Weizhen Xie, PI

Dr. Weizhen Xie (Zane) directs the ICON lab at the University of Maryland, following postdoctoral training at the NIH/NINDS. He holds a Ph.D. in Cognitive Psychology from University of California, Riverside. Prior to graduate school, he completed undergraduate education at Renmin University of China and received research training on Cognitive Neuroscience and Neuropsychology at University of California, Davis and the Chinese Academy of Sciences. 

The "Xie" family name means "Thanks" in Chinese. He feels extremely grateful to be able to work with and learn from so many fantastic students and scholars over the years (see below).

Weizhen Xie (Zane, 谢蔚臻); zanexie@umd.edu

Research staff

Yoojeong Choo, Postdoctoral Fellow

Yoojeong completed her doctoral training at the University of Iowa, after earning her undergraduate and master’s degrees at Yonsei University. She is interested in cognitive control—particularly error processing, motor inhibition, and their interaction with memory. Her research focuses on understanding the neural mechanisms of cognitive control and memory at fast time scales, with the long-term goal of applying this knowledge to modulate psychiatric symptoms such as chronic pain and OCD. Outside of research, Yoojeong enjoys cooking, playing bass guitar, and trekking in the mountains.

Joshua Macmillan, Lab manager (part-time)

Josh recently graduated with a B.S. in Neurobiology and Physiology from UMD. He is interested in neuroscience and cognitive research and is eager to analyze the collected data to gain deeper insights into these fields. Originally starting as a bioengineering student, Josh transitioned to the biology department to better pursue his passion for brain science and human physiology. Alongside his major, he is completing a minor in Global Poverty. Beyond academics, Josh serves as a group leader in the Maryland Mentor Corps, where he supports underprivileged students in Prince George’s County with literacy skills. In his free time, he enjoys spending time with friends and family, listening to music, and practicing hydroponic gardening.

Graduate student trainees

Harry Green, Ph.D. student in Neuroscience and Cognitive Science

Harry graduated from Temple University with a Major in Psychology and a minor in Neuroscience. He was also the lab manager for the Control and Adaptive Behavior lab at Temple University. Harry's research interests focus on memory encoding and retrieval mechanisms, particularly how these processes are influenced by social context. His work examines how individuals form, store, and recall memories in dynamic interpersonal environments, integrating behavioral data with neuroimaging techniques such as fMRI and EEG. 

Currrent undergraduate RAs

  • Daniel studies Neuroscience at UMD. His interest in neuroscience began in high school, in a psychology class, from learning about infamous experiments such as the Milgram and Stanford experiments to case studies about injuries to different parts of the brain. In the future, he is interested in pursuing further study into the pathologies of brain disorders such as Alzheimer’s. Aside from academics, Daniel enjoys improvising on the saxophone, streaming shows online, spending time with friends, and playing intramural soccer.

  • Srihitha studies Physiology and Neurobiology with a minor in Humanities, Health, and Medicine at UMD. She has had previous research experience working in the Material Measurement Laboratory at NIST, researching Nanofibrillated Cellulose, and conducting her own independent research on Brain-to-Brain Transmission and its Impact on the Medical Field. She is excited to serve as a Research Assistant in our lab, to learn more about the vast field of neuroscience! In the future, Srihitha hopes to pursue medicine, to become a Physician specializing in Internal Medicine. Outside of school, she enjoys participating in Indian Classical dance and music, reading, and traveling with her family! 

  • Pranav is a second year Computer Science and Math student at UMD. He first gained exposure to programming in high school after taking AP CSA. His passion for research also stemmed around this time after doing a Machine Learning project at George Mason University, looking into binary visualization to develop a computer vision algorithm to flag malicious files. He looks to indulge more into Machine Learning work and work with novel technologies. His time away from school is usually spent playing basketball, watching sports, and listening to music. Lately though, he's been delving into game development, replicating basic one dimensional games such as Wordle and Flappy Bird.

  • Heidi is majoring in Psychology with a minor in Neuroscience and Data Science at UMD. Her research interests lie in cognitive psychology, specifically memory, in addition to social psychology and artificial intelligence. She is eager to enhance her understanding of cognitive neuroscience and work with neuroimaging techniques. Her goal is to pursue graduate school, with the hopes of becoming a Neuropsychologist. In addition to our lab, she also works as a Research Assistant in the Diversity and Intergroup Relations Lab. In her free time, Heidi enjoys playing video games, listening to music, and hanging out with her friends.

  • Nandani is pursuing a Neuroscience and Information Systems double degree at UMD. She developed an interest in neuroscience research after her experience at the Juarez lab at UMSOM, where she studied the effects of neural activity manipulation on opioid-related substance-use disorder in mouse models. She hopes to learn how memory and learning play a role in substance use disorders and stressed brain states, especially in humans. In the future, Nandani hopes to become a physician and continue research contributing to improving patient outcomes. In her free time, she enjoys reading, crocheting, and getting sweet treats with her friends. 

  • Enguun is a Physiology and Neurobiology major at UMD. After working in developmental biology at the NIH under the Yamaguchi lab, Enguun has recently developed an interest in working with the brain and cognition. Enguun plans to continue developing her interests in neuroscience and behavioral science, with an emphasis on neurological disorders and neurodivergences. When she has free time, she loves going to new places with her friends and taking care of her houseplants.

Lab Alumni

Graduate student trainees

  • Xinchi Yu, previous NACS graduate student

Research Staff

  • Jenna Longbein, previous research associate at UM School of Medicine, next up: resident at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital

  • Sanikaa Thakurdesai, previous research assistant/lab manager, next up: graduate student at University of Leeds

  • Jack Farley, previous research assistant/data analyst, next up: the industry

  • Joshua Macmillan, previous research assistant/lab manager, next up: MD program at University of Maryland School of Medicine

  • Asbah Qadri, previous research assistant, next up: NIH postbac

  • Alena Zheng, previous research assistant, next up: graduate student at Duke University

In memoriam of

Bob Rosenthal, University Professor, University of California, Riverside

see Howard Friedman’s tribute to Bob at American Psychologist here