SL-CN: Engaging Learning Network (ELN)

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One of the key features of the brain is how quickly and naturally it learns from experience -- not only factual information, but also abstract relationships and associations. Fire and flame burn; a sound like "mama" typically conjures up concepts of mother, comfort, and love. While recent advance in neuroscience have helped to uncover the basic brain processes that support everyday learning, this knowledge has not yet realized its potential to help people facing various clinical challenges. The goal of this project is to bring together neuroscientists who understand the neuroscience of learning, rehabilitation specialists who understand what kinds of problems individuals face, and computer scientists who can help create engaging training regiments that make it painless and even fun to undertake the often repetitious training required to support learning. The assembled team will support exchanges of pre- and post-doctoral trainees across different laboratories to jump-start collaborations, seed projects that support interdisciplinary research into engaging training paradigms, a web portal to disseminate results, and an annual scientific conference that brings together the diverse expertise necessary to create fun and interesting neural training programs. Immersive, active training programs can have beneficial effects on the brain, and can be harnessed to study the process of learning in motivated, engaged participants. Yet realizing this potential requires bringing together traditionally distinct research communities. Collaboration is needed among neuroscientists (node 1) studying the science of learning; rehabilitation researchers (node 2) working with individuals who benefit from brain training; and computer scientists (node 3) who know how to build computer software that is fun to use. The Engaging Learning Network (ELN) will develop a collaborative web encompassing these three nodes of expertise. ELN will extend and apply the neuroscience of learning through training programs that enchant a diversity of users while enhancing their sensory, motor, and/or cognitive function. The network comprises 24 investigators from 15 institutions: 10 neuroscientists, 9 rehabilitation researchers, and 5 computer scientists. Collaborations will be built through a scientific meeting, seed projects, graduate student exchanges, and a web portal. The annual scientific meeting will engage members of all ELN laboratories as well as others from outside the network to promote multi-disciplinary research on the art of designing captivating training programs that enable us to study neural plasticity using programs that enhance human function. Results will be disseminated through scientific meetings and the web. Once vetted through peer review, many participants will make sensori-motor training applications commercially available; these synergistic efforts will enhance the real-world impact of the network activities and leverage the basic science supported by the project.