Name: Ofer Tchernichovski Phone: 212-650-8540 Fax: 212-650-8585 Email: ofer@ccny.cuny.edu Office Location: MR-733

Mentor's Bio:
Tel-Aviv-University, B.Sc. 1985-1988 – Biology; Ph.D., 1990-1995 – Ethology; The Hebrew University, DVM 1989-1993– Veterinary Medicine; The Rockefeller University, Postdoctoral, 1996-1998-Ethology. CCNY-CUNY, Associate Professor/Head of lab of animal behavior.

 

Research Topic(s) Summary:
Analysis of vocal learning
The vocal organ
Brain mechanisms

Description of Research:
Uses the songbird to study mechanisms of vocal learning. Like early speech development in the human infant, the songbird learns to imitate complex sounds during a critical period of development. The adult bird cannot imitate any more - we do not know why. His lab studies the animal behavior and dynamics of vocal learning and sound production across different brain levels. The lab aims to uncover the specific physiological and molecular (gene expression) brain processes that underlie song learning. Check his personal page.