Everything Nac

A blue cap with protruding wires maps the brain activity of Stephen F. Austin State University graduate student T.J. Swift as he demonstrates neuro-feedback equipment in the university’s Human Neuroscience Lab.

During the demonstration, a monitor displays a digital version of T.J.’s brain with reds, greens and yellows illustrating the electrical signals, while T.J.’s wife and fellow graduate student, Rebecca Recio-Swift, administers a study to track T.J.’s attention.

“Working in the lab is probably one of the best experiences I will ever have,” Rebecca said. “I think we all share a passion for what we do here, and I think that makes it even better.”

SFA’s Human Neuroscience Lab is tucked away on the first floor of the Human Services Building, Room 105, on the university campus, where Dr. Luis Aguerrevere serves as the lab’s director.

“The lab gives a practical, hands-on understanding of brain-based research. For example, in classes like human neuroscience, students visit the lab to see their own brainwaves and areas of the brain. They are not only seeing this information on a PowerPoint, but they also are becoming part of the research,” Aguerrevere said.

The lab has an open-house policy, meaning students and faculty members are welcome to use the facility and equipment for research. Lab equipment includes a Tobii eye-tracking system, which allows researchers to measure eye movement focusing on fixation and regression; quantitative electroencephalography equipment, which measures electrical brainwaves by assigning numerical components to brain activity; biofeedback technology, which analyzes physical attributes such as muscle contractions, temperature and breathing patterns; and neuropsychological tests for attention, executive function, language, visual perception and memory.

Graduate and undergraduate students use the lab on a daily basis conducting research and working on their assignments, including their theses and doctoral dissertations.

“We have a really big team effort here,” Rebecca said. “If an undergraduate has an idea, we encourage it, and we try to provide the resources and help that we can.”

Graduate students who work in the lab typically attend three conferences: the American Psychological Association, International Neuropsychological Society and the Association for Applied Psychophysiology and Biofeedback. Students also have the opportunity to publish their research. Aguerrevere said students often send their research to the Journal of Psychological Assessment, Journal of Psychological Injury and Law, and the Archive of Neuropsychology.

For more information, contact Aguerrevere at (936) 468-1153.

The East Texas Historical Association has announced Texas Secretary of State Carlos H. Cascos as its 2016 Georgiana and Max S. Lale Lecture featured speaker.

The 20th annual Lale Lecture will begin at 7 p.m. Oct. 13 in the Baker Pattillo Student Center Grand Ballroom on the Stephen F. Austin State University campus. The lecture is free and open to the public.

Appointed the 110th Texas Secretary of State, Cascos follows such luminaries in his position as J. Pinckney Henderson, Nacogdoches resident Robert A. Irion, Anson Jones, John Ben Shepperd, Tom Reavley, Bob Bullock and Mark White.

“It is only appropriate that Secretary Cascos speak at this university since the first Texas secretary of state appointed by an elected officer of Texas was Stephen F. Austin,” said Dr. Scott Sosebee, SFA associate professor of history and executive director of the ETHA. “The East Texas Historical Association is honored to host Mr. Cascos.”

A native of Brownsville, Texas, Cascos was born in Mexico and became a U.S. citizen in his adolescence. After his education in Brownsville public schools, he attended college and received a degree in accounting. After becoming a certified public accountant, he embarked on a distinguished career in the private sector.

Cascos is a partner in the Waco-based accounting firm Pattillo, Brown & Hill, as well as a member of the American Institute, Texas Society and Rio Grande Valley Chapter of Certified Public Accountants. In addition, he is a past member of the Association of Government Accountants and the American College of Forensic Examiners.

Cascos entered public service as a member of the Texas Public Safety Commission. He then served as a Cameron County commissioner from 1991 to 2002 before being elected Cameron County judge in 2006. He was re-elected to that position in 2010 and 2014. He became the Texas secretary of state in 2015.

Past Lale Lecture featured speakers include Texana author T.R. Fehrenbach, legendary journalist and former presidential aide Bill Moyers, U.S. Rep. Charlie Wilson, best-selling author Jeff Guinn, former Houston Mayor Annise Parker, and prominent historians Quintard Taylor and Paul H. Carlson. The 2015 speaker was former U.S. Sen. and Ambassador Robert Krueger.

Sponsored by the ETHA, the Georgiana and Max S. Lale Lecture Series is made possible through a generous grant from Max Sims Lale, a notable East Texas journalist, author and historian.

For more information, contact the ETHA at (936) 468-2407 or gillci@sfasu.edu.