CURRICULUM VITAE
EDUCATION
PhD - University of Iowa - Iowa City, IA
Presidential Graduate Research Fellow
Interdisciplinary Graduate Program in Neuroscience
Dissertation: To /b/ or not to /b/: Characterizing the neural timecourse of speech perception
Mentor: Bob McMurray, PhD
2015 - 2020 (anticipated)
BA magna cum laude - University of Tennessee - Knoxville, TN
Chancellor's Honors Scholar & College Scholar
Major: Neuroscience and the Perception of Language
Minor: Portuguese
Honors Thesis: The effect of pedagogical condition on second language acquisition
Thesis Supervisor: Harriet Bowden, PhD
2009 - 2013
RESEARCH INTERESTS & SKILLS
spoken word recognition, integration of top-down and bottom-up cues, word learning, second language acquisition, degraded speech, eyetracking, Visual World Paradigm, electroencephalography (EEG), event-related potentials (ERPs), source analysis with EEG, electrocorticography (ECoG), machine learning
RESEARCH EXPERIENCE
Mechanisms of Audio-Visual Categorization (MAC) Lab
Presidental Graduate Research Fellow
PI: Bob McMurray, PhD
Department of Psychology
University of Iowa
Iowa City, IA, USA
2015 - present
Human Auditory Neuroscience (HAN) Lab
Collaborating Graduate Fellow
PI: Inyong Choi, PhD
University of Iowa
Department of Communication Sciences & Disorders
Iowa City, IA, USA
2018 - present
Human Brain Research Lab
Collaborating Graduate Fellow
PI: Matt Howard, MD
University of Iowa Hospitals & Clinics
Department of Neurosurgery
Iowa City, IA, USA
2016 - present
Infant Language & Perceptual Learning Lab
Undergraduate Research Assistant
PI: Jess Hay, PhD
Department of Psychology
University of Tennessee
Knoxville, TN, USA
Language Acquisition & Cognition Lab
Undergraduate Research Assistant
PI: Harriet Bowden, PhD
Department of Modern Foreign Languages & Literatures
University of Tennessee
Knoxville, TN, USA
2009 - 2012
2012 - 2014
Vocal Acoustics Laboratory
Undergraduate Summer Intern
PI: Jo-Anne Bachorowski, PhD
Department of Psychology
Vanderbilt University
Nashville, TN, USA
2010 - 2012
GRANTS & AWARDS
2019 • Departmental Award for travel to Advanced Perspectives in Auditory Neuroscience and Society for Neuroscience, University of Iowa
2019 • Gloria Lee Service Award, University of Iowa
2019 • Fellowship Incentive Award, University of Iowa
2018 • Departmental Award for travel to Acoustical Society of America Conference, University of Iowa
2018 • Writing Initiative in Neuroscience Fellow, University of Iowa
2017 • ERP Boot Camp Fellow, University of California, Davis, & National Institute of Mental Health
2017 • DeLTA Center Interdisciplinary Research Grant, University of Iowa
2016 • Fellowship Incentive Award, University of Iowa
2016 • Institutional National Research Service Award Recipient (T32), National Institutes of Health
2015 • Departmental Award for travel to Society for Neuroscience Conference, University of Iowa
2015 • Presidential Graduate Research Fellowship, University of Iowa
2013 • Exhibition of Undergraduate Research and Creative Achievement Best Poster Award, University of Tennessee
2012 • Grant Writing Workshop Fellowship, University of Tennessee
2012 • Chancellor’s Honors Program Study Abroad Grant, University of Tennessee
2012 • Center for International Education Study Abroad Grant, University of Tennessee
2012 • Alvin and Jane Nielsen Memorial Scholarship, University of Tennessee
2010 • Frederick T. Bonham Scholarship, University of Tennessee
2009 • HOPE Scholarship with General Academic Merit Supplement, University of Tennessee
2009 • University of Tennessee Volunteer Scholarship, University of Tennessee
2009 • Achieve the Dream Grant, University of Tennessee
MANUSCRIPTS
Sarrett, M.E., McMurray, B., and Choi, I. (in prep). Neural correlates of concurrent representations of speech during sentence comprehension: evidence from EEG source analysis.
Sarrett, M.E. and McMurray, B. (in prep). Semantic picture priming task reveals top-down and bottom-up interactions: an EEG study.
Kocsis, Z., Jenison, R.L., McMurray, B., Rhone, A.E., Sarrett, M.E., Gander, P.E., Nourski, K.V., Steinschneider, M., Calmus, R.M., Kawasaki, H., Greenlee, J.D., Kovach, C.K., Griffiths, T.D., Howard III, M.A., & Petkov, C.I. (in prep). Anterior temporal lobe disconnection disrupts auditory cortical oscillatory neural responses to speech in the human brain.
McMurray, B., Sarrett, M.E., Chiu, S.L., Black, A.K., and Aslin, R. (in prep). Decoding the neural dynamics of spoken word recognition from EEG.
Sarrett, M.E., Shea, C., and McMurray, B. (submitted). Within- and between-language competition in adult second language learners: implications for language proficiency.
Sarrett, M.E., McMurray, B., and Kapnoula, E. (2020). Dynamic EEG analysis during language comprehension reveals continuous and interactive cascades between perceptual processing and sentential expectations. Brain and Language, 211.
Sarrett, M.E. (2013). The effect of pedagogical condition on second language acquisition. Honors Thesis, University of Tennessee. Available at:
CONFERENCE PRESENTATIONS
Sarrett, M.E., Shea, C., and McMurray, B. (2020, November). Crosslinguistic lexical activation in Spanish second language learners. Poster presented at the virtual meeting of the Psychonomic Society.
McMurray, B., Sarrett, M.E., Chiu, S.L., Black, A.K., and Aslin, R. (2020, November). Decoding the neural dynamics of spoken word recognition from EEG. Paper presented at the virtual meeting of the Psychonomic Society.
Kocsis, Z., Jenison, R.L., McMurray, B., Rhone, A.E., Sarrett, M.E., Gander, P.E., Choi, I., Berger, J.I., Taylor, P.N., Kawasaki, H., Greenlee, J.D., Kovach, C.K., Griffiths, T.D., Howard III, M.A., & Petkov, C.I. (2020, October). Anterior temporal lobe surgical disconnection disrupts neural responses to speech along the human auditory cortical network. Poster presented at the virtual meeting for Advanced Perspectives in Auditory Neuroscience.
Black, A., McMurray, B., Sarrett, M.E., Chiu, S., Canale, B., Wang, A., & Aslin, R.N. (2019, October). Machines vs. musheems: neural decoding of words from nonwords. Paper presented at the NTNU-Haskins Laboratories Joint Workshop on Language Acquisition, Statistical Learning, and fNIRS Applications. Taipei, Taiwan.
Sarrett, M.E., Schreiber, K., Kawasaki, H., Howard III, M.A., & McMurray, B. (2019, October). The effect of lexical status on acoustic encoding in human auditory and perisylvian language cortices: Preliminary results from intracranial recordings. Poster presented at the 50th Annual Meeting of the Society for Neuroscience Conference, Chicago, IL, USA.
Kocsis, Z., Jenison, R.L., McMurray, B., Rhone, A.E., Sarrett, M.E., Gander, P.E., Nourski, K.V., Steinschneider, M., Calmus, R.M., Kawasaki, H., Greenlee, J.D., Kovach, C.K., Griffiths, T.D., Howard III, M.A., & Petkov, C.I. (2019, October). Anterior temporal lobe disconnection disrupts auditory cortical oscillatory neural responses to speech in the human brain. Poster presented at the 50th Annual Meeting of the Society for Neuroscience Conference, Chicago, IL, USA.
Sarrett, M.E., Kapnoula, E., & McMurray, B. (2018, November). Realtime integration of acoustic input and semantic expectations in speech processing: evidence from electroencephalography (and preliminary results from electrocorticography). Poster presented at the 176th Annual Meeting of the Acoustical Society of America, Victoria, BC, Canada.
Sarrett, M.E., Kapnoula, E., & McMurray, B. (2018, July). Realtime integration of acoustic cues and semantic expectations in speech processing. Poster presented at the 40th Annual Meeting of the Cognitive Science Society, Madison, WI, USA.
Sarrett, M.E. & Bowden, H. (2013, March). The effect of pedagogical condition on second language acquisition. Paper presented at the 80th Annual South Eastern Conference on Linguistics (SECOL), Spartanburg, SC, USA.
TEACHING EXPERIENCE
Spring 2020 • Guest panelist, Scientific Communication in Psychology
Fall 2019 • Graduate Teaching Assistant, Lab in Cognitive Neuroscience
Fall 2019 • Graduate Teaching Assistant, Research Methods & Data Analysis in Psychology II
Spring 2019 • Guest lecturer, Introduction to Hearing Science
Spring 2019 • Guest lecturer, The Psychology of Language
Spring 2018 • Guest lecturer, Introduction to Behavioral Neuroscience
Fall 2017 • Guest lecturer, The Psychology of Language
Fall 2017 • Graduate Teaching Assistant, Elementary Psychology
Fall 2012 • Honors Enrichment Fellow, Honors Seminar: The Hard Problem of Consciousness
MENTORING EXPERIENCE
2018 - 2020 • Graduate supervisor for post-baccalaureate research assistant, MAC Lab
2018 - 2019 • Graduate supervisor for undergraduate Neuroscience major, MAC Lab
2018 - 2019 • Graduate supervisor for undergraduate Speech & Hearing Science major, HAN Lab
2017 - 2018 • Graduate supervisor for undergraduate Speech & Hearing Science major, MAC Lab
2016 - 2018 • Graduate supervisor for undergraduate Latham Science Engagement Initiative Fellow, MAC Lab
SERVICE & OUTREACH
2018 - present • Content illustrator at Knowing Neurons | a creative neuroscience education website by young neuroscientists
2017 - 2020 • Student Co-Chair of the Neuroscience Graduate Admissions Committee, University of Iowa
2017 - 2020 • Student Co-Chair of the Neuroscience Graduate Recruitment Committee, University of Iowa
2015 - 2020 • Volunteer in the Girls Go STEM Annual Outreach Program, University of Iowa
2015 - 2020 • Volunteer in the Eastern Iowa Brain Bee Committee, University of Iowa
2019 • Graduate student representative on Graduate Student Wellness Committee, University of Iowa
2019 • Graduate student panelist for Grad School 101, University of Iowa
2019 • Graduate student panelist for National Science Foundation's Scholarships in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (S-STEM) Program, University of Iowa
2018 • Graduate student panelist at the Our Collective Brains Workshop, University of Iowa
2018 • Graduate student panelist at the Biomedical Sciences Pre-Grad School Conference, University of Iowa
2015 - 2017 • Volunteer for the Neuroscience Graduate Recruitment Committee, University of Iowa
2012 - 2013 • Governing Officer of NEURO, Club for the Advancement of Neuroscience, University of Tennessee
2010 - 2013 • Student Co-Chair of the College Scholars Admissions Committee, University of Tennessee
LANGUAGES
2018 - present • Python (some knowledge)
2017 - present • R (competent)
2015 - present • MATLAB (highly proficient)
2009 - present • Brazilian Portuguese (fluent in written & spoken)
2004 - 2009 • Latin (good working knowledge, written only)
2000 - 2004 • Spanish (good working knowledge in written & spoken)
1990 - present • English (native speaker)
OTHER TALKS & PRESENTATIONS
Sarrett, M.E., McMurray, B., & Shea, C. (2020, February). Cross-linguistic activation in Spanish second language learners: evidence from the Visual World Paradigm. Preliminary discussion led at MAC Lab Meeting, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA.
Sarrett, M.E. (2020, February). To /b/ or not to /b/: characterizing the timecourse of speech perception. Paper presented at the Psychology Brown Bag, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA.
Sarrett, M. E. (2019, October). To /b/ or not to /b/: characterizing the timecourse of speech perception. Paper presented at the the Interdisciplinary Graduate Program Seminar in Neuroscience. Iowa City, IA.
Sarrett, M. E., Schreiber, K., Howard, M. A., Kawasaki, H., & McMurray, B. (2019, April). The effect of lexical status on acoustic encoding in human auditory cortex: preliminary results from intracranial recordings. Poster presented at Auditory Neuroscience Research Day. University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA.
Sarrett, M. E., Schreiber, K., Howard, M. A., Kawasaki, H., & McMurray, B. (2018, October). The effect of lexical status on acoustic encoding in human auditory cortex: preliminary results from intracranial recordings. Poster presented at Neuroscience Research Day. University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA.
Sarrett, M. E. (2018, October). Acoustic cue encoding in human auditory cortex: preliminary results from intracranial recordings. Paper presented at the Interdisciplinary Graduate Program Seminar in Neuroscience. Iowa City, IA.
Sarrett, M. E. (2017, November). The emergence of lexical competition in word learning & its neural correlates.
Paper presentated at the Interdisciplinary Graduate Program Seminar in Neuroscience. Iowa City, IA.
Sarrett, M. E., Kapnoula, E., & McMurray, B. (2017, November). Contextual influences on speech perception. Poster presented at Neuroscience Research Day. University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA.
Sarrett, M. E. (2017, March). Integrating semantics and acoustics in speech processing. Paper presented at the University of Iowa Language Discussion Group. Iowa City, IA.
Sarrett, M. E. (2017, February). Contextual effects on speech perception: an EEG study. Paper presented at the Interdisciplinary Graduate Program Seminar in Neuroscience. Iowa City, IA.
Sarrett, M. E. (2016, September). Integration of novel words forms and the effects of sleep consolidation: an EEG study. Paper presented at the University of Iowa Language Discussion Group. Iowa City, IA.
Sarrett, M. E. (2016, April). Top-down effects on acoustic encoding: preliminary results. Paper presented at the Interdisciplinary Graduate Program Seminar in Neuroscience. Iowa City, IA.
Sarrett, M. E. (2013, April). The effect of pedagogical condition on second language acquisition. Paper presented at the Undergraduate Research Symposium at the University of Tennessee. Knoxville, TN.
Sarrett, M. E. (2013, March). The effects of pedagogical conditions on second language acquisition. Poster presented at the Exhibition of Undergraduate Research and Creative Achievement (EUReCA). University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN.