Shane O’Mara

Shane O’Mara is Professor of Experimental Brain Research (Personal Chair) at Trinity College Dublin. He is a Principal Investigator in, and was Director (2009-2016) of, the Trinity College Institute of Neuroscience, one of Europe’s leading research centres for neuroscience. He is a Wellcome Trust Senior Investigator and a Science Foundation Ireland Principal Investigator. He was the first recipient in Ireland of a Wellcome Trust Senior Investigator Award, which supports “exceptional, world-class researchers, who already hold a recognized academic position and whose research will address the most important questions about health and disease.” His research explores the brain systems supporting learning, memory, and cognition, and also the brain systems affected by stress and depression. He also explores the intersection of psychology and neuroscience with public policy, evidence-based policy-making and related areas – describing these research interests as trying to understand ‘the brain in the world’, rather than just focusing on particular functions performed by the brain. He has published more than 130 papers and has edited four academic books. His book, ‘In Praise of Walking‘ will be published in June 2019.