KAELASHA TYLER

Curriculum Vitae

 

Academic Qualifications 

 

Doctorate (Neuroscience)  

2010-2019                     

                                              

Brain and Psychological Sciences Research Centre

Swinburne University of Technology, Hawthorn

PhD Thesis-An investigation into the inter-relationship between conscious and non-conscious neural  processes in visual perception                                              

 

Supervisors- Professor David Liley and Professor David Crewther

 

Bachelor of Arts- Psychology (Honors-First Class)

2005-2009                                      

                                               

University of Auckland, New Zealand

Dissertation-Human binaural and monaural beat steady state responses

Electroencephalography (EEG) research conducted in the University of Auckland psychophysics laboratory                                                      

Supervisor-Dr Michael Hautus

 

Coursework- Neuropsychology; Human Neuroscience; Cognitive Science; Advanced Statistics

 

Employment  

 

Medical Scientist

Austin Health

2020- Present

​

Responsibilities

• Conduct EEG recording for epilepsy patients to aid in diagnosis and

       treatment

• Establish rapport with patients and ensure their comfort while in the

       laboratory environment

• Develop the EEG laboratory’s professional standards and capabilities

• Liaise with other clinical practitioners throughout Melbourne in order to

       build the Austin Health EEG laboratory’s clinical capacity.

 

Achievements

•  In the short time I have held this current position, I have developed my

       clinical EEG skills to be able to acquire high-quality EEG data in

       challenging environments, such as the emergency department or

       Intensive Care Unit.

• I have begun the process of integrating 'High-Frequency Analysis' into

       the laboratory's workflow. This is a new analysis procedure that will

       complement Austin Health's existing procedures, especially with regard

       to intracranial EEG patients.

 

Ph.D. Supervisor

BrainPark

Monash University

2019-Present Ph.D. co-supervisor

​

Responsibilities:

• Supervising and supporting Monash University Ph.D. students in their

       doctoral research.

• This role involves teaching students a range of experimental and

       neuroscience techniques as well as problem-solving any issues that arise in

       the course of their research.

​

Research Fellow

Alfred Centre

Monash University

2019-2020

​

Responsibilities

• This role involves joining existing research at the Alfred Centre into the

       biological basis of visual snow symptoms. My role specifically involves

       extending existing research to include the use of electroencephalography

       (EEG). I am responsible for designing and executing research protocols for

       an EEG component to the visual snow research currently taking place at the

       Alfred Centre.

​

Achievements 

• I have begun setting up an EEG laboratory to contribute to existing cognitive-behaviroul
  studies int o visual snow. 

​

CPAP Consultant 

CPAP Victoria

2015-current                      

           

Responsibilities:

• Supporting patients with a range of breathing related disorders through a month long trial CPAP therapy

• Running CPAP clinic including managing stock and preparing reports

• Liaising with and building relationships with local sleep physiologists

 

Achievements:

• Helped establish new CPAP clinic in Frankston, Melbourne.

• Supported many patients in establishing an optimal CPAP therapy

 

Sleep Scientist

Monash Medical Centre

2014-2105                            

 

Responsibilities:

• Greeting patients, attending to patient comfort, conducting induction

• Preparing patients for physiological data collection

• Supervising patients and data collection during night shifts

• Filling in reports for clinical staff and doctors

 

Achievements:

• Contributing to an effective sleep lab team.

• Multiple high quality polysomnographic data sets recorded

• Supported patients in achieving their health goals.

 

Research Assistant

2012-2014                            

Project title- Characterizing the dynamical complexity in brain electromagnetic activity in generalized anxiety

Brain and Psychological Sciences Research Centre

Swinburne University of Technology

 

Responsibilities:

• Conducting literature review and attaining ethics application

• Participant recruitment from clinical populations

• Data collection using Elekta TRIUX Magnetoencephalography (MEG) and 3 Tesla Siemens Magnetic Resonance Imaging

• Additional ECG and EOG data collected

• Data collection conducting clinical interviews and psychometric scales with participants

• Data analysis-Event related Field analysis and Beamforming Source space analysis of Meg data

• Preparing and submitting manuscript for publication

 

Achievements:

• Produced preliminary synopsis of data analysis for Barbara Dicker Grant recipient presentations. Received very positive audience feedback

• High recruitment rate. Through creative and widespread networking, recruitment targets have been able to be surpassed in a target population which characteristically presents recruitment challenges

• High quality, relatively artifact free data collected

• Designed efficient experimental protocol to be used and adapted for future research projects

• Wrote beamforming code in matlab using a FieldTrip toolbox, for use in source space analysis in future research projects. This represents pioneering application of these techniques to source space analysis of data acquired in the second of only two MEG facilities in the Southern Hemisphere.

 

Sessional Lecturing

Swinburne University of Technology, Hawthorn.

Faculty of Life and Social Sciences

March–May 2013             

                                                      

Responsibilities:

• Reviewing and revising lecture material

• Delivering weekly lectures in ‘Perception and Motor Systems’

• Marking exams

 

Achievements:

• Produced audited and revised lecture material for subsequent semesters

• Developed a high level of student rapport to support learning objectives

• Supported students to achieve quality grades in my course components

 

Sleep Scientist

Medibrain, North Caulfield, Melbourne

2012-2013                            

 

Responsibilities:

• Developing patient rapport and assuring patient comfort over a 12 hour period at Medibrain

• Preparing patients for physiological data collection. (EEG, ECG, EMG)

• Supervising patients and data collection during night shifts

 

Achievements:

• Multiple high quality relatively artifact free data sets collected over the course of 12 months

• Helped develop more streamlined and efficient patient data bases and information sharing processes with clinicians and sleep physiologist

 

Sessional Lecturing

Swinburne University of Technology, Hawthorn

Faculty of Life and Social Sciences

March 2012                          

 

Responsibilities:

• Delivering weekly lectures in ‘History of Neuroscience’

 

Achievements:

• Successfully supported students to understand historical roots of theory and assumptions underlying current brain and psychological sciences

• Supported students to achieve quality grades in my course components

• Through making myself available outside of timetabled lecture periods, I was able to more efficiently build rapport with students and support their learning goals.

 

Laboratory Demonstrator

Swinburne University of Technology, Hawthorn

Faculty of Life and Social Sciences

2010-2012                        

Courses: Neurological Monitoring, Cardiovascular Biophysics, Introductory neurophysiology

 

Responsibilities:

• Preparing, teaching and demonstrating practical laboratory material to undergraduate classes of up to 20 students, over the course of several semesters. This included teaching and demonstrating the measurement of EEG, ECG, EOG.

• Marking essays, laboratory work books, and assignments

 

Achievements:

• Positive student rapport and supported good continuation rate amongst students to post graduate studies

• Supported achievement of positive student grades

 

EEG Research Assistant (Industry Situated)

Cortical Dynamics, Melbourne

2011

                                   

Responsibilities:

• Participant recruitment

• EEG Data collection using BAR depth of anesthesia monitors on healthy awake participants undergoing a single 1 mg dose of benzodiazepine alprazolam

• Liaising with and attending to participants over the course of an eight hour study period

 

Achievements:

• Collected a high quality EEG data set for further analysis

 

Other Relevant Experience

 

Yoga Teacher in Te Whetu Tawara- The Acute Mental Health ward of the Auckland Hospital

2008

 

Responsibilities:

• Holding weekly yoga classes for patients at the acute mental health ward

 

Telephone Counselor

Youth-Line, New Zealand

1999

 

Responsibilities:

• Providing a 24 hour telephone counseling service to callers throughout  New Zealand

 

Achievements:

• I undertook a six month training in telephone counseling and subsequently worked for one year as a telephone counselor for ‘Life Line’ in Auckland, New Zealand

 

Junior Monk

Ananda Marga

1995-1996

 

Responsibilities:

• Taught regular meditation and yoga classes throughout New Zealand and Australia

• Organized yoga and meditation retreats for attendees throughout New Zealand and Australia.

• Facilitated various fundraising projects

 

Achievements:

Maintained my own yogic, meditative and monastic practices over an intense one year period

 

Research Skills and Knowlegde

 

• EEG data acquisition. I have worked with a range of high-density EEG systems

• MEG data acquisition. Currently working with an Elekta Triux system.

• Clinical interview skills, developed throughout postgraduate study and involvement in mental health based research projects

• Excellent project management skills developed through previous research assistant positions. Skills developed: from protocol conception through to data collection and analysis, to preparing manuscripts for publication

• Fluent and succinct communication skills (both written and verbal) developed throughout postgraduate study

• Electrophysiological Data analysis. Extensive experience with Matlab, and EEGlab and currently developing a strong competency in Fieldtrip, for source and sensor space analysis of MEG data

• Stimulus design. Extensive experience with Psychtoolbox on a Matlab platform to develop and deliver a range of auditory and visual stimuli

• Extensive experience with SPSS, Excel, Word, and PowerPoint

• Graphic design skills, using Adobe Photoshop and Adobe Illustrator

• Ongoign skills development  in contemplative practice

 

Awards and Scholarships

 

• Australian Post Graduate Award for PhD stipend, 2010 -2012

• Post Graduate Conference grant and additional funding to attend ACNC conference Macquarie University, Sydney, 2011

• Senior Prize in Psychology, University of Auckland, 2007

• Summer Scholarship to study with Dr Mark Edwards in the Psychology Department, Australia National University, 2007

 

Conferences & Courses Attended

 

• Association for the Scientific Study of Consciousness Conference. University of Queensland,  16th-19th July, 2014. Poster presentation.

• Australian Cognitive Neuroscience Conference (ACNC), Macquarie University, Sydney, 9th -12th December, 2011. Poster presentation

• Students of Brain Research (SOBR), University of Melbourne, 10th November, 2011. Poster presentation

• Australian Cognitive Neuroscience Conference (ACNC), Swinburne University of Technology, Melbourne, November 26-29, 2010

• Centre for Integrative Neuroscience and Neurodynamics Summer School, (CINN), University of Reading, UK, 7th July- 16th July 2010

 

Professional Memberships

 

• Australasian Society for Psychophysiology Inc

• Association for the Scientific Study of Consciousness