A win for behaviorists? Nature and nurture’s elaborate dance

An open lecture by:

Dr. Marina-Matthildi Martinos

When: Thursday, November 15, 18:00-20:00

Where: 6th Level Auditorium

Organized by: The Graduate Master Class Series, School of Graduate and Professional Education

To reserve your place please contact Ms. Maria Kritikou via email: [email protected] or telephone: 210 6009800 ext. 1210


Lecture Description

Along with the emergence of neuroscience and behavioral genetics came the strong belief that our behavior is largely determined by set patterns written in “stone” aka DNA. Nevertheless, the persistent failure in identifying specific genes for mental health disorders or even single traits along with recent scientific revolutions in the epigenetic field have set the nature nurture debate in a different light. This seminar will start off by exploring how the early developmental years, where most critical periods reside, are affected by experiential factors. Moreover, it will investigate what we mean by the term predisposition and to what degree predispositions determine long term outcomes with an onus on mental health. It will also briefly explain recently discovered mechanisms for passing on “life experiences” from one generation to the next and will end with a discussion of what psychotherapy can do for our brains. Not our minds.

Dr. Marina-Matthildi Martinos

PhD, Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience

Dr. Marina Martinos received her PhD in Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience in 2011 by University College London. Following her PhD, she did a postdoc on the effects of long seizures on the developing brain. She also worked on an MRC project looking at the effects of hypoxia on infant development. Through her line of work, she has gained experience of different types of neurodevelopmental disorders such as autism, ADHD and Tourette’s.  She joined ACG in September 2017.