Science Uncorked: Cognitive Aging

Friday, August 8th, 2025 from 6 pm to 8 pm Science Uncorked: Cognitive Aging Presented by Rachel Thayer, PhD and Lori James, PhD Growing older is stereotypically associated with declines in health and brain function, and there are real changes that occur during the aging process. However, there is also stability and improvement in many areas. In this presentation and discussion, we will review how cognitive processes change during typical healthy aging as well as pathological aging. We will also present research about effective ways to reduce some of the negative changes that can accompany cognitive aging. Rachel Thayer is a clinical neuropsychologist whose research focuses on aging, substance use, and cognitive function. Rachel earned dual doctoral degrees in clinical psychology and neuroscience at the University of Colorado Boulder, and she completed her predoctoral clinical internship at UCSD/VA San Diego. She was a postdoctoral scholar at UC San Diego before beginning her position in the Psychology Department at the University of Colorado Colorado Springs in 2019. Lori James is a cognitive psychologist whose research focuses on memory and language processes and how these change during healthy aging. Lori earned her MA and PhD degrees in Cognitive Psychology from the Claremont Graduate School in southern California. She was the Research Director for the Memory and Aging Lab at UCLA before beginning her position in the Psychology Department at the University of Colorado Colorado Springs in 2001.