2015 AAAS Annual Meeting (12-16 February 2015)

February 12 - 16, 2015

Multisensory Development, Plasticity, and Learning: From Basic to Clinical Science

The symposium will focus on current issues in multisensory research as they relate to issues of development, plasticity, and learning. Multisensory processes are fundamental in the creation of our perceptual view of the world. Research into the behavioral and neural mechanisms underlying multisensory processes over the past 25 years has indicated that multisensory functions are remarkably dynamic, and that they change not only across the lifespan but also in response to changing environments, task demands, and the challenges associated with sensory loss. This symposium will review recent strides made in understanding how multisensory processing and the neural architecture subtending it are established during development, and how they remain plastic throughout the lifespan. Speakers will argue that plasticity is fundamental to multisensory processing and predicated on perception and cognition operating in a task-appropriate, rather than modality-appropriate, manner. Finally, speakers will show that the plasticity inherent in multisensory processes facilitates perception, learning, and memory and alters function in cases of neurodevelopmental disorders, sensory loss, and cognitive impairments.