Dr Magdalena Sliwinska
School of Psychology
Faculty of Health
Email: M.W.Sliwinska@ljmu.ac.uk
Telephone: 0151 231 2723
I am a Lecturer in Psychology at Liverpool John Moores University.
My educational background is multidisciplinary as I obtained my first degree in English Language and Linguistics, followed by a master’s degree in Neuroscience of Language and Communication which sparked my great interest for neuroscience. I pursued this interest later in a PhD.
During my PhD, I focused on establishing the functional and temporal contributions of the parietal lobe to visual word recognition. I also received an extensive training in transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) which has been my main research tool since then.
After my PhD, I worked as a research associate. During the first post-doc position at the Imperial College London, I expanded my research into the neuroscience of language. As part of my work, I used TMS and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to establish the causal importance of the multiple-demand cortex in language learning. During my second post-doc position at the University of York, I used TMS and fMRI in heathy and post-stroke brains to investigate visual face and object recognition.
My current research investigates further the neural mechanisms involved in language and face processing. I combine my research into visual language and face processing to understand the functional and structural lateralisation of the human brain.
Degrees
2015, University College London, United Kingdom, PhD Experimental Psychology
2010, University College London, United Kingdom, MSc Neuroscience, Language and Communication
2009, University of Roehampton, United Kingdom, BA English Language and Linguistics
Certifications
2021, AdvanceHE, Fellowship (FHEA)
Liverpool John Moores University, United Kingdom, Postgraduate Certificate in Academic Practice
Academic appointments
Lecturer/Senior Lecturer, Psychology, Liverpool John Moores University, 2020 - present
Post-doctoral Research Associate, Psychology, University of York, 2017 - 2020
Post-doctoral Research Associate, Medicine, Imperial College London, 2015 - 2017
Journal article
Pitcher D, Sliwinska MW, Kaiser D. 2023. TMS disruption of the lateral prefrontal cortex increases neural activity in the default mode network when naming facial expressions Social cognitive and affective neuroscience, 18 :1-9 DOI Author Url Publisher Url Public Url
Wang A, Sliwinska MW, Watson DM, Smith S, Andrews TJ. 2023. Distinct patterns of neural response to faces from different races in humans and deep networks Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience, 18 :nsad059 DOI Author Url Publisher Url Public Url
Gaffney CJ, Sliwinska MW, Thut G, Nuttall HE. 2023. Editorial: Improving reliability of brain stimulation: What works and what doesn't? Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, 17 DOI Author Url Publisher Url Public Url
Nikel L, Sliwinska MW, Kucuk E, Ungerleider LG, Pitcher D. 2022. Measuring the response to visually presented faces in the human lateral prefrontal cortex Cerebral Cortex Communications, 3 DOI Author Url Publisher Url Public Url
Sliwinska MW, Searle LR, Earl M, O’Gorman D, Pollicina G, Burton AM, Pitcher D. 2022. Face learning via brief real-world social interactions includes changes in face-selective brain areas and hippocampus Perception, :030100662210987-030100662210987 DOI Author Url Publisher Url Public Url
Sliwinska M, Elson R, Pitcher D. 2021. Stimulating parietal regions of the multiple-demand cortex impairs novel vocabulary learning. Neuropsychologia, 162 DOI Author Url Publisher Url Public Url
Banaszkiewicz A, Bola Ł, Matuszewski J, Szczepanik M, Kossowski B, Mostowski P, Rutkowski P, Sliwinska M, Jednoróg K, Emmorey K, Marchewka A. 2020. The role of the superior parietal lobule in lexical processing of sign language: Insights from fMRI and TMS Cortex, 135 :240-254 DOI Author Url Publisher Url Public Url
Sliwinska MW, Bearpark C, Corkhill J, McPhillips A, Pitcher D. 2020. Dissociable pathways for moving and static face perceptionbegin in early visual cortex: evidence from an acquired prosopagnosic Cortex, 130 :327-339 DOI Author Url Publisher Url Public Url
Sliwinska M, Elson R, Pitcher D. 2020. Dual-site TMS demonstrates causal functional connectivity between the left and right posterior temporal sulci during facial expression recognition Brain Stimulation, 13 :1008-1013 DOI Author Url Publisher Url Public Url
Matuszewski J, Szczepanik M, Droździel D, Sliwinska M, Paplińska M, Jednoróg K, Szwed M, Marchewka A. 2019. Functional hierarchy for tactile processing in the visual cortex of sighted adults NeuroImage, 202 DOI Author Url Publisher Url Public Url
Sliwinska M, Pitcher D. 2018. TMS demonstrates that both right and left superior temporal sulci are important for facial expression recognition NeuroImage, 183 :394-400 DOI Author Url Publisher Url Public Url
Sliwinska M, Violante I, Wise R, Leech R, Devlin J, Geranmayeh F, Hampshire A. 2017. Stimulating Multiple-Demand Cortex Enhances Vocabulary Learning The Journal of Neuroscience, 37 :7606-7618 DOI Author Url Publisher Url Public Url
Siuda-Krzywicka K, Bola Ł, Paplińska M, Sumera E, Jednoróg K, Marchewka A, Sliwinska M, Amedi A, Szwed M. 2016. Massive cortical reorganization in sighted Braille readers eLife, DOI Author Url Publisher Url Public Url
Sliwinska M, James A, Devlin J. 2015. Inferior Parietal Lobule Contributions to Visual Word Recognition Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience, 27 :593-604 DOI Author Url Publisher Url Public Url
Sliwinska M, Vitello S, Devlin J. 2014. Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation for Investigating Causal Brain-behavioral Relationships and their Time Course Journal of Visualized Experiments, 89 DOI Author Url Publisher Url Public Url
Sliwinska M, Khadilkar M, Campbell-Ratcliffe J, Quevenco F, Devlin J. 2012. Early and sustained supramarginal gyrus contributions to phonological processing Frontiers in Psychology, 3 DOI Author Url Publisher Url Public Url
Sliwinska M, Bearpark C, Corkhill J, McPhillips A, Pitcher D. Dissociable pathways for moving and static face perception begin in early visual cortex: evidence from an acquired prosopagnosic PsyArXiv Preprints, DOI Publisher Url
Sliwinska M, Brown L, Earl M, O’Gorman D, Pollicina G, Burton M, Pitcher D. Face learning via short real-world social interactions induces changes in face-selective brain areas and hippocampus PsyArXiv Preprints, DOI Publisher Url
preprint
Gonzalez Alam TRJ, Krieger-Redwood K, Varga D, Gao Z, Horner A, Hartley T, Thiebaut de Schotten M, Sliwinska M, Pitcher D, Margulies D, Smallwood J, Jefferies E. 2023. Visual to default network pathways: A double dissociation between semantic and spatial cognition bioRxiv DOI Publisher Url
Pitcher D, Sliwinska M, Kaiser D. 2023. TMS disruption of the lateral prefrontal cortex increases neural activity in the default mode network when naming facial expressions bioRxiv DOI Publisher Url
Nikel L, Sliwinska M, Kucuk E, Ungerleider L, Pitcher D. 2022. Measuring the response to visually presented faces in the human lateral prefrontal cortex bioRxiv DOI Publisher Url
Sliwinska M, Elson R, Pitcher D. 2019. Dual-site TMS demonstrates causal functional connectivity between the left and right posterior temporal sulci during facial expression recognition bioRxiv DOI Publisher Url
External committees:
LNG: ECR Executive Committee, Liverpool Neuroscience Group, https://lng.org.uk/ecrseminar/. 2021
Membership of professional bodies:
Member, Experimental Psychology Society, https://eps.ac.uk/. 2020
Research Grants Awarded:
The British Academy, Investigating how the parietal cortex contributes to foreign language learning, Grant value (£): £9223.19, Duration of research project: 1 year. 2019
Award:
Flexible Talent Mobility Award, BBSRC. 2018
Public engagement:
Other: Please specify in text box below, society, Interview, Interviewee, Imperial College London, Stroke recovery time could be reduced, Care UK Health Care. 2016
Other: Please specify in text box below, society, TV programme, Speaker, University College London, Secrets of the Brain, Insight TV. 2016
Demonstration, society, Presenter, Cheltenham Science Festival, Brain Control Live, Cheltenham Science Festival. 2016
Other: Please specify in text box below, society, TV Show, Consultant, BBC production site, London, Dara O’Briain’s Science Club, BBC2. 2013
Other: Please specify in text box below, society, Interview, Interviewee, University College London, Interview for an article in Cosmos Magazine entitled 'Reading Minds'. 2012
Other: Please specify in text box below, society, Interview, Interviewee/Assistant, University College London, Interview for the Times article entitled 'The day I had my brain switched off'. 2010
Conference organisation:
Advanced TMS Workshop for Neuroscience, co-organiser and consultant, https://www.tms-workshop.org/.