News
Benjamin Cocanougher
- Alumni
- United States
- 2016 PhD Zoology
- St Catharine's College
I grew up catching praying mantises and damselflies in rural Kentucky. As an undergraduate at Centre College, I majored in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology; I spent my summers taking care of sick children at the Center for Courageous Kids and doing research in organic chemistry and neuroscience. I matriculated directly to the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry and completed my first three years of medical school. I then moved to Janelia Research Campus as a HHMI Medical Research Fellow; there I studied the neural and genetic bases of behavior. As a PhD student in Zoology, I will study adaptive behavior. All animals integrate information about past experience into future decisions; this is the basis of learning and memory. I am proposing to write a specific memory and read the memory trace in the brain. I will use the fruit fly as a model organism. By understanding mechanisms of memory storage, we can begin to investigate changes in memory formation in disease; this may allow us to develop rational therapies for disorders of memory formation, including autism and Alzheimer’s disease. After completing my PhD, I will return to finish my last year of medical school and pursue a career as a child neurologist and neuroscientist, using my lab to better understand the patients I see in clinic.
Previous Education
Centre College
- Share
Latest News
Study shows majority trust scientists
Most people have a relatively high level of trust in scientists, according to a new international study. The study conducted across 68 countries also found a majority of survey participants (52%) believe that scientists should be more involved in society and policymaking. Only a minority (23%) believe that scientists should not actively advocate for specific […]
A brain researcher who aims to make a difference
Mai Abdelgawad’s research is about understanding the genetic factors affecting brain and spinal cord development in younger people with Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis [ALS] disease, a fatal motor neuron disease that causes progressive degeneration of nerve cells in the spinal cord and brain. Her PhD, which she started in the autumn of 2024, focuses on juvenile […]
Gates Cambridge Trust seeks Events Administrator
About Us The Gates Cambridge Trust is committed to fostering a vibrant community of scholars and alumni through a diverse array of events and activities. With a robust calendar of events throughout the year, we strive to cultivate engagement and build enduring connections within our global community. Purpose of the Role The Events Administrator […]
Impact Prize Profile: Uchechukwu Ogechukwu
Uchechukwu Ogechukwu [Uche for short] is a man on a mission. As an undergraduate he did a project on reducing waste at his father’s factory and found that most of it was caused by energy supply issues. While at the University, he co-founded a solar energy company with four other friends and has gained major funding. […]
Impact Prize Profile: Emma Houiellebecq
Emma Houiellebecq’s PhD explores a new systems-based approach to building resilience in conflict regions which takes into account the whole chain of political, economic, social and technical issues that affect vital infrastructure. Through fieldwork in some of the world’s most vulnerable regions – Ukraine, Gaza, Lebanon and Venezuela – she has honed her work to […]
Impact Prize Profile: Anoop Tripathi
Anoop Tripathi’s research on cross-hybridisation of plants aims to develop climate-resilient crops that could ensure food security for millions of people, especially in the regions that are most affected by climate change. Anoop [2022] is one of a very few people in the world who have experience of using a newly developed technique of cereal grafting […]
Impact Prize Profile: Professor Urbasi Sinha
Professor Urbasi Sinha [2002] has had a transformative impact on quantum technologies in three areas: fundamental quantum science, policymaking and practical applications. In the process she has significantly contributed to a shift in how policymakers regard quantum technologies, from it being perceived mostly as a risk to it being viewed as an opportunity to tackle […]
Impact Prize Profile: Mona Jebril
For Mona Jebril the commitment to a positive impact in the world – whatever form it takes – is something that drew her to Gates Cambridge. She says: “I chose Gates Cambridge because of the focus on impact and social leadership within and beyond academia and because of the sense of community it offers. Working […]
Impact Prize Profile: Alex Vail
Alex Vail is a researcher-turned-wildlife-cinematographer who has worked on some of the most impactful documentary series in the world – including, most recently, the BBC wildlife series Asia. He says: “Animal series are one of the main ways people are exposed to the wider natural world and understanding animals is vital for conservation work,” says […]
Impact Prize Profile: Emily Kassie
Emily Kassie [2016] is an Emmy and Peabody-nominated investigative journalist and filmmaker. Kassie shoots, directs and reports stories on geopolitical conflict, humanitarian crises, corruption and the people caught in the crossfire. Her work for The New York Times, PBS “Frontline”, Netflix, and others ranges from drug and weapons trafficking in the Saharan desert to immigrant detention […]
Impact Prize Profile: Alexandra Grigore
Alexandra Grigore [2012] is the Chief Strategy Officer and Co-Founder of Simprints, the world’s first open-source biometric ID platform with privacy at its core. The company has now reached over three million people across 17 countries and anticipates that impact will increase tenfold in the next years. In the 10 years since it started, Alexandra has […]
