As a child, what did you want to do when you grew up?
I spent most of my first decade in creeks turning over rocks, so maybe I wanted to be a scientist.
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Explain what you do in one easy paragraph.
I’m interested in understanding what is different about the brains of those who are at high or low risk of addiction. We know that a large part of the variance is inherited, but most of the biological risk remains unexplained.
Why did you end up working in this field?
I had my first experience with alcohol at age 13 and spent the next 10 years taking any and every mind-altering substance I could get my hands on. Judging from the nearly transcendent experience of that first drink, I was probably one of those innately at risk. I ended up in a treatment centre. Faced with a choice between an early grave and abstinence, I wanted neither and thought curing addiction would provide a way out.
Did you have to overcome any particular challenges to get where you are today?
Ha! I’d been expelled from three schools by the time I came up with this scheme. Fortunately, addicts are known for resourcefulness and perseverance despite adversity, and these qualities were an asset in graduate school too.
Were you good at science at school?
Science courses were my favourites, so yes, when I went to class I tended to do well in those.
What’s the best piece of advice anyone ever gave you?
Someone once recommended that I “keep showing up”. I’ve benefited from sustained effort, even when things don’t seem to be going well.
Is there a discovery or achievement you wish you’d made yourself?
I was astounded by the work of Nachum Dafny in the late 1980s, showing that depended on an intact immune system. Now, 30 years later, there’s a burgeoning appreciation of the critical role of immune signalling in the brain in stress, pain and addiction.
How has your field of study changed in the time you have been working in it?
I feel like we’ve gained humility. Neuroscience is such a new field, and it seems there is much more that we don’t know than there was when I started.
If you could have a long conversation with any scientist, living or dead, who would it be?
Marian Diamond, who found the first evidence that the brain changes with experience, now known as neuroplasticity. Or Candace Pert, who discovered opiate receptors.
What scientific development do you hope to see in your lifetime?
I’m really happy that sex differences in neurobiology are finally being given serious attention. I think we will continue to find differences and that these are going to further understanding about general brain function.
Do you have an unexpected hobby, and if so, please will you tell us about it?
I’m a big fan of live music, and especially keen on so-called jam bands. Much of my extra time and money goes toward Phish shows.
“I’d bet that answers to big questions in neuroscience aren’t going to be found inside our heads”
How useful will your skills be after the apocalypse?
Relevant skills include curiosity and a willingness to take risks and to try new things.
OK, one last thing: tell us something that will blow our minds…
I’d bet that answers to big questions in neuroscience aren’t going to be found inside our heads. Everything is connected, and it is impossible to understand the brain out of its broader context – involving such disparate influences as the night sky, microbiota, stress and each other.
Judith Grisel is professor of psychology at Bucknell University in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania. Her book : The neuroscience and experience of addiction is out now
