MSc (Neuroscience) 2013
Research Interests:
Research Laboratory NICER Lab: Neuroscience of Imagination, Cognition, and Emotion Research Lab. |
Patricia Van RoonPhD (Neuroscience) candidate |
Current Research
| Neurolophysiological correlates of arousal and visual performance effect of luminous modulation. For my Masters in Neuroscience, I investigated the effect of luminous modulation or flicker using event-related potentials (ERPS). This electrical brain activity was recorded while participants performed a visual performance and a Stroop task. Flicker frequencies can cause neural responses in the visual pathways of the brain; therefore, I recorded the possible electrophysiological effects of flicker to determine if changes occurred in visual performance and eye movements. New eye tracking technology was implemented to evaluate visual fatigue and saccadic interference. ERPs provide a physiological standard that can demonstrate low frequency versus high frequency flicker effects on eye movements and visual fatigue. Due to ERPs high temporal resolution, this technology was considered most appropriate for examining these effects because the data can be analyzed by examining average responses or, in the frequency domain, by using power band analysis. |
| Tone detection and self-regulation training can improve educational performance in children. This experiment, in association with “The Leading Note Foundation”, is the first part of a musical training and socio-economic status experiment in children 5-18 years of age participating in an after-school music program. ERPs will be acquired while the participant is performing a mismatch negativity (MMN) task. Participants will be screened for tone deafness using the Montreal Battery of Evaluation of Amusia (Peretz, et al., 2003). The SES and musical training information will be correlated with the child’s educational progress to determine the impact of music programs. A second part of the study will examine tone-deafness to determine if, with weekly musical training, the tone deafness can be alleviated. Further training will be provided in the after-school program and children will be tested using event-related potentials once every four-six months for one year. The third part of this study is to examine the genetic polymorphisms related to children’s emotional states and to relate this information to their musical training and socio-economic status. |
| Testing a new combined EEG protocol for population based brain research in children and families. The purpose of this longitudinal study is to examine the socioeconomic status, changing stress levels, and quality of life in children aged 7-17 years involved in skill-based activity camps and comparing these children with a matched sample of children not involved in these camps. ERPs (brain wave recordings) will be used to assess these children as they complete different cognitive tasks specific for selective attention, executive function, self-regulation, visual processing, recognition, causal learning, and distractibility. |
Publications
| Van Roon PM, D’Angiulli A. (2014). Preschoolers’ ERPs of offline/online word visualization: A developmental embodied approach. In preparation. |
| Van Roon PM, Zakazideh J, Chartier S. (2014). Partial Least Squares Tutorial for Analyzing Neuroimaging Data. TQMP (in press). |
| D’Angiulli A, Van Roon PM, Weinberg J, Oberlander T, Grunau R, Hertzman C, Maggi S. (2012). Frontal EEG/ERP correlates of attentional processes, cortisol and motivational states in adolescents from lower and higher socioeconomic status. 2012 Nov 16;6:306. doi: 10.3389/fnhum.2012.00306. eCollection |
| Alain C, McDonald KL, Van Roon P. (2012). Effects of age and background noise on processing a mistuned harmonic in an otherwise periodic complex sound. Hearing Research, 283 (1-2): 126-135. |
| Itier R, Van Roon P, Alain C. (2010). Species sensitivity of early face and eye processing. Neuroimage, 54:705-713. |
| Alain C, Quan J, McDonald K, Van Roon P. (2009). Noise-induced increase in human auditory evoked neuromagnetic fields. European Journal of Neuroscience, 30:132-142. |
| Picton TW, van Roon P, John MS. (2009). Multiple Auditory Steady State Responses(80-101 Hz): Effects of Ear, Gender, Handedness, Intensity and Modulation Rate. Ear and Hearing, 30:100-109. |
| Picton TW, van Roon P, John MS. (2007). Human auditory steady-state responses during sweeps of intensity. Ear and Hearing, 28:542-557. |
| Purcell DW, van Roon P, John MS, Picton TW. (2006). Simultaneous latency estimations for distortion product otoacoustic emissions and envelope following responses. Journal of the Acoustical Society of America, 119:2869-2880. |
| Picton TW, Dimitrijevic A, Perez-Abalo M-C, van Roon P. (2005). Estimating audiometric thresholds using auditory steady-state responses Journal of theAmericanAcademy of Audiology, 16:140-156. |
| Herdman AT, Lins O, Van Roon P, Stapells DR, Scherg M, Picton TW. (2002). Intracerebral sources of human auditory steady-state responses. Brain Topography, 15(2):69-82. |
| Picton TW, Dimitrijevic A, van Roon P, John MS, Reed M, Finkelstein H. Possible roles for the auditory steady-state responses in fitting hearing aids. In: Seewald RC (Ed.), A Sound Foundation through Early Amplification: Proceedings of an International Conference, Phonak: Stafa, Switzerland, pp.59-69,(2002). |
| Dimitrijevic A, John MS, van Roon P, Purcell DW, Adamonis J, Ostroff J, Nedzelski JM, Picton TW. Estimating the audiogram using multiple auditory steady-state responses. Journal of the American Academy of Audiology, 13:205-224, 2002. |
| Picton TW, Dimitrijevic A, John MS, van Roon P. (2001). The use of phase in the detection of auditory steady-state responses. Clinical Neurophysiology, 112:1698-17111. |
| Dimitrijevic A, John MS, van Roon P, Picton TW. (2001). Human auditory steady-state responses to tones independently modulated in both frequency and amplitude. Ear and Hearing, 22:100-111. |
| Picton TW, van Roon P, Armilio ML, Berg P, Ille N, Scherg M. (2001). Blinks, saccades, extraocular muscles and visual evoked potentials(Reply to Verleger). Journal of Psychophysiology, 14:210-217. |
| John MS, Dimitrijevic A, van Roon P, Picton TW. (2001). Multiple auditory steady-state responses to AM and FM stimuli Audiology and Neuro-Otology, 6, 12-27. |
| Picton TW, van Roon P, Armilio ML, Berg P, Ille N, Scherg M. (2000). The correction of ocular artifacts: a topographic perspective. Clinical Neurophysiology, 111:53-65. |
| Segalowitz S, Van Roon P, Dywan J. (1997). The ERP late positivity: A graduated response to stimulus repetition. NeuroReport, 8:757-760. |
| Segalowitz S, Marsman I, Unsal A, Van Roon P. (1994). Context, meaning, and subjective probability factors in P300 amplitude: Trying to sort them out. Presentation for the Society for Psychophysiological Research. |
Interviews
| Van Roon P.M. Open Access interview (September 19, 2013), Interviewer: Diego Argaez. |
| Van Roon P.M. Carleton grad student Patricia Van Roon wants to help break the poverty cycle., (February 20, 2013). Interviewer: Lin Moody. |