Julian Ockelmann

LIFE Fellow since 2023, University of Zurich

I am a PhD student at the University of Zurich, as part of Nathalie Giroud’s research group “Computational Neuroscience of Speech & Hearing.” I am mainly interested in the interplay of cognitive ability and sensory performance and how they are reflected within the human brain. The focus of my primary PhD project lies upon the topics of auditory cognitive training, neural and cognitive underpinnings of hearing, alongside speech-in-noise comprehension. Specifically, my project is an industry collaboration with the hearing-aid provider Sonova AG and aims to co-develop and evaluate an auditory cognitive training protocol for older adults with hearing loss. I perceive appropriately constructed cognitive training as a great way to potentially slow down cognitive decline during the aging process, hence posing a contribution towards a healthier aging trajectory. In a side-project, I am further developing an open-access and open-source test toolbox for working memory capacity in Python.
I finished my Master of Science in Psychology at the University of Zurich, with my thesis project revolving around the role of working memory for speech-in-noise comprehension in older adults with tinnitus. Previously, I had finished my Bachelor of Science back in Frankfurt am Main alongside another experimental thesis project on psychophysiological anxiety markers and their influence on IQ test performance.