Education

Ph.D. in Psychological Foundations of Education, May 2007
University of Minnesota

Ph.D. Student in Computer Science, 1992 to 1994
University of Tennessee, Knoxville

Master's of Science in Computer Science, September 1992
California State Polytechnic University, Pomona

Bachelor of Arts in Psychology, September 1986
California State University, Los Angeles

Computer Technician's Certificate, June 1986
Pasadena City College, Pasadena, California

Experience

Substitute Teacher
Saint Paul Public Schools, Saint Paul, Minnesota
Fall 2008 to Present
Duties: Teaching a variety of subjects and grade levels.

Substitute Teacher
Minneapolis Public Schools, Minneapolis, Minnesota
Spring 2008 to Present
Duties: Teaching a variety of subjects and grade levels.

Research Assistant
Institute of Child Development
University of Minnesota, Minneapolis / St.Paul, Minnesota
Fall 2001 to Summer 2003
Duties: Design and analysis of perceptual experiments with infants and adults using electrophysiological methods and functional magnetic resonance imaging.

Research Assistant
Department of Psychology
University of Minnesota, Minneapolis / St.Paul, Minnesota
Winter 1998 to Summer 2002
Duties: Design and analysis of perceptual experiments using functional magnetic resonance imaging. Lab manager.

Instructor/Teaching Assistant
Department of Educational Psychology
University of Minnesota, Minneapolis / St.Paul, Minnesota
Fall 1997 to Spring 2000
Duties: Teaching graduate and undergraduate courses in statistics. Tutorial support for courses.

Instructor
Computer Science Department
Minnesota State University, Mankato
Fall 1994 to Summer 1997
Duties: Direction and teaching of the Department's Introductory Computer Course. Curriculum development. Supervision and training of adjunct faculty, teaching assistants, and technical support personnel. Utilization of a multimedia classroom for large lectures. Quotes from students.

Research Assistant
Computer Science Department
University of Tennessee, Knoxville
Fall 1992 to Summer 1994
Duties: Research project under Bruce MacLennan modeling the social dynamics of small groups.

Lecturer
Computer Science Department
California State Polytechnic University
Summer 1988 to Fall 1992
Duties: Organization and presentation of computer science courses in computer literacy, programming languages, and data structures.

Lab Coordinator
Instructional Technology and Academic Computing
California State Polytechnic University
Winter 1988 to Winter 1990
Duties: Responsible for maintenance of computer laboratories containing IBM, Macintosh, and Wyse workstations. Selection, training, and supervision of student consultants. Software development and support. Selection and installation of computer systems.

User Consultant
Instructional Technology and Academic Computing
California State Polytechnic University
Fall 1986 to Winter 1988
Duties: Assisting students and faculty with problems in program syntax, program logic, operating systems concepts, and computer applications. The creation of user documentation.

Programmer
Computer Center
Pasadena City College
Fall 1983 to Fall 1985
Duties: Program development and creation of user documentation.

Operations Manager
Los Angeles Terminal
Hill & Hill Truck Line, Houston, Texas
Winter 1981 to Winter 1982
Duties: Organization and scheduling of an interstate freight system.

Papers

Atherton, M. (2007). Cognitive transfer and conservation in chess playing. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, University of Minnesota, Twin Cities.

Atherton, M., Zhuang, J., Bart, W. M., Hu, X. & He, S. (2003) A functional MRI study of high-level cognition: the game of chess. Cognitive Brain Research, 16, 26-31.

Presentations

Atherton, M. (2007, April). A proposed theory of the neurological limitations of cognitive transfer. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association, Chicago, IL.

Atherton, M. (2005, November). Brain, neurosciences, and education: issues, research and facilitation. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the Society for Neuroscience, Washington, DC.

Atherton, M. & Diket, R. (2005, April). Applying the Neurosciences to Educational Research: Can Cognitive Neuroscience Bridge the Gap? Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association, Monteral, Canada.

Bart, W. M. & Atherton, M. (2004, April). The neuroscientific basis of music: applications to the development of talent and education. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association, San Diego, CA.

Bart, W.M. & Atherton, M. (2004, February). The neuroscientific basis of chess playing: applications to the development of talent and education. In J. A. Michon (Chair), Learn to know the brain. Symposium conducted at Royal Academy of Arts, Amsterdam, Netherlands.

Bart, W. M. & Atherton, M. (2003, April). The neuroscientfic basis of chess playing: Implications for the development of talent and education. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association, Chicago, IL.

Atherton, M. (2003, March). A didactic neurocognitive model. Poster presented at the annual meeting of the Cognitive Neuroscience Society. New York, NY.

Atherton, M. (2002, August). An introductory neurocognitive model for psychology students. Poster presented at the annual meeting of the American Psychological Association. Chicago, IL.

Atherton, M. (2002, November). A didactic neurocognitive model. Poster presented at the annual meeting of the Society for Neuroscience. Orlando, FL.

Atherton, M. (2002, August). A neurocognitive model for students and educators. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the Cognitive Science Society, Fairfax, VA.

Atherton, M., Amiri, H., Zhuang, J., Hu, X., He, S. , & Yonas, A. (May, 2002). Cortical responses to layout change specified by two pictorial cues: An fMRI study. Poster presented at the annual meeting of the Vision Sciences Society, Sarasota, FL.

Atherton, M. & Bart, W. M. (2002, April). What the neurosciences can tell educators about reading and arithmetic: A review of current research. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association, New Orleans, LA.

Atherton, M. (2002, April). A Neurocognitive model for educators. Poster presented at the annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association, New Orleans, LA.

Atherton, M. & Bart, W.M. (2001, April). Education and fMRI: Promise and Cautions. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association, Seattle, WA.

Atherton, M., Zhuang, J., Bart, W.M., Hu, X. & He, S. (2000, April) A functional magnetic resonance imaging study of chess expertise. Poster session presented at the annual meeting of the Cognitive Neuroscience Society, San Francisco.

Atherton, M. & Lelewer, D.A. (1993) A probabilistic model for natural language understanding. Proceedings of the 1993 ACM/SIGAPP Symposium on Applied Computing, Indianapolis, IN, p.586-592.

Invited Conference Participation

Neuroscience Research in Education Summit. Society for Neuroscience, Irvine, CA. 2009.

Science of Learning Centers Annual Meeting 2005. National Science Foundation, Arlington, VA. 2005.

Mind, Brain, and Education Conference. Harvard University, Cambridge, MA. 2004.

Professional Activities

National Science Foundation Reviewer, 2008

President 2005-2007
Brain, Neurosciences, and Education SIG
American Educational Research Association

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The contents of this page have not been reviewed or approved by the University of Minnesota.