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My research makes use of mathematical
methods to attempt to understand what is distinct about the particular
neural structures, dynamics and functions that give rise to conscious
experience.
More specifically,
inspired by Integrated Information Theory, a major focus of my work is on the development of potential measures of conscious level that quantify the extent to which neural dynamics simultaneously generate and integrate information. In other words, I work on modelling and developing our mathematical understanding of neural complexity, as well as deriving statistical techniques for applying abstract measures based on this concept to neuroimaging data. A key component of this involves developing methodology for quantifying the strength of directed interactions (functional connectivity) between neural dynamical variables, and this leads to applications broadly across neuroscience. Datasets I have analysed include EEG recordings from subjects undergoing general anaesthesia, and intracranial depth electrode recordings from awake and asleep epileptic patients.
I am also interested in the role of metacognition (knowledge of knowing) in conscious awareness, and research ways of modelling and measuring metacognition at both the behavioural and neural level.
Prior to joining the Seth
lab in 2009, I was a postdoc in Mark van Rossum's group at
the University of Edinburgh, working mainly on synaptic plasticity
and the neural basis of learning and memory.
In 2006 I completed my PhD
in theoretical physics at the University of Oxford, and the topic
of my thesis
was string/M-theory.
For a full CV, click here.
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Publications
Scott, R.B., Dienes, Z., Barrett, A.B., Bor, D. & Seth, A.K. (in preparation). Blind insight: Metacognitive discrimination in the absence of decision accuracy.
Barrett, A.B., & Seth, A.K. (in preparation). Directed spectral methods. Invited article for the Springer Encyclopedia of Computational Neuroscience.
Gould, C., Froese, T., Barrett, A.B., & Seth, A.K. (in preparation). An extended case study on the phenomenology of spatial form synaesthesia.
Vandenbroucke, A.R.E., Sligte, I.G., Barrett, A.B., Fahrenfort, J.J., & Lamme, V.A.F. (submitted). Accurate metacognition for unattended visual representations.
Barrett, A.B., Dienes, Z., & Seth, A.K. (in press). Measures of metacognition on signal-detection theoretic models. Psych. Meth.
Garfinkel, S.N., Barrett, A.B., Minati, L., Dolan, R.J., Seth, A.K. & Critchley, H.D. (in press). What the heart forgets: Cardiac timing influences memory for words and is modulated by metacognition and interoceptive sensitivity. Psychophysiology. [link]
Barrett, A.B., & Barnett, L. (2013). Granger causality is designed to measure effect, not mechanism. Frontiers in Neuroinformatics 7(6). [view]
van Rossum, M.C.W., Shippi, M., & Barrett, A.B. (2012). Soft-bound synaptic plasticity outperforms hard-bound plasticity for a variety of learning paradigms. PLoS Comput. Biol. 8(12): e1002836. [view]
Feldwisch-Drentrup, H., Barrett, A.B., Smith, M.T., & van Rossum, M.C.W. (2012). Fluctuations in the open time of synaptic channels:
an application to noise analysis based on charge. J. Neurosci. Meth. 210(1): 15-21. [pdf]
Barrett, A.B., Murphy, M., Bruno, M.A., Noirhomme, Q., Boly, M., Laureys, S., & Seth, A.K. (2012). Granger causality analysis of steady-state
electroencephalographic signals during propofol-induced anaesthesia. PLoS ONE, 7(1): e29072. [pdf]
Seth, A.K., Barrett,
A.B., & Barnett, L. (2011). Causal density and information
integration as measures of conscious level. Phil. Trans. Roy. Soc. A, 369:3748-3767. [pdf]
Froese, T., Gould, C.,
& Barrett, A.B. (2011). Re-Viewing from Within: A commentary on
the use of first- and second-person methods in the science of
consciousness. Constructivist Foundations, 6(2): 254-269. [pdf]
Barrett, A.B., & Seth, A.K. (2011). Practical measures of integrated information for time-series data. PLoS Comput. Biol., 7(1): e1001052. [pdf]
Seth, A.K., & Barrett, A.B. (2010). Neural theories need to account for, not discount, introspection and behaviour. Cog. Neurosci., 1(3):227-228.
[pdf]
Barrett, A.B., Barnett, L., & Seth, A.K. (2010). Multivariate Granger causality and generalized variance. Phys. Rev. E, 81: 041907. [pdf]
Cortes, J.M., Greve, A., Barrett, A.B., & van Rossum, M.C.W. (2010). Dynamics and robustness of familiarity memory. Neural Comput., 22(2):448-466. [pre-print]
Barnett, L., Barrett,
A.B., & Seth, A.K. (2009). Granger causality and transfer entropy
are equivalent for Gaussian variables. Phys. Rev. Lett., 103: 238701. [pdf]
beim Graben, P., Barrett,
A.B., & Atmanspacher, H. (2009). Stability criteria for the
contextual emergence of macrostates in neural networks. Network: Computation in Neural Systems, 20(3): 177-195. [pre-print]
Barrett, A.B., Billings,
G.O., Morris, R.G.M., & van Rossum, M.C.W. (2009). State based model
of long-term potentiation and synaptic tagging and capture. PLoS Comput. Biol., 5(1): e1000259. [view]
Barrett, A.B., & van Rossum, M.C.W. (2008). Optimal learning rules for discrete synapses. PLoS Comput. Biol., 4(11), e1000230. [view]
Physics
"M-theory on Manifolds
with G2 Holonomy", A.B. Barrett, DPhil thesis, University of Oxford, UK (2006). [e-print]
"Four-dimensional
Effective M-theory on a Singular G2 Manifold", (A.B. Barrett
primary author; A. Lukas senior author; L.B Anderson and M. Yamaguchi
co-authors), Phys. Rev. D, 74, 086008 (2006). [e-print]
"M-Theory on the
Orbifold C2/ZN", (A.B. Barrett primary author; A. Lukas senior
author; L.B Anderson co-author), Phys. Rev. D, 73, 106011 (2006).
[e-print]
"Classification and
Moduli Kaehler Potentials of G2 Manifolds", (A.B. Barrett
primary author; A. Lukas senior author), Phys. Rev. D, 71, 046004
(2005). [e-print]