Sophie Scott facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Sophie Scott
FMedSci FBA
|
|
|---|---|
Scott in June 2014
|
|
| Born |
Sophie Kerttu Scott
16 November 1966 Blackburn, England
|
| Nationality | British |
| Education |
|
| Alma mater |
|
| Known for | |
| Awards | Royal Institution Christmas Lectures (2017) |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields |
|
| Institutions | University College London |
| Thesis | Perceptual centers in speech-acoustic determinants (1993) |
| Doctoral advisor | Peter Howell |
Sophie Kerttu Scott (born November 16, 1966) is a British neuroscientist. A neuroscientist studies how the brain works. She is a Senior Fellow at University College London (UCL).
Her research focuses on how our brains understand voices, speech, and laughter. She studies how we hear and make sounds, how our voices show emotions, and how humans communicate. She also leads the Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience at UCL.
Contents
Early Life and Education
Sophie Scott was born in Blackburn, England. Her parents are Colin Mountford Scott and Christine Winnifred Scott. She went to Westholme School and Queen Elizabeth's Grammar School, Blackburn.
She earned a science degree from the University of Westminster in 1990. Later, she completed her PhD at University College London in 1994. A PhD is a high-level university degree for people who do a lot of research.
Career and Research
Sophie Scott began her research career in Cambridge. She worked at the Medical Research Council (MRC). In 1998, she returned to UCL as a research fellow.
Since 2001, she has received funding from the Wellcome Trust. This funding helps her continue her important research. She is also a member of several science groups, like the British Psychological Society.
Scott leads the Speech Communication Group at UCL. Her team studies how our brains process sounds from voices. They also look at how our brains control how we speak.
Her work explores how different parts of the brain handle sounds. She also studies how our brains use attention and memory when we listen. She is interested in how people with cochlear implants learn to hear. She also studies how we show feelings with our voices and why we laugh.
Sharing Science with Everyone
Sophie Scott is well-known for sharing her science with the public. She has even performed stand-up comedy about her work! In 2013, she was on a BBC Radio Four show called The Life Scientific.
In 2014, she gave a talk at the Royal Institution about the science of laughter. Her "Laughter Lab" project has also been part of science fairs. She won an award from UCL for her public engagement. In 2017, she gave the famous Royal Institution Christmas Lectures. These talks were called The Language of Life and explored how we communicate.
She has also appeared on other BBC shows. These include the radio program The Infinite Monkey Cage and the TV series Horizon. On Horizon, she discussed the science of laughter with comedian Jimmy Carr.
Awards and Recognition
Sophie Scott has received many important awards. In 2012, she became a Fellow of the Academy of Medical Sciences. This means she is recognized as a top medical scientist. The Academy noted her work on how the brain processes speech. Her research helps us understand how people recover from aphasic stroke. It also helps people with hearing loss adapt to cochlear implants.
In 2015, Scott gave a talk at the TED conference. In 2016, she was elected a Fellow of the British Academy. This is a high honor for experts in humanities and social sciences.
In 2020, she was made a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE). This award recognized her important contributions to neuroscience.
