Cognitive Science faculty members Martin Sereno, Jeff Elman and Joan Stiles are among the distinguished scholars featured in this year's "Grey Matters" lecture series.

The free public lectures – which aim to educate a general audience on the most recent developments in mind and brain research – are first presented live at the Natural History Museum in San Diego's Balboa Park. They are later broadcast on UCSD TV and UC TV and then made available on-demand online in streaming video.

Sereno, associate professor of Cognitive Science, spoke in October on "The Origin of the Human Mind: Insights from Brain Imaging and Evolution." He discussed the revolution in imaging that has made it possible to see the brain in action, demonstrating some of the latest results from mapping human visual, auditory, touch and movement systems. His talk will air on UCSD TV on Dec. 21 at 8 p.m. and Dec. 26 at 10 p.m. It will be available for on-demand viewing on the UCSD TV website by Jan. 1.

Elman, associate dean of the Division of Social Sciences and co-director of the Kavli Institute for Brain and Mind at UCSD, presented "Language and the Human Brain" in November. Considering such questions as "Are there genes that have evolved for language?" – Elman discussed new research that is helping us to understand what it is about human language that is so different from other animals' communication systems. Elman's lecture will air on UCSD TV on Jan. 18 at 8 p.m. and on Jan. 23 at 10 p.m. It will be available online by Feb. 1.

Coming up live in January is Joan Stiles, principal investigator of the Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience Laboratory at UCSD. Stiles will address "The Developing Brain: An Intricate Blend of Nature and Nurture," on Jan. 25, in the San Diego Natural History Museum Auditorium in Balboa Park. The lecture begins at 6 p.m.; reception and registration, at 5:30 p.m.

If you can't make it in person, Stiles' talk will air on UCSD TV on March 22 at 8 p.m. and on March 27 at 10 p.m. It will be available on-demand by April 1.