About Me
I started my PhD in Cognitive Science at Johns Hopkins University in August 2014, receiving my MA in 2016. I expect to complete my PhD in 2019. My primary areas of interest are language and cognitive development, in particular Theory of Mind, word learning, semantics, and syntax. My research has focused on perception verbs, using several different methods. My current research, with Dr. Barbara Landau, investigates children's acquisition of perception and mental verbs through corpus and empirical behavioral studies. I have also done formal semantics work on perception verb complements with Dr. Kyle Rawlins.
I grew up in northern New Jersey, near New York City. (I wait on line, not in line, thank you.) As a kid I was always a language geek; choosing to teach myself how to conjugate Spanish verbs or Latin declensions was probably an early sign that I'd eventually become some sort of linguist. When I was in high school, I spent a summer studying abroad in Salamanca, Spain.
I received my undergraduate degree from Barnard College in New York City, where I created my major in Linguistic Anthropology, working with my advisor Dr. Paul Kockelman as well as Dr. Alan Timberlake, and also minored in Psychology. I was one of the founding members of the Columbia Linguistics Society. Starting in my junior year at Barnard, I worked with Dr. Ann Senghas in the Language Acquisition and Development Research Lab doing research on Nicaraguan Sign Language. I eventually worked with Dr. Senghas on my senior thesis examining Theory of Mind and mental verbs in NSL.
During breaks between semesters in college, I also worked for the Palisades Interstate Park in New Jersey. While there, I co-authored a book, New Jersey's Palisades Interstate Park, documenting the Park's history through images.
After finishing undergrad, I worked in higher education textbook publishing for 5 years, then in email marketing for 1.5 years. I realized that I really missed research and studying language and decided to change course and pursue a PhD.
When not working on my PhD, I enjoy traveling, gardening, cooking, and spending time with my husband Anthony, our cat Rudy and our dog Henry. I also foster rescue dogs, helping to get them ready for their adoptive homes.
I grew up in northern New Jersey, near New York City. (I wait on line, not in line, thank you.) As a kid I was always a language geek; choosing to teach myself how to conjugate Spanish verbs or Latin declensions was probably an early sign that I'd eventually become some sort of linguist. When I was in high school, I spent a summer studying abroad in Salamanca, Spain.
I received my undergraduate degree from Barnard College in New York City, where I created my major in Linguistic Anthropology, working with my advisor Dr. Paul Kockelman as well as Dr. Alan Timberlake, and also minored in Psychology. I was one of the founding members of the Columbia Linguistics Society. Starting in my junior year at Barnard, I worked with Dr. Ann Senghas in the Language Acquisition and Development Research Lab doing research on Nicaraguan Sign Language. I eventually worked with Dr. Senghas on my senior thesis examining Theory of Mind and mental verbs in NSL.
During breaks between semesters in college, I also worked for the Palisades Interstate Park in New Jersey. While there, I co-authored a book, New Jersey's Palisades Interstate Park, documenting the Park's history through images.
After finishing undergrad, I worked in higher education textbook publishing for 5 years, then in email marketing for 1.5 years. I realized that I really missed research and studying language and decided to change course and pursue a PhD.
When not working on my PhD, I enjoy traveling, gardening, cooking, and spending time with my husband Anthony, our cat Rudy and our dog Henry. I also foster rescue dogs, helping to get them ready for their adoptive homes.