University College London, ION (Institute of Neurology)
Sobell Department of Motor Neuroscience and Movement Disorders | James Kilner lab
E: a.pol@ucl.ac.uk

One of the most outstanding expressions of the human cognitive system is the capability to represent information that is no longer visible, in other words, to create memories. While we know a great deal about the mechanisms that allow us to keep in mind semantic or basic visual information, little is known on how we are able to extract and later represent information about others’ bodies. Such gap is striking. All our cognition is ultimately grounded to our own body and what we can learn from others’ bodies (e.g., walking, dancing, imitating gestures, etc). My research concerns the embodiment of sensorimotor representations that are built upon our perception and experience, this is to say, memories related to bodily information.

CV: [Download Curriculum Vitae here]

Research Interests

• Sensorimotor perception and memory
• Familiarity and expertise
• Somatosensory processing
• Volitional action
• Embodiment in human-robot interaction
• Multisensory integration
• Working memory
• Neuroaesthetics

Publications

• Galvez-Pol, A., Forster, B., & Calvo-Merino, B. Sensorimotor recruitment during visual working memory of body stimuli: evidence using Lateralized Readiness Potential (In prep.)
• Galvez-Pol, A., Calvo-Merino, B., Capilla, A., & Forster, B. Neural dissociation for visual and sensorimotor working memory storage (under review)
• Galvez-Pol, A., Forster, A., & Calvo-Merino, B. Sensorimotor memory and perception beyond visual encoding (In prep.
• Forster, B., Galvez-Pol, A., Tüttenberg, S., Giallonardo, A., Comiti, V., & Calvo-Merino, B. Top-down regulation of primary somatosensory cortex when judging laterality of hand images (In prep.)
• Nadal, M., Gomila, A & Galvez-Pol, A (2014). A history for neuroaesthetics. In J. O. Lauring (Ed.), An Introduction to neuroaesthetics: The neuroscientific approach to aesthetic experience, artistic creativity, and arts appreciation. Copenhagen: Museum Tusculanum Press. (pp 3-49).
• Galvez, A., Darriba, A., Villacampa, J., Martorell, R., Prada, L., & Barcelo, F. (2013). Effects of Aging and Executive Control on the Flexible Shifting of Stimulus-Response Mappings in a Bi-Field Visuomotor Task With Increasing Cognitive Demands. Journal of Psychophysiology, 27, 54-54.
• Nadal, M., Flexas, A., Galvez, A., & Cela-Conde, C. J. (2012). Neuroaesthetics: Themes from the past, current issues, and challenges for the future. Rendiconti Lincei – Scienze Fisiche e Naturali. doi: 10.1007/s12210-012-0185-1

Talks / Conferences / Posters

• Galvez-Pol, A., Forster, B & Calvo-Merino, B (April 2016). Motor encoding of sensorimotor information in visual working memory: electrophysiological dynamics of functional body representations. Annual meeting Research in imagery and observation, Manchester, UK.
• Galvez-Pol, A., Calvo-Merino, B. & Forster, B (to be presented April 2016) Motor encoding during visual working memory of sensorimotor information: evidence using Lateralized Readiness Potential. Annual meeting Cognitive Neuroscience Society, New York, United States.
• Galvez-Pol, A (to be presented March 2016) Exploring the body in the brain: from visual encoding to functional representation. 6th Annual Researchers’ Symposium, City University London, UK.
• Galvez-Pol, A (to be presented March 2016) Uncovering hidden representations of the body in the brain. Research symposium competition, City University London, UK.
• Galvez-Pol, A (to be presented March 2016) From photons to functional and neural representations. XXIII Jornadas de Psicologia, Palma de Mallorca, Spain.
• Galvez-Pol, A., Forster, B & Calvo-Merino, B (June 2015). The social homunculus sees better than the eyes. Aegina Summer School 2015 “The social self: how social interactions shape body and self-representations”, Aegina, Greece.
• Galvez-Pol, A., Calvo-Merino, B., Capilla, A., & Forster, B. (March 2015). Neural dissociation for visual and sensorimotor working memory storage: evidence for a Mnemonic Homunculus. Annual meeting Cognitive Neuroscience Society, San Francisco, United States.
• Forster, B., Tüttenberg, S., Galvez-Pol, A., Giallonardo, A., Comiti, V., & Calvo-Merino, B. (March 2015). Top-down regulation of primary somatosensory cortex when judging laterality of hand images. Annual meeting Cognitive Neuroscience Society, San Francisco, United States.
• Galvez-Pol, A. (March 2015). How does the brain store bodily related information? 5th Annual Researchers’ Symposium, City University London, UK.
• Galvez-Pol, A. (March 2015). The eyes of the skin: An approach to the neuronal underpinnings of the bodily self through the art of photography. Brain Awareness Week – Heroes of Neurons, City University London, UK.
• Darriba Á., Villacampa, J., Martorell, R., Chamielec, M., Galvez, A., & Barcelo, F. (September, 2014). Fast neural dynamics of a ‘multiple demand’ frontoparietal . XII International Conference on Cognitive Neuroscience, Brisbane, Australia.
• Chamielec, M., Darriba Á., Villacampa, J., Martorell, R., Galvez, A., & Barcelo, F. (September, 2014). Fast dynamics of domain-general vs. specific neural mechanisms  of task switching: Interactions between the frontoparietal and spatial orientating networks. XII International Conference on Cognitive Neuroscience, Brisbane, Australia.
• Galvez-Pol, A. (March 2014). Let’s move! Neurocognitive mechanisms underlying sensorimotor memory. 4th Annual Researchers’ Symposium, City University London, UK.
• Galvez, A., Darriba A., Villacampa, J., Martorell, R., Prada, L., & Barcelo, F. (July 2013). Executive Control Effects on the Flexible Shifting of Stimulus-Response Mappings in a Novel Bi-field Visuomotor Task with Increasing Cognitive Demands. International Conference on Aging & Cognition, International Neuropsychological Society annual meeting, Amsterdam, Netherlands.
• Villacampa, J., Darriba, A., Galvez, A., Martorell, R., Prada, L., & Barceló, P. (July 2013) Unspecific Restart and mixing costs: Combined effects of Aging and Executive Control on Maintenance Task-set Inhibition as Indexed by Task-Switch. Int. Neuropsychological Society annual meeting, Amsterdam, Netherlands
• Galvez, A., Darriba, A., Villacampa, J., Martorell, R., Prada, L., & Barceló, P. (April 2013) Effects of aging and executive control on the flexible shifting of stimulus-response mappings in a bi-field visuomotor task with increasing cognitive. International Conference on Aging & Cognition, Dortmund, Germany
• Villacampa, J., Darriba, A., Galvez, A., Martorell, R., Prada, L., & Barceló, P. (April 2013) Combined effect of aging and executive control on task-set inhibition and maintenance as indexed by task-switch unspecific restart and mixing cost. International Conference on Aging & Cognition, Dortmund, Germany
• Chellew, K., Nadal, M., Galvez, A., & García-Banda, G. (September 2012). Personality as predictor of aesthetic preference towards figurative and abstract art. II Jornada de la Asociación Iberoamericana para la Investigación de las Diferencias Individuales, Murcia, Spain.
• Rossello, J., Olivera, A., Gálvez, A., & Homar, C. (May, 2012). Reaction time to discriminate facial expressions after anger and sadness induction depends on the congruence of the approach-withdrawal dimension. VII Simposio de la Asociación Española de Motivación y Emoción, Cádiz, Spain
• Galvez, A., Rossello, J., Flexas, A., & Nadal, M. (April, 2012). Preference toward Abstract Artworks after Facial Affective Priming. Annual meeting of the Western Psychological Association, San Francisco, CA.
• Oliver, A., Rossello, J., Munar, E., & Galvez, A. (April, 2012). Displeasured Stimuli Reduces the Severity of Moral judgments. Annual meeting of the Western Psychological Association, San Francisco, CA.
• Rossello, J., Galvez, A., Homar, C., & Munar, E. (September, 2011). Beyond emotional valence: approach-withdrawal congruency effects in the discrimination of facial expressions after anger and sadness induction. XI International Conference on Cognitive Neuroscience, Palma de Mallorca, Spain
• Fernandez-Prieto, I., Galvez, A., Widick, P., Sternschein, R., Smith, W. B., Bromberger, B., Nadal, M., & Chatterjee, A. (June, 2011). Comparing the assessment of art attributes in Spanish and North America samples. Fourth Iberian Conference on Perception, Palma de Mallorca, Spain.

Additional Training

• Source localization and neural generators of EEG signals (2014-2015). University of London, UK.
• Principles of fMRI – Coursera (2015). John Hopkings University
• Summer School on “The social self: how social interactions shape body and self-representations” (2015). Aegina, Greece.
• Magstim: TMS and EEG (2015). Oxford, UK.
• Best practice in EEG and TMS research (2014), Kent, UK

Teaching

Dept. Psychology, City University London, UK (2013-2016):

• Professional and Academic Development for Psychologists
• Research Design and Analysis II (Methods)
• Research Methods in Psychology I
• Undergraduate’s final project (tutoring)

Dept. Psychology, California State University of Northridge, USA (2012):

• Research and Methods in Psychology

Grants and Awards

•  Guarantors of Brain – Travel grant (2016)
• Cognitive Neuroscience Society (CNS) annual meeting: people’s choice award – Neural dissociation for visual and sensorimotor working memory storage: evidence for a Mnemonic Homunculus (2015)
• Federation of European Neuroscience Societies – Brain Awareness Week, project funded: “Heroes of Neurons” (2015)
• Guarantors of Brain – Travel grant (2015)
• Grindley Grant EPS – Travel grant (2015)
• City University PhD Scholarship (2013-2016)
• Santander scholarship: Best student in Psychology 2011/12. Fees and tuition for master degree (2012-2013)
• PSI CHI International Psychology Honor Society research competition, California State University Northridge “Effects of congruence between emotional states induced by affective priming and preference toward stimuli” (2011)
• Exchange student scholarship: One year at the California State university of Northridge, USA (2011/2012)