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Bio

I’m a neuroscientist and psychologist interested in how rhythm, attention, and experience intertwine. I did my PhD in Psychology, where I studied individual differences in rhythmic entrainment —how our unique internal tempos shape the way we perceive and synchronize with the world. My current work expands this question into the realm of breathwork and altered states, exploring how physiological rhythms connect to perception and consciousness.


I enjoy building the systems that make this research possible, from EEG and sound setups to synchronization tools and experimental workflows. My background in cognitive science and psychophysiology taught me to approach science as both a technical craft and a way of paying attention: a form of listening.


Outside of research, I’m most at home around music, visualization, and quiet moments in the city with friends, jam sessions, or cats. I’m not an artist, but I’m drawn to the creative processes that make science and art overlap:  curiosity, iteration, and the joy of seeing patterns emerge.

Curriculum Vitae

Education

Ph.D. — Psychology

Maastricht University (NL)

Uncovering how intrinsic attentional rhythms shape perception and interaction with external auditory rhythms

Thesis: Individual differences in oscillator properties and rhythmic entrainment  📖

Supervisors: Dr. Molly Henry, Prof. Sonja Kotz

 auditory rhythm  ·  attention  ·  entrainment  ·  individual differences  ·  aging 

M.A. — Cognitive Science

Bogazici University (TR)

Linking language, perception, and rhythm to understand how the brain organizes auditory experience.

Thesis: In Search of Language-Related Factors Influencing Rhythmic Grouping 📖

Supervisors: Dr. Esra Mungan, Dr. Pavel Logacev

 auditory grouping  ·  phonology  ·  temporal perception  ·  psychoacoustics 

B.A. — Psychology 

Ege University (TR)

Foundation in psychological science and early exploration of how sensory information shapes emotion and thought.

 research methods  ·  psychopathology  ·  environmental psychology    

Work experience

2024 - present

Postdoctoral researcher

🧩 A Comprehensive Neuropsychological Test of Breathwork as a Tool for Trauma Processing and Mental Well-being

🙌 Zero Noise (Havenith & Schölvinck) Lab

📍 Ernst Strüngmann Institute for Neuroscience of the Max Planck Society, Frankfurt, Germany

2019 - 2024

Doctoral researcher

🧩 BRAINSYNC: Brain-environment Synchrony and the Auditory Perception Problem

🙌 Research Group "Neural and Environmental Rhythms"

2018 - 2019

Research assistant 

🧩 In Search of Influences of Music and Language on Rhythm Perception

📍Faculty of Arts and Sciences, Bogazici University, Istanbul, Turkey

2018 - 2019

Research assistant 

🧩 Concepts and Beliefs: From Perception to Action

📍Faculty of Arts and Sciences, Bogazici University, Istanbul, Turkey

Research & technical skills 

Experiment Design & Programming

 PsychoPy / Python  ·   PsychToolBox / MATLAB  ·   jsPsych / JavaScript 

Designing, programming, and coordinating in-lab and online experiments with human participants.

Data Analysis & Signal Processing

  Python  ·   fieldtrip / MATLAB  ·   ·   Praat 

Experience with EEG, behavioral, and psychophysiological data; aperiodic analyses, spectral decomposition, and statistical modeling.

Visualization & Communication

  Inkscape   ·    MATLAB   ·   MaxMsp   ·   JavaScript (D3.js)    

Developing custom data visualizations and interactive representations for research and teaching.

Systems & Workflow Design

  Arduino  ·   Raspberry PI  ·   hardware & sensor integration  

Building and maintaining experimental systems connecting sensors, audio interfaces, and custom software; developing reproducible, automated, and adaptable lab workflows.

Communities & Networks

Beyond the lab, I stay close to communities that keep me grounded in science, in music, and in the human stories behind them.