Current Lab Members

Lab Director and Principal Investigator

willnewWilloughby Britton

Willoughby Britton holds a B.A. in Neuroscience and a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology, and is currently an Assistant Professor in the Departments of Psychiatry and Public Health at Brown Medical School and Research Director of the Brown University Contemplative Studies Initiative. She received sleep/EEG training at Harvard Medical School and was a Research Fellow at the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA/NIH) and Andrew Weil’s Program in Integrative Medicine. She spent several years in Asia studying meditative techniques and received her mindfulness instructor certification training at the Center for Mindfulness at the UMASSMedicalSchool. As a clinician she has taught meditation to medical patients, the terminally ill, prison inmates, drug abusing adolescents and adults with mood disorders. As a researcher she has conducted federally funded RCTs on the neurophysiological effects of MBCT in depression; and education-based mindfulness training in middle school and university students in comparison to music and dance. She is also investigating the question: Which contemplative practices are best (or worst) suited for which populations, and has received a 5-Year Career Development Award from the National Institutes of Health to pursue this question. This April, she was invited to present her research to the Dalai Lama at the Mayo Clinic.

 

Co-Director and Humanities Track Research Coordinator

jared3Jared Lindahl

Jared Lindahl is a Visiting Scholar at the Cogut Center for the Humanities and also a Visiting Assistant Professor of courses for Contemplative Studies and Religious Studies at Brown University.  In 2010, he received his Ph.D. in Religious Studies from the University of California, Santa Barbara.  His dissertation investigated the ascetic and contemplative practices of Tibetan Buddhist and Greek Orthodox Christian traditions, focusing specifically on those that are oriented towards experiences of light or luminosity, as well as the religious value ascribed to such experiences.  To ground the comparisons across traditions, his research also engaged the cognitive science of sensory deprivation and meditation as a means of identifying potential mechanisms associated with light-related contemplative experiences.  Since 2010, Dr. Lindahl has been teaching courses in Buddhist studies, contemplative studies, Asian religions, and theory and method in the study of religion at various colleges and universities.

In the Britton Lab, Dr. Lindahl is Director of Humanistic Research for the Varieties of Contemplative Experience project.  He is lead author on the first paper from the project, entitled “A Phenomenology of Meditation-Induced Light Experiences: Traditional Buddhist and Neurobiological Perspectives,” which is based on his dissertation research and qualitative data from Varieties project interviews.

When he is not engaged in scholarly pursuits, Jared enjoys cultivating contemplative equanimity through traditional as well as unconventional means such as music appreciation, tea connoisseurship, abstract painting, and explorations of the natural world.

 

Co-Investigator– “Dismantling MBCT”

jakeJake Davis

Jake H. Davis works at the intersection of philosophical psychology, moral psychology, and Buddhist philosophy. He is currently a doctoral student in Philosophy and Cognitive Science at the Graduate Center of the City University of New York, a Visiting Scholar with the Psychiatry Department at Brown University, and holds a master’s in Philosophy from the University of Hawai’i at Mānoa. Having trained in the Pāli Buddhist texts and in intensive meditation practice, he has worked for over a decade as an interpreter for Burmese meditation masters.

Research Coordinator

lauraLaura Reuter

Laura Reuter earned her B.A. with honors in Neuroscience from Wellesley College in May 2012. She conducted research in the lab of Dr. Michael Wiest at Wellesley. She investigated the relationship between the neural activity and behavioral responses in rats, with the aim of understanding the neural mechanisms of perception. She began living her dream of researching the complex interactions between the mind and the body by joining the Britton Lab in December 2012. She is very curious about the mechanisms involved in the mind body interaction. Outside the lab, Laura enjoys meditating, ocean swimming, sailing, and dancing.

 

Lab Manager

golnooshGolnoosh Mahdavi

Golnoosh Mahdavi is an undergraduate at Brown University, class of 2014.5, where she is currently working towards a BS in Neuroscience. Throughout the past two years, Golnoosh has partaken in a number of different projects within the Britton Lab. Her current focus is on an independent research project looking at the physiological and neurological correlates of early traumatic experience, and the role of mindfulness-based interventions as a mediator of treatment response in individuals with extensive trauma histories. Apart from her research contributions, Golnoosh has also served as the House Chef and leader of “Team Spirit,” which aims to keep lab energy and compassion high when the work gets tough! Outside of classes and work, Golnoosh is always looking for a new outdoor adventure and/or a delicious cup of coffee.

 

Team Leaders

nathanNathan Fisher – Team Varieties of Contemplative Experience, Team Dream, Team Mindfulness and Sports

Nathan graduated from the honors program in Religious Studies at Vanderbilt University in 2011, specializing in comparative mysticism and writing his thesis on the emerging fields of Contemplative Studies and Contemplative Science. Nathan joined the lab in the spring of 2012 and is currently managing the “Varieties of Contemplative Experience” project. He is also currently working on a sociological study at Indiana University-Bloomington investigating the diffusion of meditative practices into the domains of education, business, and neuroscience. His research interests include contemplative practices and trajectories in Abrahamic traditions, the adaptation of contemplative practices for use in the workplace, neurophenomenology as a scientific method, and the use of mindfulness in sports. He has been studying Torah and Chassidut for 13 years and practicing Chen style Taijiquan for 7 years.

juanJuan Santoyo – Team Compassion

Juan Santoyo is a Neuroscience and Contemplative Science concentrator at Brown University, expecting to graduate in 2015. He first joined the lab in the Spring of 2012 and has worked with the Varieties of Contemplative Experience Project, Team Gender, and Team Mindfulness-in Medicine. He is currently an assitant on the ‘Dismantling MBCT’, and ‘Neurophenomenology’ projects and co-leads his own project, Team Compassion. This project aims to investigate how a changing awareness of and concern for suffering through Brown University classes with meditation labs may work to address students’ depression and mood. Along with an interest in the development and implication of tools through which to cultivate compassion, Juan hopes to continue to integrate his academic engagement with Neuroscience and Contemplative Science through critical first-hand experience in traditional contemplative practices. On his free time, he enjoys being outdoors, hiking, snowboarding, longboarding, playing soccer, and spending time with family and friends.

Research Assistants

adamAdam Murray

Adam holds a B.A. in Philosophy from Northern Arizona University which he earned in 2005. Although his philosophical studies were broad, ethics and epistemology were of primary interest. Since 2006, Adam has studied and practiced within various contemplative traditions, with an emphasis on Buddhism. In addition to maintaining a strong daily practice, he has periodically taken time for more rigorous practice, sitting a number of extended, silent retreats, spending time in monasteries in America and Asia, and completing a Buddhist walking pilgrimage in Japan. Adam is webmaster for the lab and the nonprofit cheetahhouse.org. He has worked on ‘Dismantling Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy’ study and ‘Varieties of Contemplative Experience’ study. He is currently working on a paper about the derepression of psychological material through meditative practice. In his free time, he writes and performs music and poetry, plays basketball, is a member of Brown’s GAMMA (grappling and mixed martial arts) club, and volunteers at Women’s Shelter RI. He is, above all, dedicated to the development of love and wisdom and to the alleviation of suffering in the world.

Palak Walia Bio Photo2Palak Walia

Palak is an undergraduate at Brown University, class of 2015. She is concentrating in Neuroscience, with a focus on upper level cognitive processes. Palak was very interested in alternative medicine, specifically the clinical applications of meditation, which led her to join the lab in the spring of 2013. She primarily works on the K23 Study. Outside of the lab, Palak loves to dance, hangout with friends, and eat good food.

29801_10103501409579024_1432901658_nMatthew Jankauskas

Matt graduated from the Pennsylvania State University in 2010 with a BSc in Psychology. That year he also completed a 200-hour yoga teacher certification program with Erica Kaufman, MFA, E-RYT 500+ and taught at two studios in town. In 2012, prompted by literature on ‘Mindfulness’ he completed the eight-week MBSR course at Jefferson University Hospital. Matt joined the Brittonlab in August 2013 as well as moved into the Contemplative Studies House ‘Cheetah House’. Within the lab Matt works mainly on the Varieties Project and is co-pilot of the illustrious ‘Team Shadow’, which has been delving into the phenomenon of ‘Re-experiencing’ within clinical and contemplative contexts. Beyond the lab Matt enjoys time with friends, family  and roommates, writing and recording music, reading, movies, chocolate and soccer amongst other hobbies.

aloraAlora Rando

Alora received a B.A. in Neuroscience and Psychology from Macalester College in December, 2012. She is a certified yoga instructor and has additional training in trauma-sensitive yoga. While interning at a sleep neurophysiology lab at the Mayo Clinic, she learned about the neurophysiology of sleep, epilepsy, and REM-Sleep Behavior Disorder (RBD) and coded polysomnograms for cyclic alternating patterns (CAP) and REM-sleep without atonia (RSWA). She has long been interested in the neurophysiology of yoga and meditation, particularly as it pertains to individuals suffering from PTSD, depression, and anxiety. Alora’s passion for meditation research and experience with clinical sleep research led her to join the Britton lab in the fall of 2013.

abbyAbigail Perreault

Abbey is an undergraduate at Brown University, class of 2016. She is currently pursuing a degree in Health and Human Biology with a focus on brain and behavior. Abbey joined the lab in 2013 to work on the K23 study with an interest in the use of meditation to reduce symptoms of anxiety, depression, and attention deficit disorders. She is interested in exploring the neural correlates of happiness, wellbeing, and spirituality. Outside of the lab, she is a runner, musician, and pun-enthusiast with a deep love of writing and Thai food.

Jonah profile picJonah Lipsky

Jonah began working in the lab as a Research Assistant in January, 2014. Since then he has worked on the K23 study performing a variety of functions including coordinating and managing the data entry effort for the project, being an assistant to the lab manager during the summer, as well as helping out with many interviews, lab assessments and new RA applications. A meditator in the Vipassana tradition of S.N. Goenka and a concentrator in Psychology while at Bennington College, Jonah is happy to be engaged in research that connects to these two longtime pursuits of his.

bethBeth Cosby

Beth is an undergraduate at Brown University, class of 2017.  She is concentrating in Neuroscience and joined the lab in the summer of 2014 after becoming interested in exploring alternative treatments for depression and anxiety disorders.  She is currently a research assistant for the K23 study and is interested in learning about the neural mechanisms behind meditation and how it affects consciousness and mood.  Outside of lab, she enjoys baking, yoga, and playing the piano.

colinColin Bosma

Colin Bosma received a B.A. in psychology with departmental honors from University of Colorado Boulder in 2012, writing his thesis on the feasibility of disseminating Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) by comparing treatment fidelity between expert and novice clinicians. Colin’s primary research interests involve the roles of mindfulness, cognitive flexibility, and psychophysiology in relation to emotion regulation and emotion disorders. Moreover, he is interested in the development and dissemination of evidence-based interventions. Colin joined the Britton lab in Spring 2014. In his spare time, Colin rock climbs, drinks loose-leaf tea, practices yoga, produces music, and finds excuses to travel internationally.

andrewAndrew Huckins-Noss

Andrew Huckins-Noss graduated from Brown in the spring of 2013 studying medical anthropology with a focus on transcultural psychology.  While an undergraduate, Andrew was involved in BRYTE (Brown Refugee Youth Tutoring and Enrichment) and worked with an Eritrean student to develop literacy and other academic skills.  Andrew’s main research interests lie at the intersection of psychology and anthropology. Specifically, he is interested in how traditional healing practices can be implemented in more mainstream biomedical contexts. He is looking forward to working in the Britton lab and researching the range of experiences people report with meditation, and how their social and cultural background may influence these experiences. Andrew is also an avid classical pianist and enjoys practicing, listening, and giving lessons.

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