About

Welcome! I’m Yohan J. John, a science writer and computational neuroscientist.

I’m the science writer at the Kempner Institute for the Study of Natural and Artificial Intelligence at Harvard University.

Prior to joining the Kempner Institute, I was a research assistant professor in the Neural Systems Laboratory at Boston University, where I worked with Helen Barbas. My research in the lab focused on cognitive-emotional interaction using neural network models. In particular, I developed computational models of the limbic system, which includes the amygdala, the medial prefrontal cortex and the hippocampus. Some of my work probed the neural bases of psychiatric disorders.

I did my PhD in the Department of Cognitive and Neural Systems at Boston University. My thesis was on interval timing — I developed a computational model of reinforcement-driven timing in the basal ganglia, and how dopamine and acetylcholine affect timed behavior. I worked under the supervision of Daniel Bullock.

Before joining the wild interdisciplinary party that is neuroscience, I studied physics. I received a bachelor’s degree from St. Stephen’s College, Delhi, and a master’s from IIT Bombay. Most of my schooling (1992-2001) happened in a little town called Coonoor, nestled in the Nilgiri mountain range of South India. Prior to that my family lived in the US.

You can find some of my writing about neuroscience, philosophy, or popular music on Quora.

I was also a regular columnist for the blog/aggregator 3 Quarks Daily. Here’s a complete list of my essays.