Summary

I am a postdoctoral research scientist in the Center for Theoretical Neuroscience at Columbia University. I was recently awarded an NINDS K99/R00 Transition to Independence award, and will be applying for faculty jobs in the coming cycles. I did my graduate work with David Freedman at The University of Chicago.

In my research, I like to think about how representational geometry supports (or not) robust decisions, generalization to novel conditions, reliable representations of multiple stimuli at once, and rapid learning. These different demands can sometimes conflict with each other (for instance, generalization to novel stimuli and reliable representations of multiple stimuli), and I am particularly interested in how the brain navigates these tradeoffs. I use a variety of tools, including: statistical analysis, pen-and-paper theory, and artificial neural networks.

Outside my research, I am a member and steward of the Columbia Postdoctoral Worker union. I am interested in cooperative living, eating, and other forms of sharing resources. Other activities, interests, and hobbies include: working toward police and prison abolition, reading poetry, gardening, learning to paint and draw, playing board games, backpacking, canoeing, canyoneering.

Related to some of these interests, I recently made a zine: A botanical companion to The Wild Iris (web, pdf), a reference companion to the book of poetry by Louise Gluck.

Pronouns: he/they
Work email: wjeffreyjohnston (at) gmail (dot) com
Personal email: wjj (at) posteo (dot) net
Github: github.com/wj2
Twitter: @wjeffjohnston