Nina Kraus

Nina Kraus is a professor of neurobiology, communication sciences, otolaryngology, and linguistics. She holds the Hugh Knowles Chair in the School of Communication and is the director of the Auditory Neuroscience Lab “Brainvolts” at Northwestern University. A scientist, inventor and amateur musician, her research is focused on the biology of auditory learning. She was among the first to discover that individual neurons change their firing patterns when sound-to meaning connections are made. Through auditory neuroscience, Kraus shows how our lives in sound impact our neurological health, changing the brain and affecting our interactions with others. An author of over 400 scientific publications, she also seeks to engage a broader audience through public lectures and writing. She is the author of the book “Of Sound Mind: How Our Brain Constructs a Meaningful Sonic World” (MIT Press, 2022). Pursuing connections across disciplines in science and the humanities, Kraus’s research is conducted beyond the laboratory and inside schools, community centers, athletic facilities, and clinics to advocate for best practices in education, health, and social policy. Kraus will use her Guggenheim Fellowship to write a book that asks what music can teach us about our biology.