Norma Graham

Biography

Graham earned an undergraduate degree in mathematics from Stanford University and a Ph.D. in psychology from the University of Pennsylvania. After a postdoctoral fellowship in visual neuroscience at Rockefeller University from 1970 to 1972, Graham joined the faculty at Columbia University. She was named a full professor in 1982 and department chair in 2007.

Graham developed mathematical models to interpret experimental results in psychophysical and neurophysiological studies. Her early research interest included building psychophysical models that examine 4 different visual processes. She has focused in particular on the portions of visual processing that are "far from the input end (the light hitting the retina) and also far from the output end (conscious perception and control of action)." In 1989, she published her book Visual Pattern Analyzers, which investigated different channels in visual perception that are sensitive to different frequency ranges and orientation, and the development of multidimensional signal detection theory.