1994: Desimone

The 1994 Golden Brain Award was won by Dr. Robert Desimone, director of the McGovern Institute and the Doris and Don Berkey Professor in the Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences.

Desimone's research is centered around understanding the neural basis of how we, as humans, focus and allocate our attention. His work has increased our knowledge of brain pathways that allow for rapid and robust perception and recognition.

Desimone earned his PhD in psychology/neuroscience from Princeton University in 1979. In 1997, Desimone was appointed chief of the Laboratory of Neuropsychology for the National Institute of Mental Health, in Bethesda, Maryland . He became director of the McGovern Institute for Brain Research in 2004.

The Golden Brain, sculpted by Professor Florence Resnikoff of the California College of Arts and Crafts, Oakland, is a gold model of a human brain. The award was established by the Minerva Foundation to recognize outstanding original discoveries in vision and brain research.