Hedderik van Rijn

dr. D.H. van Rijn, chair of Experimental Psychology Experimental Psychology University of Groningen	Contact: email: hedderik@van-rijn.org tel: +31-(0)50-363 6290
Visiting address: Heymansbuilding, room 2.70 Grote Kruisstraat 2/1 NL-9712 TS Groningen	Postal address: Experimental Psychology Grote Kruisstraat 2/1 NL-9712 TS Groningen
My work is focussed on the study and refinement of psychological theories by means of formal modeling and careful experimentation. Theories in cognitive psychology often take the form of information-processing models with impressive explanatory power, but with a relative weak link to biological constraints. On the other hand, much work in neuroscience has the inverse problem. The goal of my current work is to integrate these fields by adapting existing psychological theories to low-level neurobiological constraints. A prime example is my work on interval (or brain) timing in which I am redefining the pacemaker-accumulator theories that have been prominent since the 1960s with models based on neurobiological constraints, while retaining the explanatory power of the original theories.

We're looking for someone interested in a (fully funded) PhD project on computational modeling, advanced experimental methods, and psycholinguistics. Let me know if you're interested!

Wetenschap in gewone taal

["Science in plain language"]

Voor een studentenblad heb ik een inleidend stuk geschreven over het onderzoek dat ik samen met Niels Taatgen en John Anderson naar tijdswaarneming heb gedaan. Dit stuk is geschreven met het idee dat het ook voor de niet-expert goed leesbaar moet zijn. Mocht je geinteresseerd zijn in tijdswaarneming en cognitieve architecturen, kan je het stuk hier downloaden: Tijd voor Architecturen.
Samen met een afstudeerstudent heb ik een onderzoek gedaan naar hoe leren geoptimaliseerd kan worden. Dit onderzoek heeft laten zien dat de effectiviteit van leren sterk verbeterd kan worden als we gebruik maken van kennis over het menselijk geheugen. Een verslag van dit onderzoek kan hier gedownload worden: SlimStampen: Optimaal leren door kalibratie op kennis en vaardigheid.
Adamsappel is het populair wetenschappelijke TV programma van de Rijksuniversiteit Groningen. Een interview dat zij met mij hebben gehouden over een model dat Niels Taatgen heeft gemaakt van het spel Set! is hier te bekijken: Adamsappel.

Research

Overview of publications. See also Google Scholar for Google's list of my papers, including citation statistics.

Interests:	psychophysiology, formal models of cognition, neurobiological constraints.
Domains:	integrated memory processes, human time perception (trying to explain this type of time perception), lexical semantic memory/mental lexicon, optimal learning regimes, etc.
Methods:	cognitive modeling (mainly related to ACT-R), statistical modeling, behavioral experimentation, fMRI studies, EEG, MEG, eyetrack/pupil dilation studies.
Interdepartmental Lab:	Cognitive Modeling Group
Misc:	Member of the governing board of the Cognitive Science Society. Member of the management committee of ESF-COST Timely TD0904. [2001]: Co-organizer of the Computational Models of Memory workshop, with Eric-Jan Wagenmakers and Rene Zeelenberg. [2007]: Co-organizer of the BCN Symposium Timed Behavior, with Martha Merrow. [2009]: Co-chair of the 31th Conference of the Cognitive Science Society, and edited the proceedings together with Niels Taatgen. [2010, 2011]: Co-organizer of the ACT-R Spring School and Workshop. [2011]: Organizer of the Timely workshop on Psychophysical, Computational and Neuroscience Models of Time Perception. [2012]: Co-chair of the International Conference on Cognitive Modeling, in Berlin.
PhD students:	Jelmer Borst, human multitasking in the context of the Threaded Cognition theory, (together with Niels Taatgen). Jacolien van Rij, computational modeling of language acquisition, (together with Petra Hendriks). Ben Meijering, development of higher-order Theory of Mind, (together with Rineke Verbrugge). Stefan Wierda, individual differences in attentional blink, (together with Sander Martens en Niels Taatgen). Tadeusz Kononowicz, the role of attention in time perception.. Menno Nijboer, Multitasking, (together with Niels Taatgen).
Graduated PhD Students:	Leendert van Maanen: Context Effects on Memory Retrieval: Theory and Applications

Student Projects

If you're interested in doing a Master or Bachelor project with me, please send me an email so that we can discuss the options. Note that I am willing to supervise projects that are proposed by you as long as the general theme fits my research.

Ma/Project/Honors students:	Heleen Meijburg, Udo Böhm, Steffen Buergers, Trudy Buwalda
Alumni Students (>=2010):	Tom Woelders, Max Amshoff, Jelle Dalenberg, Menno Nijboer, Florian Sense, Gepke Veenstra, Tobias Navarro Schröder, Laurens Koelewijn, Wendy van Thiel, Juan Manuel Galleazzi.

Courses

Bachelor-level courses

Programming for Psychologists, 3rd year Bachelor Level (with Richard Morey)
Cognition and Attention, 3rd year Bachelor Level (with Addie Johnson)
Cognitive psychology and Cognitive Neuropsychology, 2nd year Bachelor Level (with Lara Tucha).

Master-level courses

Formal Models of Cognition, Master Level (with many others).
Cognitive Modeling: Basic principles and methods, AI, Master Level (with Niels Taatgen)
co-listed as:Computational cognitive modeling, BCN ReMa.
Cognitive Modeling: Complex Behavior, AI, Master Level (bi-yearly, not in 2012-2013) (with Niels Taatgen)
User Models, Master Level (bi-yearly, not in 2011-2012, with someone)
Models of Cognition, Master Level, BCN Research Master (with Mark Nieuwenstein)

Last modified: December 2011