Akila Kadambi is a Postdoctoral Scholar jointly appointed in the Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA and the Brain and Creativity Institute at USC. Building on her PhD work from UCLA, her postdoctoral research investigates the neural mechanisms of empathy and social perception through functional neuroimaging, non-invasive brain stimulation, and neuroethological methods. Current projects examine how narratives and music foster belonging, how the brain supports rehumanization of marginalized groups, and how humanistic neuroscience can inform the development of more trustworthy and empathic AI systems. Her research is supported by Google Research, the Aspen Institute NeuroArts Blueprint, Templeton World Foundation, and Dana Foundation, and published in NeuroImage, Journal of Neuroscience, and Psychonomic Bulletin & Review.

Denisse Paredes is postdoctoral scholar in Psychology in Dr. Kate Wassum’s lab, where she investigates how to reverse stress-induced overreliance of habits. Dr. Paredes obtained her B.S. in Neuroscience and Psychology from Trinity University in San Antonio, Texas. She then obtained her PhD at UT Health San Antonio, where she developed a rodent model of adjunct exposure therapy with ketamine to reverse stress-induced cognitive flexibility deficits. She later completed postdoctoral training in Dr. Michael Drew’s lab at UT Austin. Her work aims to elucidate the neurobiological mechanisms of behavioral therapies for the treatment of traumatic stress.

Eliana Oduro is an undergraduate researcher at UCLA working in a neurosurgery research lab and a Dana Center Fellow. Her Dana project is a qualitative study examining how underrepresented brain tumor patients experience chemotherapy-related toxicity and adverse effects. Through this work, she aims to improve pre-chemotherapy counseling, support during treatment, and chemotherapy completion. 

Emma Landskroner is a doctoral candidate in the Department of Environmental Health Sciences at UCLA’s Fielding School of Public Health and a first-year Dana Center Fellow. Her work combines environmental sampling with toxicological assessment using BEAS-2B cells and Drosophila melanogaster exposure models. Current projects examine “green” chemicals, wildfire ash, and community-identified beauty products. Emma is particularly interested in occupational and environmental health disparities and in using community-informed science to prevent exposures that contribute to neurodegeneration and other chronic diseases.

Erin Morrow is a second-year Fellow and Ph.D. Candidate in Cognitive Neuroscience in the UCLA Department of Psychology. Erin’s work at the Dana Center focuses on building a culture of civic-minded neuroscience by reframing science communication as dialogue and relationship-building between mutual learners. She is also passionate about expanding the visibility of career paths at the interface of neuroscience and society, including science policy. In the lab, Erin uses neuroimaging and behavioral methods to study how arousal shapes the structure of human memory – particularly in PTSD. She is a native of Atlanta, Georgia and received her B.S. in Neuroscience and Behavioral Biology from Emory University.

Lilyana is a postdoctoral fellow at the UCLA-CDU Dana Center and in the department of Neurosurgery at UCLA. She received her Ph.D. in Philosophy from Emory University in 2021. Her dissertation, “Contested Illness and Embodied Knowing: On Medical Gaslighting as Epistemic Injustice” foregrounds patient perspectives on medical error, diagnostic delay and illness dismissal to give an account of medical gaslighting as a systemic and pervasive form of epistemic injustice. As a postdoc, her work focuses on the research ethics of brain computer interfaces (BCI), specifically visual cortical prostheses (VCP). Outside of the lab, Lilyana can be found hiking on the many wonderful trails in Southern California, doting on her two cats, or experimenting in the kitchen.

Nicole Floum is a research assistant with joint appointment in the Tornini Lab and Heat Lab at UCLA. With a background in biochemistry, history, and education, her work analyzes how varying life experiences can affect gene expression and human development. Looking at epigenetic markers, neurological activity, and neural circuits in zebrafish, her projects aim to further elucidate the relationship between the social sciences and life sciences. Currently, she studies neural activity and neural circuits in zebrafish models upon exposure to commonly prescribed medications under varying environmental conditions—specifically heat. She earned a B.S. in Biology with a minor in history from UCLA.

Phelan Glenn is a Ph.D. student in Neuroscience at UCLA (she/her), where her research focuses on brain aging and Alzheimer’s disease, with a particular emphasis on health disparities affecting Black and African American communities. Her work integrates large-scale neuroimaging, family history, and genetic data to identify early markers of Alzheimer’s risk across diverse populations. In addition to her Alzheimer’s research, Phelan is a student volunteer on the Feathers & Feelings project through the Bird and Garden Group, a community-engaged initiative examining how interactions with urban green spaces support mental and brain health. She is committed to advancing brain health equity through rigorous computational research, community-engaged scholarship, mentorship, and science communication.

Amani Carson is a medical student at the David Geffen School of Medicine (DGSOM) at UCLA in the CDU-UCLA Urban Health Equity Pathway. Her work focuses on improving access to neurosurgical care and clinical outcomes for neuro-oncology, neurotrauma, and spine surgery patients. Current projects include reducing barriers to neurosurgical-oncological care in underserved communities (with Dr. Kunal Patel, MD), understanding modifiers of clinical outcomes for neurotrauma and spine patients (with Dr. Theresa Williamson, MD), and developing simulation tools to improve patient-surgeon communication with the UCLA DGSOM Simulation Center. Amani was born and raised in Boston, MA and attended Duke University, before moving to Los Angeles with her family and two dogs.