Priors: Are kids slow to learn, and why can’t they learn faster? (online via Zoom)

One challenge our brains face when making decisions is the inherently ambiguous sensory information they receive. Numerous studies have shown that adult observers overcome this challenge by combining their observations with their previous experience (priors) in way that can be close to statistical optimality (Berniker et al., 2010). However, children’s abilities to do this are still developing to at least 9-10 years of age (Chambers et al., 2018). We do not yet fully understand the mechanisms that underlie the immature time-course of learning a prior and/ or learning to use it efficiently. In this talk, I will present data from two psychophysical experiments showing that i) children learn to use the available prior information at a slower rate than adults, with even children older than 9 years not being adult-like in their learning rates, and that ii) learning occurs much faster when working memory demands are reduced.”

Click HERE to learn more about the speaker.

How to join:

Meeting link: https://medsci.zoom.us/j/97217396445?pwd=cjh2ZERUNVk0YmVBcHZoSlhtcDF3Zz09

Meeting ID: 972 1739 6445

Passcode: 478609