My research is split into four aspects.
I study form perception in numerous species. My undergraduate work began in low-level shape perception. This includes shape from shading research and contour based 2D shape processing. This has since expanded to configural shape perception, and size estimation mechanisms.
I also study motion processes, especially as it applies to action perception. I am studying the processing of simple motion features by birds and humans, and I am interested in the spatial and temporal summation processes underlying motion perception. In my graduate years, I became heavily involved in action recognition and its mechanisms in pigeons and humans.
I have also conducted some research in auditory perception. The abilities of generalists (i.e., non-song birds) to process the auditory world has been understudied and remains a theoretically and empirically rich area.
Finally, I aim to expand our understanding of general categorization processes that are independent of time, such as categorization and planning. These studies potentially help elucidate cognitive mechanisms in humans.
One of the big themes in my research is comparative work, spanning three bird species and one primate species (undergraduates), and large datasets. The research I conduct aims to be broadly general to birds as a class and highlight their similarities and differences with human perception.
I use several programming languages in my research, including: Matlab, Python, VBA, VB6. I am also well versed in C++. If you would like to discuss or would like help for any of these languages for experimental purposes, do not hesitate to contact me.
My research gives me the opportunity to work with many stimulus generation and analysis programs as well. Among these are Photoshop, GIMP, 3ds MAX, blender, ImageMagick, Poser, SIGNAL, Matlab, and VB6. If you would like to discuss or would like help with any of these, especially for large parametric designs, feel free to contact me.
I am an engineer and a programmer at heart, but I love trying to figure out how brains work. I hope to pursue teaching and research.
You can contact me at Muhammad (dot) Qadri (at) Tufts (dot) edu.
Qadri, M. A. & Cook, R. G. (2015). Experimental divergences in the visual cognition of birds and mammals. Comparative Cognition and Behavior Reviews, 10, 73-105.
Qadri, M. A. & Cook, R. G. (2015). The perception of Glass patterns by starlings (Sturnus vulgaris). Psychonomic Bulletin & Review, 22, 687-693.
Cook, R. G. & Qadri, M. A. (2014). Visualizing search behavior with adaptive discriminations. Behavioural Processes, 102, 40-50.
Qadri, M. A., Sayde, J. M. & Cook, R. G. (2014). Discrimination of complex human behavior by pigeons (Columba livia) and humans. PLOS One, 9, e1122342.
Qadri, M. A., Asen, Y. & Cook, R. G. (2014). Visual control of an action discrimination in pigeons. Journal of Vision, 1, 19.
Qadri, M. A., Romero, M. L. & Cook, R. G. (2014). Shape-from-shading in European starlings (Sturnus vulgaris). Journal of Comparative Psychology, 128, 343-356.
Cook, R. G. & Qadri, M. A. (2013). The adaptive analysis of visual cognition using genetic algorithms. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Animal Behavior Processes, 39, 356-376.
Cook, R. G., Qadri, M. A., Kieres, A. & Commons-Miller, N. (2012). Shape from shading in pigeons. Cognition, 24, 284-303.