(CIT): Research in the Dr. Wilson's laboratory focuses on the study of information representation across large populations of neurons in the mammalian nervous system, as well as on the mechanisms that underlie formation and maintenance of distributed memories in freely behaving animals. To study the basis of these processes, his lab employs a combination of molecular genetic, electrophysiological, pharmacological, behavioral, and computational approaches. These studies of learning and memory in awake, behaving animals have led to the exploration of the nature of sleep and its role in memory. Previous theories have suggested that sleep states may be involved in the process of memory consolidation, in which memories are transferred from short to longer-term stores and possibly reorganized into more efficient forms. Recent findings have identified explicit correlates of dreaming during periods of REM sleep allowing examination of dream content as it relates to memory. Experiments involving simultaneous monitoring of areas in the hippocampus and neocortex demonstrated coordinated activity between the hippocampus and the cortex during both awake and sleep states. Taken together, simultaneous monitoring of memory patterns in the hippocampus and neocortex has allowed us to study the differences between these structures in how memories are formed. They have found evidence that the neocortex may be creating memories that attempt to generalize across experience, while the hippocampus stores the experiences themselves.