They learn song by listening to and copying adult songs during a critical developmental period. This makes songbirds a powerful model system for studying the neural mechanisms underlying vocal learning, production, and perception.
Dr. Woolley's work has revealed that songbird auditory systems have circuitry similar to mammalian cortical lamination, challenging previous assumptions about brain evolution. Her research demonstrates how social bonds influence early vocal learning and provides insights into what happens when vocal communication is disrupted, with potential applications for understanding speech disorders in humans.
Her scientific contributions have been recognized with prestigious awards including the Searle Scholars Program (2007), University of Washington Royalty Research Award (2000), and Howard Hughes Medical Institute Undergraduate Research Fellowship (1990-1991).
Dr. Woolley maintains active collaborations through her memberships in numerous professional organizations including the Society for Neuroscience (since 1994), International Society for Neuroethology (since 1998), and Association for Research in Otolaryngology (since 2002), among others. Her laboratory continues to produce significant research in auditory neuroscience and vocal communication.
