Trevor Robbins facts for kids

Trevor William Robbins CBE FRS FMedSci was born on November 26, 1949. He is a professor who studies how our brains work, especially how we think and behave. He used to be the head of the Psychology Department at the University of Cambridge.

Professor Robbins is very interested in how the brain helps us think (cognitive neuroscience), how it affects our actions (behavioural neuroscience), and how medicines can change the brain and behavior (psychopharmacology). He leads the University of Cambridge Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute (BCNI). He has also led several important science groups, like the British Neuroscience Association.

Learning and Early Life

Trevor Robbins went to Jesus College, Cambridge and earned his first degree in psychology in 1971. He then continued his studies at the University of Cambridge, getting his PhD in 1975. His PhD research looked at how a medicine called Dextroamphetamine affected behavior.

Outside of his studies, Robbins was a very good chess player. He even played for England's junior team in 1967 and for the University of Cambridge. At one point, he was among the top twenty chess players in England. One of his chess wins from a 1970 university match was even featured as a classic game in The Sunday Times newspaper.

Professor Robbins' Career and Brain Research

Professor Robbins started working at the University of Cambridge in 1973. He moved up through different roles, becoming a professor of cognitive neuroscience in 1997. In 2002, he became the head of the Psychology Department, a role he held until 2017.

How the Brain Works

A big part of Professor Robbins's work focuses on the frontal lobes of the brain. These are the parts of your brain behind your forehead. They help you with planning, making decisions, and controlling your actions. He studies how these parts of the brain are controlled by special chemicals called neurotransmitters.

His research helps us understand brain conditions like schizophrenia (a mental disorder), depression, obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). It also helps with diseases like Parkinson's and Alzheimer's.

Professor Robbins uses special tests and brain imaging to study how people plan, make choices, learn new things, pay attention, and control themselves.

The BCNI Institute

Because of the important work by Professor Robbins and his team, the BCNI (Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute) was created in 2005. This institute works to find new treatments for brain disorders. Professor Robbins is the director of the BCNI.

Professor Robbins has also advised the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom on science research in the UK. He is a respected member of the Royal Society and the Academy of Medical Sciences.

Published Works

Professor Robbins has written over 850 scientific papers. These papers have appeared in well-known science magazines like Nature, Brain, and Science. His work is often cited by other scientists, showing how important and influential his research is. He has also helped edit several scientific journals and co-edited 7 books.

Cool Inventions and Tests

Professor Robbins helped create some important tools for studying the brain.

The CANTAB Test

In the 1980s, Professor Robbins and Professor Barbara Sahakian co-invented a set of computer-based tests called the Cambridge Neuropsychological Test Automated Battery (CANTAB). These tests use touchscreens to check things like visual memory and how well people learn new information.

Today, CANTAB is used in over 700 research centers around the world. More than 1,200 scientific articles have been written based on research using CANTAB. Professor Robbins still works as a senior consultant for Cambridge Cognition, the company that provides CANTAB tests.

One specific CANTAB test, called CANTAB PAL, helps assess memory. This test was part of a major research evaluation in the UK in 2014 and was highlighted as a key achievement.

Understanding Temperament

Professor Robbins also helped create a model called the Functional Ensemble of Temperament. This model helps explain how brain chemicals are connected to different parts of our behavior and personality.

Awards and Recognition

Professor Robbins has received many awards for his important work:

• 2005 – He received The Neuronal Plasticity Prize for his work on motivation and a brain area called the striatum.
• 2011 – He won the American Psychological Association Award for his research in psychology and neuroscience.
• 2012 – He was made a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) by the Queen for his services to medical research.
• 2014 – He won The Brain Prize, a very important award, for his groundbreaking research on how the brain works and his efforts to understand brain disorders. He shared this award with two other professors.
• 2015 – He received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the British Association for Psychopharmacology.
• 2019 – He received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the British Psychological Society.
• 2024 – A new lab at the University of Cambridge, called the "Trevor Robbins Cognitive Neuroscience Laboratory," was opened in his honor.