Dr Fraser Milton
Associate Professor
F.N.Milton@exeter.ac.uk
Washington Singer 233
Washington Singer Laboratories, University of Exeter, Perry Road, Prince of Wales Road, Exeter, EX4 4QG, UK
Overview
Fraser Milton is an Associate Professor in Psychology
Office Hours Term 1 2023/24
Tuesdays 15.00-16.00 Room 233
Wednesdays 12-13.00 (https://calendly.com/f-n-milton Online by default but you can indicate a preference for an in-person meeting in Room 233 if you prefer when you sign up).
Research group links
Research
Research interests
Memory deficits in Transient Epileptic Amnesia (TEA)
TEA is a form of temporal lobe epilepsy in which the main if only manifestation of the seizure is a period of amnesia usually lasting around half an hour. During this time period, there may be difficulty in recalling recent events or in laying down a memory for current ones.
Two additional, persistent, interictal memory complaints are common among patients with TEA:
- 'Autobiographical Amnesia' is a patchy, but dense, loss of the ability to evoke memories for salient life events, often extending back over several decades, well before the onset of symptoms of epilepsy. We are currently investigated the specific nature of these remote memories deficits. Particular questions we are interested in are: 1) Is there a greater deficit for personal than public memories; 2) Is there a greater deficit for episodic than semantic memories; 3) Do the deficits extend throughout the life time or are they temporally graded; 4) What are the differences in the neural substrates of remote autobiographical memory retrieval between TEA patients and control participants?
- 'Accelerated Forgetting' is the excessively rapid decay of memories that appear to have been acquired successfully, noted by the patient days to weeks after initial encoding. Current work has looked at accelerated forgetting of everyday information using a novel camera, SenseCam which captures images automatically every 30 seconds. Future work will examine whether SenseCam can have a beneficial effect on maintaining information over time.http://www.pms.ac.uk/time/
More details can be found at: http://www.pms.ac.uk/time/
Aphantasia
Aphantasia is a condition in which people lack the ability to voluntarily use visual imagery. This is a recently recognised condition that is currently poorly understood. Together with colleagues from the medical school, we are currently looking to characterise how people with aphantasia perform on related tasks such as autobiographical memory, imaging future events and face processing, as well as using neuroimaging methods to try to establish any neural substrates that underlie the condition.
Categorization
The ability to spontaneously group itmes into categories is an important aspect of everyday cognition. My work has looked at how particular factors such as stimulus properties, time pressure, concurrent load, and previous decisions influence the type of categories we choose to create. Some of my work has focused on the distinction between a quick, automatic, holistic system (non-analytic processing) and a more time-consuming, rule-based, system, requiring working memory capacity (analytic processing). Recent work has suggested that the use of the analytic system is widespread, and under certain condition, can be used to construct categories organised by overall similarity.
Publications
Journal articles
Knight K, Milton F, Zeman A (In Press). Memory without Imagery: No Evidence of Visual Working Memory Impairment in People with Aphantasia. Proceedings of the Cognitive Science Society
Longman C, Milton F, Wills AJ (In Press). Transfer of strategic task components across unique tasks that share some common structures. Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology
Savage SA, Baker J, Milton F, Butler CR, Zeman A (2022). Clinical outcomes in Transient Epileptic Amnesia: a 10-year follow-up cohort study of 47 cases. Epilepsia, 63, 1115-1129.
Inkster AB, Milton F, Edmunds CER, Benattayallah A, Wills AJ (2022). Neural Correlates of the Inverse Base Rate Effect. Human Brain Mapping, 43, 1370-1380.
Jones JS, Adlam ALR, Benattayallah A, Milton F (2022). The Neural Correlates of Working Memory Training in Typically Developing Children. Child Development, 93, 815-830.
Milton F, Fulford J, Dance C, Gaddum J, Heuerman-Williamson B, Jones K, Knight KF, Mackisack M, Winlove C, Zeman A, et al (2021). Behavioral and Neural Signatures of Visual Imagery Vividness Extremes: Aphantasia vs Hyperphantasia. Cerebral Cortex Communications, 2, 1-15.
Lomas M, Rickard V, Milton F, Savage S, Weir A, Zeman A (2021). Electroconvulsive Therapy related Autobiographical Amnesia: ‘Somatoform’ or ‘Organic’? - a review and case report. Cognitive Neuropsychiatry, 26, 107-121.
Civile C, McLaren R, Milton F, McLaren I (2021). The Effects of transcranial Direct Current Stimulation on Perceptual Learning for Upright Faces and its Role in the Composite Face Effect. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Animal Learning and Cognition, 47, 74-90.
Baker J, Savage S, Milton F, Butler C, Kapur N, Hodges J, Zeman A (2021). The Syndrome of Transient Epileptic Amnesia: a combined series of 115 cases and literature review. Brain Communications, 3
Wills AJ, Ellett L, Milton F, Croft G, Beesley T (2020). A dimensional summation account of polymorphous category learning. Learning and Behavior
Edmunds CER, Inkster AB, Jones PM, Milton F, Wills AJ (2020). Absence of cross-modality analogical transfer in perceptual categorization. Open Journal of Experimental Psychology and Neuroscience, 1, 3-13.
Zeman AZJ, Milton F, Della Sala S, Dewar M, Frayling T, Gaddum J, Hattersley A, Heuerman-Williamson B, Jones K, Mackisack M, et al (2020). Phantasia - the psychological significance of lifelong visual imagery vividness extremes. Cortex, 130, 426-440.
Jones J, Milton FN, Mostazir M, Adlam A (2020). The Academic Outcomes of Working Memory and Metacognitive Strategy Training in Children: a Double-Blind Randomised Controlled Trial. Developmental Science, 23, n/a-n/a.
Milton F, McLaren IPL, Copestake E, Satherley D, Wills AJ (2020). The effect of pre-exposure on overall similarity categorization. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Animal Learning and Cognition, 46, 65-82.
Civile C, Cooke A, Liu X, McLaren R, Elchlepp H, Lavric A, Milton F, McLaren I (2020). The effect of tDCS on recognition depends on stimulus generalization: Neuro-stimulation can predictably enhance or reduce the face inversion effect. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Animal Learning and Cognition, 46, 83-98.
Wills AJ, Edmunds CER, Le Pelley ME, Milton FN, Newell BR, Dwyer DM, Shanks DR (2019). Dissociable Learning Processes, Associative Theory, and Testimonial Reviews:A Comment on Smith and Church (2018). Psychonomic Bulletin and Review, 26, 1988-1993.
Edmunds CER, Milton FN, Wills AJ (2019). Initial training with difficult items does not facilitate category learning. Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology, 72, 151-167.
Savage S, Hoefeijzers S, Milton FN, Streatfield C, Dewar M, Zeman A (2019). The evolution of accelerated long-term forgetting: Evidence from the TIME study. Cortex, 110, 16-36.
Edmunds CER, Milton F, Wills AJ (2018). Due process in dual process: Model-recovery simulations of
decision-bound strategy analysis in category learning. Cognitive Science, 42, 833-860.
Norwich B, Fujita T, Adlam A, Milton F, Edwards-Jones A (2018). Lesson study: an inter-professional approach for Educational Psychologists to improve teaching and learning. Educational Psychology in Practice, 34, 370-385.
Fulford J, Milton F, Salas D, Smith A, Simler A, Winlove C, Zeman A (2018). The neural correlates of visual imagery vividness - an fMRI study and literature review. Cortex, 105, 26-40.
Winlove C, Milton F, Ranson J, Fulford J, MacKisack M, Macpherson F, Zeman AZJ (2018). The neural correlates of visual imagery: a co-ordinate-based meta-analysis. Cortex, 105, 4-25.
Longman CS, Milton F, Wills A, Verbruggen F (2018). Transfer of learned category-response associations is modulated by instruction. Acta Psychologica, 184, 144-167. Abstract.
Edmunds CER, Milton FN, Wills AJ (2017). Due process in dual process: a model-recovery analysis of Smith et al. (2014). Proceedings of the 39th Annual Conference of the Cognitive Science Society, 1979-1984.
Savage SA, Butler CR, Milton F, Han Y, Zeman AZ (2017). On the nose: olfactory disturbances in transient epileptic amnesia. Epilepsy and Behavior, 66, 113-113.
Koutsouris G, Norwich B, Fujita T, Ralph T, Adlam A, Milton F (2017). Piloting a dispersed and inter-professional Lesson Study using technology to link team members at a distance. Technology, Pedagogy and Education, 26, 587-599.
Milton FN, Bealing P, Carpenter KL, Benattayallah A, Wills AJ (2017). The neural correlates of similarity- and rule-based generalization. Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience, 29, 150-166.
Carpenter KL, Wills AJ, Benattayallah A, Milton FN (2016). A comparison of the neural correlates that underlie rule-based and information-integration category learning.". Human Brain Mapping, 3557-3574.
Norwich B, Koutsouris G, Fujita T, Ralph T, Adlam A, Milton F (2016). Exploring knowledge bridging and translation in Lesson Study using an inter-professional team. International Journal of Lesson and Learning Studies, 5(3), 180-195. Abstract.
Edmunds CER, Wills AJ, Milton F (2016). Memory for exemplars in category learning. Proceedings of the 38th Annual Conference of the Cognitive Science Society, 2243-2248.
Zeman A, Hoefeizjers S, Milton F, Dewar M, Carr M, Streatfield C (2016). The GABAB receptor agonist, baclofen, contributes to three distinct varieties of amnesia in the human brain. Cortex, 74, 9-19.
Wills AJ, Inkster A, Milton FN (2015). Combination or Differentiation? Two theories of processing order in. classification. Cognitive Psychology, 80, 1-33.
Edmunds CER, Milton FN, Wills AJ (2015). Feedback can be superior to observational training for both rule-based and information-integration category learning. Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology, 68, 1203-1222.
Inkster A, Milton FN, Wills AJ (2014). Does incidental training increase the prevalence of overall similarity classification?. Proceedings of the 36th Conference of the Cognitive Science Society, 649-653.
Milton F, Copestake E, Satherley D, Stevens T, Wills AJ (2014). The effect of pre-exposure on family resemblance categorization for stimuli of varying levels of perceptual difficulty. Proceedings of the 36th Conference of the Cognitive Science Society, 1018-1023.
McLaren IPL, Dunn BD, Lawrence NS, Milton FN, Verbruggen F, Stevens T, McAndrew A, Yeates F (2014). Why decision making may not require awareness. Behavioral and Brain Sciences, 37(1), 35-36.
Zeman AZJ, Milton FN, Smith A, Rylance R (2013). By heart. An fMRI study of brain activation by poetry and prose. Journal of Consciousness Studies, 20(9-10), 132-158.
Wills AJ, Longmore CA, Milton F (2013). Impulsivity and overall similarity classification. Proceedings of the 35th Conference of the Cognitive Science Society., 3783-3788.
Wills AJ, Milton FN, Longmore CA, Hester S, Robinson J (2013). Is Overall Similarity Classification Less Effortful Than Single-Dimension Classification?. Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology, 66(2), 299-318.
Zeman A, Butler C, Muhlert N, Milton F (2013). Novel forms of forgetting in temporal lobe epilepsy. Epilepsy and Behavior, 26(3), 335-342. Abstract.
Newell BR, Moore CP, Wills AJ, Milton F (2013). Reinstating the frontal lobes? Having more time to think improves implicit perceptual categorization: a comment on Filoteo, Lauritzen, and Maddox (2010). Psychological Science, 24(3), 386-389. Author URL.
Milton F, Butler CR, Benattayallah A, Zeman A (2012). An fMRI study of autobiographical memory deficits in transient epileptic amnesia. Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery and Psychiatry, 83(10). Abstract.
Klama E, Milton F (2012). Differences in eye movements between same and other race face recognition. Proceedings of the 34th Conference of the Cognitive Science Society, 1804-1809.
Milton FN, Butler CR, Benattayallah A, Zeman, A.Z.J. (2012). The neural basis of autobiographical memory deficits in transient epileptic amnesia. Neuropsychologia, 50(14), 3528-3541.
Milton F, Muhlert N, Butler C, Benattayallah A, Zeman A (2011). An fMRI study of long-term everyday memory using SenseCam. Memory, 19(7), 733-744.
Milton F, Pothos EM (2011). Category structure and the two learning systems of COVIS. European Journal of Neuroscience, 34(8), 1326-1336. Abstract.
Goto K, Lea SEG, Wills AJ, Milton F (2011). Interpreting the effects of image manipulation on picture perception in pigeons (Columba livia) and humans (Homo sapiens). Journal of Comparative Psychology, 125(1), 48-60. Abstract.
Milton FN, Viika L, Henderson H, Wills AJ (2011). The effect of time pressure and the spatial integration of the stimulus dimensions on overall similarity categorization. Proceedings of the 33rd Annual Conference of the Cognitive Science Society, 795-800.
Milton F, Muhlert N, Butler CR, Benattayallah A, Zeman AZJ (2011). The neural correlates of everyday recognition memory. Brain and Cognition, 76(3), 369-381. Abstract.
Milton F, Butler CR, Zeman AZJ (2011). Transient epileptic amnesia: déjà vu heralding recovery of lost memories. Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery, & Psychiatry, 82, 1178-1179.
Muhlert N, Milton F, Butler CR, Kapur N, Zeman AZJ (2010). Accelerated forgetting of real life events in Transient Epileptic Amnesia. Neuropsychologia, 48, 3235-3244.
Milton F, Muhlert N, Pindus D, Butler CR, Kapur N, Graham SK, Zeman AZJ (2010). Remote memory deficits in Transient Epileptic Amnesia. Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery, & Psychiatry, 81, e7-e7.
Milton F, Muhlert N, Pindus D, Butler CR, Kapur N, Graham KS, Zeman AZJ (2010). Remote memory deficits in transient epileptic amnesia. Brain, 133, 1368-1379.
Smith A, Milton F, Rylance R, Zeman AZJ (2010). Rhyme and reason: the neural correlates of reading poetry and prose. Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery, & Psychiatry, 81, e9-e9.
Milton F, Wills AJ (2009). Eye movement strategies in overall similarity and single-dimension sorting. Proceedings of the 31st Annual Conference of the Cognitive Science Society, 1512-1517.
Milton F, Wills AJ (2009). Long-term persistence of sort strategy in free classification. Acta Psychol (Amst), 130(2), 161-167. Abstract. Author URL.
Milton FN, Wills AJ, Hodgson TL (2009). The neural basis of overall similarity and single-dimension sorting. NeuroImage, 46, 319-326.
Milton F, Longmore CA, Wills AJ (2008). Processes of overall similarity sorting in free classification. J Exp Psychol Hum Percept Perform, 34(3), 676-692. Abstract. Author URL.
Milton, F. Wills AJ (2008). The influence of perceptual difficulty on family resemblance sorting. Proceedings of the 30th Annual Conference of the Cognitive Science Society, 2273-2278. Author URL.
Longmore CA, Milton, F. Wills, A.J. (2007). Free Classification: Evidence for an Analytic System of Overall Similarity Sorting. Proceedings of the Twenty-ninth Annual Conference of the Cognitive Science Society Author URL.
Milton FN, Wills, A.J. (2006). The Time Course of Overall Similarity Sorting in Free Classification. Proceedings of the Twenty-eighth Annual Conference of the Cognitive Science Society Author URL.
Milton F, Wills AJ (2004). The influence of stimulus properties on category construction. Journal of Experimental Psychology Learning Memory and Cognition, 30(2), 407-415.
Chapters
McLaren IPL, Carpenter KL, Civile C, Mclaren R, Zhao D, Ku Y, Milton F, Verbruggen F (2016). Categorisation and Perceptual Learning: Why tDCS to Left DLPC Enhances Generalisation. In Trobalon JB, Chamizo VD (Eds.) , Associative Learning and Cognition, Homage to Prof. N.J. Mackintosh,: University of Barcelona.
Conferences
Benattayallah A, Milton F, Muhlert N, Butler CR, Zeman AZJ (2010). The neural correlates of everyday recognition memory. 18th Proceedings of the International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine. 1st May 2020 - 7th May 2010.
Muhlert N, Milton FN, Butler CR, Zeman A (2009). Accelerated long term forgetting of real life events in patients with transient epileptic amnesia. Author URL.
Teaching
PSY1205 Introduction to StatisticsPSY2212 Cognition Practical 2
PSY3418 Processes in Human Memory
PSYM210 MSc in Psychological Research Methods Research Apprenticeship convenor
PSY3401 Undergraduate project supervisor
