Short lectures, a panel discussion and question-and-answer session with three former Grawemeyer Award in Psychology recipients, all prominent and well-known scientists.  The program begins at 7 p.m. and will last 90 – 120 minutes.  A cash bar will be available for attendees from 5:30 – 6:30 p.m. in the East Room Bar, located off the Kentucky Center’s main lobby.

This event is free and open to the public but tickets are required. Please see tickets section below for details.

Our esteemed guests include:

Elizabeth Loftus

Elizabeth Loftus, Ph.D., professor of psychology, criminology, law and cognitive science at the University of California-Irvine, received the Grawemeyer Award in 2005 for her ideas on the malleable nature of human memory. She will present how misinformation can be implanted into our memories to create very believable false memories. Her work bears on the accuracy and fallibility of eyewitness testimony, and more recently has broadened to address situations where the implantation of false memories might be used to better people’s nutrition and health.

Lynn Nadel

Lynn Nadel, Ph.D., professor of psychology and cognitive science at the University of Arizona, shared the 2006 Grawemeyer Award in psychology with 2014 Nobel Prize winner John O’Keefe for their work on the neural basis of spatial memory and cognitive maps in the hippocampus. Dr. Nadel will discuss memory reconsolidation, cognitive maps, and brain mechanisms involved in both spatial and episodic memory.

James McGaugh

James McGaugh, Ph.D., is professor of neurobiology & behavior at the University of California-Irvine and founding director of its Center for the Neurobiology of Learning and Memory. Dr. McGaugh won the 2015 Award for his ideas on how emotional situations enhance memories—both good and bad. He will discuss the importance of memory; why we forget; why others find it difficult to forget; and how memories can be strengthened.

Moderator: Keith Lyle, Ph.D., professor of psychological and brain sciences at the University of Louisville. Professor Lyle (B.S. Indiana University; Ph.D., Yale University) joined the University of Louisville faculty in 2007 after completing post-doctoral training at Washington University in Saint Louis. He teaches a variety of undergraduate and graduate courses, including quantitative methods, cognitive processes and “human memory: a user’s guide.” His research is in the area of human memory and personality.