Join us at The Hospital for Sick Children as part of the Canadian Association for Neuroscience 2025 Public lectures, titled: Neuroscience of memory and tools for making our memories stronger
This event, co-organized by the Canadian Association for Neurosciences and the Sick Kids Research Institute will bring together two memory experts from Toronto: Drs. Sheena Josselyn and Morgan Barense
The event will be hosted by Dr. Iva Zovkic, Associate Professor at the University of Toronto Mississauga and Canada Research Chair in Behavioural Epigenetics.
Learn about the latest research from Canadian experts in the field!
Sheena Josselyn, Ph.D. is a Senior Scientist at The Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids) and a Professor in the departments of Psychology and Physiology at the University of Toronto in Canada. Dr. Josselyn holds a Canada Research Chair in Brain Mechanisms underlying Memory, is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada and a Fellow of the National Academy of Medicine (US).
What can we learn by studying memory in mice?
My research focuses on understanding how the brain encodes, stores and uses information. Although I primarily examine mice, several human disorders (ranging from autism spectrum disorder to Alzheimer’s disease) may stem from disrupted information processing. Therefore, this basic knowledge in mice is not only critical for understanding normal brain function, but also vital for the development of new treatment strategies for these disorders. Here, I will provide an overview of the types of studies conducted in my lab and how we can harness this information on model species to better understand human information processing and memory.
Morgan Barense, Ph.D. is a Professor in the Department of Psychology at the University of Toronto and a Senior Scientist at the Rotman Research Institute at Baycrest Hospital. She holds the Max and Gianna Glassman Chair in Neuropsychology and is the Director of the Toronto Neuroimaging Facility.
Can we make our memories last longer?
Our memories shape who we are, helping us interpret the present, plan for the future, and understand ourselves. But in the rush of daily life, so many moments slip away, leaving us with only a hazy sense of the events of our lives. We back up our photos, emails, and files—yet we rarely invest in preserving our own memory for our lived experiences. Can we use principles from neuroscience to hold on to the moments that matter? In this talk, I’ll introduce HippoCamera, a smartphone-based tool designed to help people strengthen their memories by mimicking how the brain naturally encodes and recalls events. We’ll explore how replaying key moments can make them more vivid and lasting, how this influences our sense of time, and why investing in our memories could be the key to a richer, more connected life.
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