Neuro Ph.D. Student,
Data Jock,
and Athletic Nerd
Hello and welcome! My name is Alex Cates and I am currently a Ph.D. Candidate in the Human Agility Lab at Northwestern University, My current research focuses on how vision and movement interact with and influence each other.
Beyond that, I enjoy data science and often use data science technique to explore everyday topics including ice cream rankings and fantasy football
So please, scroll through this page and site to see what I have worked on in the past, some of my favorite information sources and how to contact me. I am always looking to connect with interesting people.
Research Experience
Hamilton College
Major: Neuroscience
Minor: Mathematics
4 years of varsity Crew
Research into Fitts Law, fNIRS, and emotional impact on visual perception
2011-2015
Halo Neuroscience
Senior Research Associate
Research into tDCS for athletic training.
Assisted academic and industry research partners in design of tDCS studies
2015-2018
Northwestern University
PhD Candidate
Human Agility Lab
PI: Dr. Keith Gordon
Research into gaze behavior during motor learning, with a specific focus on walking.
2018 - Present
Coaching
As a youth basketball coach, I believe in developing fundamentals and a feel for the game. Having coached grades 3-6, both boys and girls, I believe that this approach helps foster a love of the game while preparing players for the next level.
Coaching
2015-present
Teaching
As a Ph.D. student, I am very interested at communicating and teaching science. I have taught workshops on data science and am currently a CIRTL Teaching Associate. I look forward to teaching more Neuroscience related classes in the future.
Teaching
Passing it on
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Questions I am stuck on
Beyond my day to day, there are a few questions that I keep coming back to. Here I try to capture those, define the question and provide links to some of my musings on what the answer may look like.
Please take a look and get in touch if you want to discuss any of the problems listed!
