STEM Program

Exploring Neurology And the Role of Music in Neurotherapy

Faculty Advisor: Surgical Critical Care Fellow, NYU; MD, San Juan Bautista School of Medicine

Research Program Introduction

Over the past few years, many researchers and students have been interested in both neurosciences and music. The topics of therapy and brain recovery are of particular interest. This program would combine these two interests and delve deeper into the topic, starting with an introduction to the basics of neurology and expanding into the effects of music on the brain, how music can be used to heal the brain, and its efficacy and role in healthcare.

Students will complete weekly reading assignments and participate in lectures on neural cell biology, neurophysiology, neural anatomy, the somatic and autonomic nervous system, how neurons recover from injury and damage, and the effects of music on the brain. The sessions will culminate in the students creating a proposal presentation on a subtopic focused on the therapeutic benefit of music. The students are then encouraged to produce a final paper on this subtopic, using scholarly articles as citations to develop a scholarly review paper. The Teaching Assistant will guide students on the identification of their subtopic, the search for appropriate references, and the creation of a proper scientific review paper.

Possible Topics For Final Project:

  • Cell Neurology: Neural Stem Cells and Their Role in Brain Repair

  • Neurophysiology: Rhythmic Entrainment and Its Impact on Neural Plasticity

  • Music Therapy: Cultural Approaches to Music-Based Mental Health Interventions

  • Neuroregeneration: Music-Induced Plasticity in Recovery from Traumatic Brain Injury

  • Music and Memory: Using Melodies to Trigger Autobiographical Memories in Patients

  • Music and Emotion: Neural Mechanisms Behind Emotional Responses to Music

  • Rhythmic Therapy: The Role of Beat Perception in Gait Rehabilitation for Parkinson’s Disease

  • Or other topics in this subject area that you are interested in, and that your professor approves after discussing it with you.

Program Detail

  • Cohort size: 3 to 6 students

  • Workload: Around 4 to 5 hours per week (including class and homework time)

  • Target students: 9 to 12th graders interested in Neuroscience, Biology, Music Therapy, Medicine, and Healthcare.

  • Schedule: TBD. Meetings will take place for around one hour per week, with a weekly meeting day and time to be determined a few weeks before the start date.