Running Basic MED-PC Programs: An Introduction to MEDLAB™ 8
Course Date – July 30, 2008
Cost - FREE!

This course is a free workshop geared to introduce the novice MED PC® user, or potential user, to running basic behavioral test protocols using our powerful and flexible MED PC® Research Control and Data Acquisition software. Software and equipment installation will be covered.  This course will be taught by staff from Med Associates, as well as Dr. Steve Dworkin from Jacksonville State University.  Course enrollment is limited, so sign up early to ensure your spot.

An Introduction to Behavioral Research Protocol Programming: Getting Started with MED PC®
Course Date - July 31, 2008
Cost - $250

Learn the basics of writing MED State Notation programs to control your behavioral experiments. Instruction will be provided by following the exercises in the MED PC Programmer’s Guide.  If you already have worked on your own MED State Notation programs, be prepared to bring examples of them, or bring the details of your behavioral experiments.  This will allow you to practice using your own protocols and procedures.  This course will be taught by staff from Med Associates, as well as Dr. Steve Dworkin from Jacksonville State University.  Course enrollment is limited, so sign up early to ensure your spot.  Scholarships are available for researchers from academic institutions.

An Introduction to Self-Administration
Course Date – August 1, 2008
Cost - $250

Gain a basic understanding of the field of drug self-administration as a research tool to study drugs of abuse and mechanisms of learning. This course will present theoretical concepts and will also provide a technical overview of the laboratory equipment necessary to perform self-administration studies.  The course will be taught by Dr. Steve Dworkin from Jacksonville State University, an expert in rodent self-administration.  Scholarships are available for researchers from academic institutions.

Learning and Memory and Classical Fear Conditioning
Course Dates: August 20-22, 2008
Cost - $500

This three-day intensive workshop will cover theoretical and technical aspects related to the study of conditioned fear using the freeze response as a dependent measure.  In addition, spatial learning and memory will be covered using the Water Maze.  Other modules will focus on place conditioning, and assays for locomotor activity.  Laboratory exercises will be performed using an automated video motion analysis system, and this type of system will be compared/contrasted to freeze scores obtained by human observation.  Special attention will be paid to activity and shock reactivity, training, testing, extinction, and context discrimination.  Water Maze studies will be conducted using automated video tracking systems.  Laboratory exercises for locomotor assays and place conditioning will be conducted using standard systems offered by Med Associates, Inc.  The course will be taught by Dr. Stephan Anagnostaras from UCSD, a recognized authority in murine fear conditioning.  Register early, as class size is limited.  Scholarships are available for researchers from academic institutions.

Dr. Dworkin received his undergraduate training in psychology at the University of Maryland and earned his Ph.D. in psychology from the University of Florida. Dr. Dworkin completed post-doctoral training in neuroscience at the LSU Medical Center and has held tenured positions at LSU Medical Center in Shreveport in psychiatry and pharmacology and the Wake Forest School of Medicine in Pharmacology and Physiology. He is currently chair of the Department of Psychology at Jacksonville State University.

Dr. Dworkin has established international recognition for his research on the neuropsychopharmacology of abused substances. He has received both private and NIH funding and has published extensively in several areas including behavior analysis, behavior pharmacology and the neuroscience of addiction. Dr. Dworkin is a fellow of the American Psychological Association and a member of ASPET, CPDD, the Society for Neuroscience and ABA International. He has reviewed manuscripts for the major journals in the field and served on NIH and NIDA study sections.

Steven I. Dworkin, Ph.D.
Professor and Chair, Department of Psychology, Jacksonville State University
Behavioral Neuroscience

CURRICULUM VITAE

Dr. Anagnostaras obtained his Ph.D. in Psychology in the laboratory of Dr. Michael Fanselow at the University of California, Los Angeles, studying the neural basis of Pavlovian fear conditioning. After completing his graduate studies, Dr. Anagnostaras went on to train as a Postdoctoral Fellow in the laboratory of Professor Alcino Silva at UCLA.  He is a well-respected young scientist and already has several high-impact publications in the field. He has taught undergraduate- and graduate-level courses in the Neurosciences, as well as serving as Course Organizer for the Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Summer Course on Mouse Behavioral Analysis.

The general aim of Dr. Anagnostaras' research is to combine the molecular-genetic, systems, and cognitive-behavioral levels to understand how the brain produces behavior and cognition. A major emphasis in this endeavor is bridging systems and molecular approaches using hippocampus-dependent learning, in particular, learning about context. The hippocampal-neocortical memory system offers an excellent opportunity in which the molecular and cognitive levels may be first plainly joined. Long-term objectives of Dr. Anagnostaras' research are to advance our understandings of the mechanisms of memory, cognition, and drug addiction.

Stephan G. Anagnostaras, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Department of
Psychology, University of
California, San Diego
Integration of Molecular
Genetics and Cognitive

CURRICULUM VITAE