Melody Schwenk

@nationalacademies.org thank you for having me! See you in March!

poster sharing recruitment information

👋 Researchers at Gallaudet University and Northeastern University are seeking participants for a study of ASL learning. Our study will ask you to sign about a few different topics. Participation takes about 30 minutes, and you will be paid $15.

Part 1/

What an honor to have gone from desperately seeking funding to having a NIH F31 and NAEd/Spencer Dissertation Fellowship two years later. I’m still in shock

The symposium on deaf children with cochlear implants linguistic development was refreshingly not negative! I finally don’t feel guilty about being deaf and appreciative of hearing technology (and weirdly excited about being able to get my CI after I defend?!) #SNL2025

Woohoo! I finally got a conference award ribbon! #SNL2025

Today I found … 👀 @orioles.com

Cartoon illustration of a brown bison wearing an EEG cap, holding a magnifying glass and looking at a pile of colorful toys. Among the toys is a rare yellow “Labubu” figure, highlighted with lines to show it’s been found. Large text at the top reads: “THIS STUDY IS EASIER THAN FINDING A LABUBU.”

Finding a Labubu is hard. Joining our study? Way easier! Help us understand spatial cognition + get paid for your time! Sign up here: bit.ly/f31_nav #Research #Cognition #PaidStudy

How does language shape the way we think about space? 🧠🦬
Take part in my Ph.D. study on spatial cognition & ASL.
~45 min online (US adults 18+), optional EEG in DC. $25/hour for your time!

bit.ly/f31_nav

#Neuroscience #ASL #ResearchStudy

Just spend ~16+ hours reworking my dissertation study setup (same tasks just different way to deliver them!) and I think the thing I’m most proud of is that I learned how to add screen reader capabilities to the online version of my behavioral tasks. Accessibility!

Cartoon poster with a smiling brain, a blue ‘POLICE BOX’, a rocket, a volcano, a dinosaur on a jeep, and stars. Big title: ‘Can you travel through space & time too?’ Footer: This study has been reviewed by the Gallaudet University IRB.

Can you travel through space & time?(cognitively, of course 😉)
Join our study on language & navigation. Start online now; DC/NoVA/MD folks can add a short EEG visit later.
Sign up: bit.ly/f31_nav
#Deaf #ASL #PaidStudy #DC #EEG

Hobby collecting baseball cards is more stressful than:
1) Recruiting participants for my dissertation while managing a skull fracture
2) Labubu drops
3) Getting Eras tour tickets

It only took 45 minutes of refreshing to get the Bob Ross collectors box. I have now survived several wars.

Here’s to afternoon daydreaming/brainstorms and the magic that happens when neuroscience meets left-field dimensions.

What if that landmark became the on-field equivalent of a ballet dancer’s “spotting” cue, shaving micro-seconds off reaction time the same way a pirouette avoids dizziness? And what if the drilling only needed a cone pattern, a tablet, and eight minutes of anchored sprints?

Just had one of those ‘what-if’ afternoons where a coffee, a Statcast spray chart, and a brain wired for spatial cognition collided. What if every ballpark had a signature landmark (think Home-Run Apple, Green Monster, or the new Camden LF wall) mapped into a player’s mind before they ever took BP?

up in front of a bright red bag. The toy on the left has fluffy gray fur, rainbow-colored eyes and teeth, and a mischievous grin, making it look quirky and playful. The toy on the right has tan fur, a rounder face, and large glossy eyes, appearing softer and more innocent. Both toys have animal-like ears and are designed to look like cute little monsters. A hand with tattoos is holding them in the foreground, and the photo was taken inside a car.

As a present to myself after fracturing my skull I got a Labubu monster. I somehow ended up with a secret one after a random rest stop purchase!

I think Lindor uses a similarly shaped one but I don’t think they necessarily need those bats. Look at how Siri, Nimmo, and Soto have been with stealing/getting walks. Bats could help of course but I think they’re warming up and their strategy is improving overall.

Spatial cognition?
Decision-making under pressure?
Ball tracking?

That’s Apollo’s job. I just run the models.

(Yes, that’s a custom Mets jersey. No, I don’t have chill.)

#Mets #MLB #NFL #DataNerds #SpatialCognition #Neuroscience

Paredes path to home was … WHY DID YOU MAKE THAT ARC. I am not a base runner or Astros fan but … that less less than optimal base running dude. Time to recalibrate those grid cells in his hippocampus

#neuroscience #LGM

Big thanks to @jasonthemanson.bsky.social for our meeting and helping me think through practical applications of my work beyond traditional grant contexts. Excited to keep pushing forward! Baseball <— spatial cognition <—> NIH

Might run 10k simulations in The Show.
Might work on my manuscript.
Who knows!
(I am doing both. Obviously.)

Just a spatial cognition girly with a dissertation about maps and ASL fluency… getting a reply from Sig Mejdal after asking about batting strategy.

Not to be dramatic, but the assistant GM of the Orioles emailing back cognition just might be the highlight of my PhD.

I’m fine. (Omg!)

I obviously learned it rewrote my entire proposal section after the fact and I am still scarred and stressed from rewriting to fix my bracket problems.

Me: asks ChatGPT to check my writing and find the error in my latex
ChatGPT: I will edit it! It will sound robotic!
Me: I just wanted you to check my latex brackets… please. I am tired.

Geeking out over someone at @mets.com searching for me on LinkedIn.

I need some fresh air. Some peanuts and cracker jacks maybe.

To be fair, my brain might be erasing, but musicians’ brains definitely aren’t. They’re 100% having more mu desynchronization. How does this play out in football?

Anyone know if there’s been research comparing mu rhythms between pitchers, catchers, and batters? (Or any combo of the three, really?)

For example: Pitchers tweaking mechanics aren’t throwing out their old skills—they’re updating their visual-spatial sketchpad.

The brain isn’t erasing, it’s integrating. Schemas are incredible (and important!). I wonder if the frontal coherence is similar across domains?

1) Language learners sharpen spatial awareness.
Pitchers & hitters refine movement perception.
2) Both are rewiring their brains, not just “getting better with practice.”
3) Cognitive training isn’t fake—it’s just misunderstood.
What other fields do you think leverage this kind of skill adaptation?

Ever think about how expertise actually changes the brain? I probably spend too much time think about this myself.

My dissertation focuses on ASL fluency, spatial cognition, and EEG markers of neural adaptation—but honestly, the same principles apply to sports.

What if @mlb.com teams scouted hitter cognition instead of just raw stats? What if we trained hitters based on their processing strengths instead of making them fit one mold?

I’m expanding this model—who else should I analyze next? Drop names!

3) Mookie Betts is the spatial problem solver. He doesn't swing based on power or patience—he calculates ball trajectory and position. His defensive versatility and elite baserunning? Pure spatial cognition at work.