Dr Thomas Pace is a Lecturer in the Mental Health and Neuroscience Postgraduate Programs and a researcher in the Healthy Brain Ageing Research Program at the Thompson Institute. He is a cognitive neuroscientist specialising in multimodal neuroimaging, metacognition, mental imagery, and dementia risk reduction.
Thomas's research investigates how the ageing brain monitors its own cognitive processes, known as metacognition, and how lifestyle interventions can improve brain health and reduce dementia risk. His recent work in Cerebral Cortex revealed neural oscillatory markers of domain-specific metacognitive processing and age-related compensation, using combined psychophysics and EEG. Building on this, he established UniSC's simultaneous EEG-fMRI (sEEG-fMRI) neuroimaging platform, and is leading the META study, a university first sEEG-fMRI investigation, which will map the spatiotemporal dynamics of metacognition.
Thomas also manages the Thompson Institute's EEG Laboratory, where he trains researchers across the Institute in neurophysiological methods. In 2025, he was awarded the Thompson Institute Research Excellence Award.
Thomas coordinates postgraduate courses within the Mental Health and Neuroscience program, including Neuroimaging Advances in Mental Health, and supervises Honours, postgraduate research, and PhD students. He serves on the Thompson Institute Education and Training Committee and co-founded SYNAPSE (Supporting Young Neuroscientists in Academia through Peer Support and Education), the Institute's first professional development group for early career researchers and HDR students. Nationally, Thomas contributes to the Australian Association of Gerontology's Student and Early Career Group working party.
Prior to his lectureship, Thomas was a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the Thompson Institute. Before joining UniSC, Thomas worked as a Research Assistant at Neuroscience Research Australia (NeuRA), where he contributed to research on habits and cognitive flexibility in ageing and delivered a physical activity intervention for older adults with subjective cognitive decline.
Thomas completed his PhD in Psychology at the University of New South Wales (UNSW), where his doctoral research combined psychophysics and EEG to investigate the neural basis of mental imagery and attention.
Research Grants
- 2024–2025 Pace, T. Value: $33,375 UniSC GROW Grant. Acquisition of MRI-Compatible EEG Nets for a Simultaneous EEG-fMRI Platform.
- 2025 Pace, T. Value: $3,330 UniSC SPARK Grant. Connecting Professional GROWth to Application: Advanced fMRI Analysis for Multimodal Research.
Potential research projects for HDR students
- Investigating the neural dynamics of metacognition using simultaneous EEG-fMRI
- EEG and neuroimaging markers of cognitive decline and dementia risk in older adults
- The role of lifestyle interventions in promoting brain health and reducing dementia risk
- Psychophysical and neural mechanisms of mental imagery and visual attention
Research areas
- Metacognition
- Mental imagery and visual attention
- Dementia risk reduction
- Lifestyle interventions for brain health
- Multimodal neuroimaging (EEG, fMRI, simultaneous EEG-fMRI)
- Psychophysics
- Cognitive neuroscience of ageing
Teaching and Supervision
Thomas coordinates postgraduate courses in the Mental Health and Neuroscience program, including MHN703 Neuroimaging Advances in Mental Health and MHN700 Research Principles. He also moderates MHN710 Research Perspectives and Implementation.
Thomas is available as a primary or co-supervisor for Honours, Masters or PhD students.
Potential research topics
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Investigating the neural dynamics of metacognition
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EEG and neuroimaging markers of cognitive decline and dementia risk in older adults
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The role of lifestyle interventions in promoting brain health and reducing dementia risk
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Psychophysical and neural mechanisms of mental imagery and visual attention
Pace, T., Darrant, M., Hermens, D.F., & Andrews, S.C. (2025). Neural oscillations of metacognition: evidence for domain-specificity and age-related compensation. Cerebral Cortex, 35(10), bhaf285.
Hennessy, C., Pace, T., Blatch-Williams, R., van Timmeren, T., de Wit, S., & Andrews, S.C. (2025). Switching gears: Age-related differences in goal-directed and habitual behavior. Neuropsychology.
Pace, T., Levenstein, J.M., Anijärv, T.E., Campbell, A.J., Treacy, C., Hermens, D.F., & Andrews, S.C. (2024). Modifiable dementia risk associated with smaller white matter volume and altered 1/f aperiodic brain activity: Cross-sectional insights from the LEISURE study. Age and Ageing, 53(11), afae243.
Campbell, A.J., Anijärv, T.E., Pace, T., Treacy, C., Lagopoulos, J., Hermens, D.F., & Andrews, S.C. (2024). Resting-state EEG correlates of sustained attention in healthy ageing: Cross-sectional findings from the LEISURE study. Neurobiology of Aging, 144, 68–77.
Pace, T., Koenig-Robert, R., & Pearson, J. (2023). Different mechanisms for supporting mental imagery and perceptual representations: Modulation versus excitation. Psychological Science, 34(11), 1229–1243.
Thomas Pace is a Post-Doctoral Research Fellow in the Healthy Brain Ageing Clinic at the Thompson Institute. His research is focused on understanding the mechanisms behind brain ageing, and how these processes might be slowed via clinical interventions.
In the news
Your lifestyle choices are already showing up on your brain and could be prematurely ageing it, study finds
18 Dec 2024New research from UnSC’s Thompson Institute has found a relationship between lifestyle choices that affect dementia risk, and early signs of ageing on the brain