Allison Sekuler
{{Short description|American neuroscientist}}
{{Infobox academic
|name=Allison Sekuler
| image =
| image_size = 230px
| caption =
| birth_date =
| birth_place = Brookline, Massachusetts, USA
| occupation =
|education=BA, Pomona College
PhD, 1990, University of California, Berkeley
|thesis_title=Speed discrimination in looming displays: critical elements of motion and integration
|thesis_year=1991
|spouse={{marriage|Patrick John Bennett|1991}}
| children =
| awards =
|workplaces=McMaster University
University of Toronto
}}
Allison Britt Sekuler is an American-born neuroscientist. In 2019, she was named one of Canada's Top 100 Most Powerful Women.
Early life
Sekuler was born to parents Robert W. Sekuler and Susan N. Sekuler in Brookline, Massachusetts. Her father was the provost and the dean of the faculty at Brandeis University while her mother was a lawyer.{{cite news |title=Allison Sekuler Weds Patrick Bennett |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1991/06/17/style/allison-sekuler-weds-patrick-bennett.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220211/https://www.nytimes.com/1991/06/17/style/allison-sekuler-weds-patrick-bennett.html |archive-date=2022-02-11 |url-status=live|access-date=February 11, 2022 |work=The New York Times |date=June 17, 1991}}{{cbignore}} She completed her Bachelor of Arts at Pomona College and her PhD at University of California, Berkeley.{{cite web |title=Allison B. Sekuler |url=https://www.psychology.mcmaster.ca/sekuler/ |publisher=McMaster University |access-date=February 11, 2022}}
Career
Following her PhD, Sekuler began teaching at the University of Toronto's (U of T) Department of Psychology with her husband.{{cite web |last1=Vowles |first1=Andrew |title=Faculty renewal brings new energy to McMaster |url=https://science.mcmaster.ca/pnb/department/page4.pdf |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220211/https://science.mcmaster.ca/pnb/department/page4.pdf |archive-date=2022-02-11 |url-status=live|publisher=McMaster University |access-date=February 11, 2022 |date=June 8, 2002}}{{cbignore}} While there, she also served as president and a board member of the Royal Canadian Institute.{{cite web |last1=D'Alvise |first1=Danelle |title=SCIENCE COMES TO THE CITY |url=https://science.mcmaster.ca/pnb/department/page2.pdf |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220211/https://science.mcmaster.ca/pnb/department/page2.pdf |archive-date=2022-02-11 |url-status=live|publisher=McMaster University |access-date=February 11, 2022 |date=March 2, 2003}}{{cbignore}} The couple remained at U of T for a decade before accepting a Canada Research Chair position at McMaster University in July 2001. Upon joining the faculty, Sekuler also established a laboratory of eye trackers and scanning machines to continue her research into face and object recognition.
As a Canada Research Chair in Cognitive Neuroscience, Sekuler focused on how the human brain processes visual information, and how that processing changes as a function of aging. She also focused on face perception, motion perception, object recognition, perceptual organization, visual attention, perceptual learning, and pattern vision. As such, Sekuler was recognized as a Canadian "Leader of Tomorrow" in 2004 by the Partnership Group for Science and Engineering and Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council.{{cite web |title=McMaster psychologist named Leader of Tomorrow |url=https://dailynews.mcmaster.ca/story.cfm?id=3033 |publisher=McMaster University |access-date=February 11, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20041221055641/https://dailynews.mcmaster.ca/story.cfm?id=3033 |archive-date=December 21, 2004 |date=November 30, 2004}} Following this, Sekuler discovered that the aging process improves their ability to grasp big picture concepts through the use of computer-generated stimuli.{{cite web |title=Older people get the big picture faster, and they are less inhibited |url=https://www.mcmaster.ca/opr/html/opr/media/main/NewsReleases/2005/NR_ageing.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220211/https://www.mcmaster.ca/opr/html/opr/media/main/NewsReleases/2005/NR_ageing.html |archive-date=2022-02-11 |url-status=live|publisher=McMaster University |access-date=February 11, 2022 |date=February 2, 2005}}{{cbignore}} She later received the Hamilton Spectator Publisher's Award for Educators in recognition of her "devotion and efforts toward increasing public science outreach."{{cite web |title=Dr. Allison Sekuler: University is the perfect time to explore |url=https://cfmu.ca/episodes/19235-dr-allison-sekuler-university-is-the-perfect-time-to-explore |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220211/https://cfmu.ca/episodes/19235-dr-allison-sekuler-university-is-the-perfect-time-to-explore |archive-date=2022-02-11 |url-status=live|publisher=CFMU-FM |access-date=February 11, 2022 |date=February 19, 2020}}{{cbignore}}
In 2017, Sekuler left McMaster after being named the next Vice-president Research and Sandra A. Rotman Chair at Baycrest Health Sciences in Toronto.{{cite web |title=Allison Sekuler named VP Research – Baycrest Health Sciences |url=https://dailynews.mcmaster.ca/worthmentioning/allison-sekuler-named-vp-research-baycrest-health-sciences/ |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220211/https://dailynews.mcmaster.ca/worthmentioning/allison-sekuler-named-vp-research-baycrest-health-sciences/ |archive-date=2022-02-11 |url-status=live|publisher=McMaster University |access-date=February 11, 2022 |date=May 19, 2017}}{{cbignore}} In this role, she was also appointed the managing director of the Centre for Aging + Brain Health Innovation.{{cite web |title=CABHI appoints new Managing Director, Dr. Allison Sekuler |url=https://www.cabhi.com/news/new-managing-director/ |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220211/https://www.cabhi.com/news/new-managing-director/ |archive-date=2022-02-11 |url-status=live|publisher=Baycrest Health Sciences |access-date=February 11, 2022 |date=March 8, 2018}}{{cbignore}} In 2019, Sekuler was recognized by the Women's Executive Network as one of Canada's Most Powerful Women in the Science and Technology category.{{cite web |title=Allison Sekuler Named One Of Canada's Top 100 |url=https://www.science.mcmaster.ca/news/346-allison-sekuler-named-one-of-canada-s-top-100.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220211/https://www.science.mcmaster.ca/news/346-allison-sekuler-named-one-of-canada-s-top-100.html |archive-date=2022-02-11 |url-status=live|publisher=McMaster University |access-date=February 11, 2022 |date=December 5, 2019}}{{cbignore}}
Personal life
Sekuler and her husband Patrick Bennett have two children together.{{cite web |title=Allison Sekuler |url=https://psychology.berkeley.edu/updates/allison-sekuler |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220211/https://psychology.berkeley.edu/updates/allison-sekuler |archive-date=2022-02-11 |url-status=live|publisher=University of California, Berkeley |access-date=February 11, 2022}}{{cbignore}}
References
{{reflist}}
External links
- {{Google Scholar id | jrrFEnoAAAAJ}}
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Category:American women neuroscientists
Category:American neuroscientists
Category:People from Concord, Massachusetts
Category:Academic staff of McMaster University
Category:Academic staff of the University of Toronto
Category:Pomona College alumni
Category:University of California, Berkeley alumni