Dr Chris Bird

Background:

My research aims to understand how we are able to remember events and episodes. I investigate memory in healthy adults; both in terms of how memories are laid down and subsequently retrieved and also the brain regions necessary to do this. I am particularly interested in the role of the hippocampus in supporting contextual information associated with memories. I also look at how memory processes break down in neurological conditions such as Alzheimer’s disease, frontotemporal lobar degeneration, epilepsy and stroke.

I use a mixture of classic behavioural paradigms (e.g. recognition memory paradigms using words and pictures as memoranda) and novel ways of assessing memory for more naturalistic materials. The latter include using desktop virtual reality and video clips.

Research methods:

Behavioural studies; neuropsychology; functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI); intracranial EEG

Selected publications: (for full list see here):

Viard A, Doeller CF, Hartley T, Bird CM, Burgess N. Anterior hippocampus and goal-directed spatial decision making. J Neurosci 2011; 31: 4613-4621.

Bird CM, Davies RA, Ward J, Burgess N. Effects of pre-experimental knowledge on recognition memory. Learn Mem 2011; 18: 11-14.

Bird CM, Capponi C, King JA, Doeller CF, Burgess N. Establishing the boundaries: the hippocampal contribution to imagining scenes. J Neurosci 2010; 30: 11688-11695.

Bird CM, Chan D, Hartley T, Pijnenburg YA, Rossor MN, Burgess N. Topographical short-term memory differentiates Alzheimer's disease from frontotemporal lobar degeneration. Hippocampus 2010; 20: 1154-1169.

Bird CM, Burgess N. The hippocampus supports recognition memory for familiar words but not unfamiliar faces. Curr Biol 2008; 18: 1932-1936.

Bird CM, Burgess N. The hippocampus and memory: insights from spatial processing. Nat Rev Neurosci 2008; 9: 182-194.

Bird CM, Vargha-Khadem F, Burgess N. Impaired memory for scenes but not faces in developmental hippocampal amnesia: a case study. Neuropsychologia 2008; 46: 1050-1059.

Bird CM, Cipolotti L. The utility of the recognition memory test and the graded naming test for monitoring neurological patients. Br J Clin Psychol 2007; 46: 223-234.

Hartley T, Bird CM, Chan D et al. The hippocampus is required for short-term topographical memory in humans. Hippocampus 2007; 17: 34-48.

Bird CM, Shallice T, Cipolotti L. Fractionation of memory in medial temporal lobe amnesia. Neuropsychologia 2007; 45: 1160-1171.

Cipolotti L, Bird CM. Amnesia and the hippocampus. Curr Opin Neurol 2006; 19: 593-598.

Hill EL, Bird CM. Executive processes in Asperger syndrome: patterns of performance in a multiple case series. Neuropsychologia 2006; 44: 2822-2835.

Bird CM, Malhotra P, Parton A, Coulthard E, Rushworth MF, Husain M. Visual neglect after right posterior cerebral artery infarction. J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry 2006; 77: 1008-1012.

Cipolotti L, Bird CM, Glasspool DW, Shallice T. The impact of deep dysgraphia on graphemic buffer disorders. Neurocase 2004; 10: 405-419.

Bird CM, Castelli F, Malik O, Frith U, Husain M. The impact of extensive medial frontal lobe damage on 'Theory of Mind' and cognition. Brain 2004; 127: 914-928.

Monday (11am-midday) and Friday (1pm-2pm). However, I would always advise emailing me to request a meeting at a mutually convenient time.

Viard, Armelle, Doeller, Christian F., Hartley, Tom, Bird, Chris M. and Burgess, Neil (2011) Anterior Hippocampus and Goal-Directed Spatial Decision Making. Journal of Neuroscience, 31 (12). pp. 4613-21. ISSN 1529-2401

Bird, Chris M, Davies, Rachel A, Ward, Jamie and Burgess, Neil (2011) Effects of pre-experimental knowledge on recognition memory. Learning & Memory, 18 (1). pp. 11-14. ISSN 1072-0502

Bird, Chris M, Chan, Dennis, Hartley, Tom, Pijnenburg, Yolande A, Rossor, Martin N and Burgess, Neil (2010) Topographical short-term memory differentiates Alzheimer's disease from frontotemporal lobar degeneration. Hippocampus, 20 (10). pp. 1154-1169. ISSN 1050-9631

Bird, Chris M, Capponi, Corinne, King, John A, Doeller, Christian F and Burgess, Neil (2010) Establishing the boundaries: the hippocampal contribution to imagining scenes. Journal of Neuroscience, 30 (35). pp. 11688-11695. ISSN 1529-2401

Pengas, George, Patterson, Karalyn, Arnold, Robert J., Bird, Chris M., Burgess, Neil and Nestor, Peter J. (2010) Lost and found: bespoke memory testing for Alzheimer's disease and Semantic Dementia. Journal of Alzheimer's Disease, 21 (4). pp. 1347-65. ISSN 1387-2877

Bird, Chris M and Burgess, Neil (2008) The hippocampus supports recognition memory for familiar words but not unfamiliar faces. Current Biology, 18 (24). pp. 1932-1936. ISSN 0960-9822

Bird, Chris M and Burgess, Neil (2008) The hippocampus and memory: insights from spatial processing. Nature Reviews Neuroscience, 9 (3). pp. 182-194. ISSN 1471-003X

Bird, Chris M, Vargha-Khadem, Faraneh and Burgess, Neil (2008) Impaired memory for scenes but not faces in developmental hippocampal amnesia: a case study. Neuropsychologia, 46 (4). pp. 1050-1059. ISSN 0028-3932