PERCEPTION
COGNITION &
DEVELOPMENT
LAB @ OHIO STATE
The Perception, Cognition, and Development Lab investigates how we see, how we think, and how we remember. We tend to focus on questions related to spatial representation, but we explore a range of related topics (e.g., numerical cognition, shape perception, temporal memory, time perception, etc.).
Current projects
Intuitive Topology
In a series of recent projects, we explore how both adults and children reason about — and perceive — topological relations.
Visual adaptation
Have you ever stared at a colorful image, and then, when looking at an empty wall after, seen a colorful visual aftereffect? That’s a kind of visual adaptation. In a series of papers, we examine what visual adaptation is, and what it can and cannot tell us about visual representation.
The format(s) of visuospatial representation
How do we represent where things are? What is the code of spatial representation in the mind?
Remembering when
In our every day lives, we have to remember not only what happens, but when those things happen. With everything going on around us at all times, how do we remember when things were?
Lab news
Congratulations to Cynthia Wen whose paper titled Unfolding event structure distorts subjective time was just accepted in Cognition. This work was a collaboration with momentslab.org. We’re especially proud of Cynthia because she completed and submitted this work as a first-year (!) undergraduate student! (October 2025)
Our paper Can we “see” value? Spatiotopic “visual” adaptation to an imperceptible dimension was published in Cognition (August 2025)
The lab has officially moved to Ohio State! More exciting updates about the lab will be coming soon… (August 2025)
Our paper No privileged link between intentionality and causation: Generalizable effects of agency in language was published in Cognition. (July 2025)
Our paper Random behavior is stable across tasks and time was published in Journal of Experimental Psychology: General. (June 2025)
Our paper An illusion of time caused by repeated experience was published in Psychological Science. (April 2025)
Sami was honored to receive the Psychology & Neuroscience Mentorship Award for his mentorship of undergraduate students. (April 2025)
Congratulations to Mahwish Kittur for receiving a summer undergraduate research fellowship! (March 2025)
Sami was honored to receive an Undergraduate Teaching Award for teaching and mentorship in and out of the classroom. (March 2025)
Our paper Children’s understanding of topological relations was published in Open Mind. (March 2025)
Congratulations to outstanding undergraduate students Gabe Waterhouse and Ashna Shah for receiving National Science Foundation Undergraduate Travel Grants to attend the Vision Sciences Society meeting in May 2025! (February 2025)
Our paper Perceiving topological relations was published in Psychological Science. (February 2025)
Our paper Random behavior is stable across tasks and time is forthcoming in Journal of Experimental Psychology: General. (February 2025)
On behalf of the lab, Sami received a Junior Faculty Development Award, which will help to support the many phenomenal undergraduate researchers in the lab. (January 2025)