The National Science Foundation has awarded Scripps College a $411,008 grant to build an advanced laboratory for research on human cognitive functioning. The student-faculty laboratory will use high-density electroencephalography (EEG) to record brain activity.

The grant was awarded by the Division of Behavioral and Cognitive Sciences (BCS) of the NSF, which “supports research to develop and advance scientific knowledge about humans spanning areas of inquiry including brain and behavior, language and culture, origins and evolution, and geography and the environment,” the NSF’s website said.

Though it will be located at Scripps, the laboratory will be shared by three of the 5Cs: Scripps, Pitzer, and Claremont McKenna.

Thegrant proposal was submitted by Alan Hartley, Molly Mason Jones Professor of Psychology at Scripps, who worked with Professor Cathy Reed and Gabriel Cook at Claremont McKenna College, Michael Spezio and Stacey Wood at Scripps, Leah Light and David Moore at Pitzer, Gabriel Cook at CMC, and David Leland at the University of Wisconsin, Eau Claire. All participants of the investigation are researchers in cognition and cognitive neuroscience.

The grant abstract states that the EEG “will be used to investigate the spatial and temporal dimensions of brain activity associated with human cognition in infants, young adults, and older adults in typical and atypical (e.g., autistic) populations.” The proposal outlines five collaborative projects that look at brain activations and neural mechanisms in a variety of situations and age groups.

The abstract, which is available on the NSF website, anticipates the integration of faculty, advanced student research, student training and classroom work. In addition, the instrumentation is expected to attract a variety of students from the colleges and nurture careers in cognitive neuroscience. The project strives for novel research programs and collaborations between faculty and departments.

“This NSF grant enhances the already significant interdisciplinary neuroscience research taking place at Scripps College,” said Scripps President Lori Betttison-Varga in a recent press release.

The grant will be distributed from Oct. 1, 2010 to Sept. 30, 2013.