Mentor Areas
Dr. Basner’s laboratory science focuses on the neurobehavioral and physiological regulation of human health and behavior by circadian and sleep biology. The primary focus is on identifying the manner in which sleep need and circadian biology interact to influence wakefulness and neurobehavioral, cognitive, affective and biologic functions (immune, inflammatory, endocrine, metabolic, genetic). This research is conducted both in the laboratory and in the field. Dr. Basner’s field research includes studies of astronauts in spaceflight and how spaceflight affects neurobehavioral and cardiovascular functions, as well as in the home and how nighttime environmental noise (e.g., aircraft noise) affects sleep and cardiovascular health.
Description:
Our laboratory studies human sleep neurophysiology (EEG), neurobehavioral functions (e.g., cognitive performance, mood), physiology (e.g., hormones, immune function), genetics, and neuroimaging in experiments on sleep deprivation and circadian rhythms. Projects are conducted in the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania as part of research supported by FAA, NASA, TRISH, NIH, and DOD; field projects are conducted in spaceflight and in the home. The goal is to determine how sleep and the endogenous biological clock control waking neurobehavioral and health-related functions, as well as how environmental factors influence human health through changes in sleep.
Preferred Qualifications
Requirements include an inquisitive mind, self-discipline, and willingness to do the work of science.
Responsibilities include: thorough review of scientific literature, basic data and statistical analysis, visualization of data, communication and presentation of research with lab faculty and post-docs, and interpretation of study data as it relates to the current literature base.
Project Website
Learn more about the researcher and/or the project here. Unit for Experimental Psychiatry Laboratory Website
Details:
Preferred Student Year
First-year, Second-Year, Junior, Senior
Academic Term
Fall, Spring, Summer
I prefer to have students start during the above term(s).Volunteer
No
Yes indicates that faculty are open to volunteers.Paid
Yes
Yes indicates that faculty are open to paying students they engage in their research, regardless of their work-study eligibility.Work Study
No
Yes indicates that faculty are open to hiring work-study-eligible students.