Bringing functional magnetic resonance imaging to Vancouver Island

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Over the past decade or so the University of Victoria has assembled a team of world-class cognitive brain researchers, but these scientists do not enjoy access to what has become the sina qua non for studying the active human brain: functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). This is akin to building an internationally renowned group of astronomers with no telescope. We propose to upgrade a 1.5 Tesla MRI machine housed at the nearby Royal Jubilee Hospital to make it capable of functional neuroimaging. Led by the Department of Psychology's Cognition and Brain Science program, and with the active involvement of faculty from across the University, as well as doctors and technicians from the Vancouver Island Health Authority (VIHA) and the BC Cancer Agency (BCCA), the proposed facility will build on UVic's existing strengths in memory, learning, mental health, aging, addiction, clinical neuropsychology, electrophysiological methods, and computational modelling. This basic research will be complemented by medically oriented research by VIHA and BCCA doctors.