Our People

Professor Victoria Leong 
Full Professor of Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience 
Centre Director

Dr Lorena Santamaria Covarrubias

Senior Research Fellow

Research Interests: Neurophysiological Signals (EEG, ECG), Early detection on infant at risk and personalised interventions.

I gained an engineering and master's degree at Cantabria University (Spain) and my PhD at Warwick University (UK). Worked with Professor Leong at Cambridge University (UK) on developmental neuroscience and with Professor Lewis at CUBRIC (UK) on sleep, learning and creativity. Since 2023, I am working with Professor Victoria Leong at Nanyang Technological University (Singapore) as a senior research fellow using machine learning based approaches to understand the influence of mother-infant dynamics on the child's cognitive development. Outside academia, I like to spend my time doing sports (Futsal, CrossFit, Hiking) and travelling around the world.

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Dr. George Rafael Domenikos

Research Assistant Professor

Research Interests: To focus on utilising mathematical modelling and artificial intelligence, and developing the new field of thermos-informatics, which combines thermodynamics and statistics.

I was a Research Associate in the Department of Applied Mathematics and Theoretical Physics at Cambridge University, where I developed innovative mathematical modelling methods for behavioural and neuroscientific systems. I completed my PhD in Mechanical Engineering at the National Technical University of Athens, with a focus on statistical thermodynamics, and received the Edward F. Obert Award in 2022 from the American Society of Mechanical Engineers for an outstanding achievement in thermodynamics. I have collaborated extensively with universities worldwide, including the University of Central Florida and Stevens Institute of Technology.

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Dr Owens Cullen Bryant

Senior Research Fellow

Research Interests: Early childhood development, neural mechanisms of learning and memory, applications for reducing cognitive bias in assessment tools.

I have conducted research in behavioural neuroscience, focusing on procedural and declarative learning mechanisms. My research experience spans working with children, elite athletes, and clinical populations. Currently, I am interested in leveraging scalable research technology to create broader impacts. In my current role, I aim to transition our understanding of parent-child sociometric models for assessing developmental trajectories into the commercial space.

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