Sam Wass

• Professor of Early Years Neuroscience, University of East London

Professor Sam Wass gained a first-class undergraduate degree in Experimental Psychology at Oxford University, and did his PhD at the Centre for Brain Cognitive Development in London. After this he was awarded a British Academy Postdoctoral Fellowship, based at the Medical Research Council Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit at Cambridge, followed by an ESRC Future Research Leaders Fellowship at the University of East London. He was recently awarded a 5-year €1.5 million research fellowship from the European Research Council.

Sam's research examines how concentration, stress and learning capacities develop during early childhood. His current research project examines how noisy early home environments affect concentration and mental health in children growing up in diverse socio-economic status backgrounds in East London. He is also a collaborator on projects in London, New York and Canada with clinical populations (children with Attention Deficit Disorder, Autism Spectrum Disorders and Rett Syndrome).

In addition Sam is also very active in science communication. He has been heavily involved in the development, and featured as an on-screen scientist, of the multi-award-winning and internationally successful Channel 4 series The Secret Life of 4-, 5- and 6-Year-Olds. He has fronted press campaigns for Public Health England and the Department of Education, for charities (National Trust, Save The Children) and for commercial organisations (Lego, Tescos, Dulux, Ikea, Nikleodeon, the Cartoon Network). He has appeared as an expert on early development in all TV networks (BBC, ITV, Sky), radio (BBC Radio 4/5, Sky) and all major national newspapers (Sun, Mirror, Daily Mail, Times, Telegraph, Independent).

• –present Professor of Early Years Neuroscience, University of East London

• 2012 University of East London, Psychology

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