Published September 30, 2026 at 6:14 PM EDT

A Duke researcher who studies human memory and imagination has been one of 20 fellows chosen to receive the highly selective MacArthur "Genius Grants."

Felipe De Brigard, a philosopher and cognitive neuroscientist at Duke University, conducts research that seeks to understand how memories work and how memories of traumatic experiences can be reshaped to not elicit negative emotions.

He will receive $800,000 from the MacArthur Foundation to help advance his work. De Brigard was at a work retreat a month ago in Asheville when he was notified about his award, according to a release from Duke.

"I was floored," he said in the press release. "It’s huge news. I had no inkling I was being considered for it."

De Brigard has worked at Duke University since 2013 and he is the fifth scholar at Duke to receive the MacArthur award. He led a project in his home country of Colombia called "Memoria & Perdón" ("Memory and Forgiveness" in Spanish), that examined how forgiveness could help victims of political violence change their emotions about past wrongdoing — while also not forgetting about what happened to them.

"I am thrilled that Felipe De Brigard has been selected as a MacArthur Fellow," Duke President Vincent E. Price said in the press release. "His creative, cross-disciplinary scholarship is expanding our understanding of the human mind and opening new pathways to improve the human experience. We are proud to have him as a member of the Duke University faculty."