Nick Cooper

I have been fascinated by what the brain does since I was at school and deciding what to study next. I did my first degree at Oxford. Developmental research was the area that interested me most: we still have so much to find out about what is arguably the most important stage of our life. I did my research project with Kate Nation, and stayed working with her for my Masters and PhD projects. I now look into eye movements during reading, and what they tell us about a reader’s eventual comprehension. I’m particularly interested in how we deal with text that is ambiguous, and how we choose the correct interpretation.

My favourite word

My favourite childhood book

My favourite word is loquacious. It has a wonderful rounded sound to it… and it means talkative, which sums me up fairly well.

My favourite book while young was Ninety Eighty-Four by George Orwell: I read it while at school, and think it’s a great (if slightly terrifying) tale. It also gave me inspiration for a GCSE English essay when asked to “describe a nightmare world”.