is a Psychology major with a strong interest in human development and human ecology. She is deeply curious about how children learn about science and the natural world. She is from Brooklyn, NY, where she worked with children (and plants!) for four years at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden. In her free time, Shanthi enjoys working at Long Lane Farm, singing, and spending time with friends.
Erin Kim
is the full-time Yellow Lab Coordinator. She graduated from Vanderbilt University in 2022 with a B.S. in Cognitive Studies and Child Development. She is interested in how adult communication and varying early environments such as culture and SES can affect how children develop an understanding the social world. As an undergraduate, she primarily researched how preschool-aged children and their families interacted with digital media and eBooks. In the future, she plans to attend graduate school for developmental social cognition.
Abby Wolk ’22
is a Science in Society and Psychology double major with a Data Analysis minor. On campus, she is is the founder of Wesleyan’s Students Demand Action, advocating for common sense gun safety, and is a member of the Women’s Varsity Lacrosse team. Outside of school, Abby enjoys playing with puppies and coloring. Additionally, she loves being around children and has spent time as both a math tutor and volunteer assistant coach for elementary and middle schoolers. After taking Developmental Psychology with Professor Barth, Abby became fascinated with better understanding the way children think and behave, inspiring her to join the Yellow Lab.
Jinjia (Grace) Hu ’23
is a Psychology and English double major. On campus, she is a member of Rho EP and has participated in activities like One Day Play and Reading Series. Outside of school, she loves writing, traveling, dancing, and spending time with children. Grace has lots of experience working with children, including teaching Chinese kids English poetry, coaching a youth orienteering team, and getting along with her younger brother. She is also a volunteer and volunteer coordinator for a local school in Middletown. And she loves puppies!
Jessica Pordy ’24
is a Psychology major (and prospective Data Analysis minor) most interested in developmental psychology. She is from New York and has had a lot of experience exploring her passion for working with young children from being a full-time sleep away camp counselor, to a part-time day camp counselor as well as a teaching assistant, babysitter, and day care counselor. She is also a coordinator for WesReads/WesMath! Outside of class she enjoys spending time with family, friends, and her three dogs.
Ellie Pan ’25
is a Neuroscience & Behavior and Education Studies double major with interests in child developmental and cognitive science. She is from New Jersey where she developed a love for working with children in her community as a swim coach, Girl Scout, and music tutor. Outside of the lab, she enjoys some of her other passions such as baking, migraine advocacy, and spending time with family and friends.
Emily Hauser ’25
is a Mathematics major and Education Studies Minor, is on the pre-med track, and is most interested in infant and child development. She is from Evanston, IL, where she discovered her interest in young children volunteering in a preschool, being a camp counselor, and working at the children’s hospital in Chicago. At Wesleyan, Emily is in a dance ensemble, does a capella, and is a TA for a Linear Algebra class.
Molly Fung ’25
is a Neuroscience & Behavior and Psychology double major with a minor in CEAS. She is from Costa Rica and is mostly interested in cognitive science and development. Outside of school she volunteers as a reading tutor for elementary school students through WesReads and is involved in the K-12 CEAS Outreach Program where she teaches kids about Eastern Asian culture.
Suchita Sridhara ’26
is a prospective Psychology and Economics double major interested in cognitive psychology and child development. Growing up in New York, she found a passion for how children learn in her years as a tutor for young kids. Outside of the lab, Suchita is a leader of the Wesleyan Ethics Bowl Club and a member of Shakti. She also loves to sing and read!
Abstract: When people estimate where numerals should go on a number line, their placements are overly dependent on leftmost digits. For example, on a 0-1000 line, they place 398 far to the left of where they place 403. In two experiments we asked if this is really a leftmost digit effect. In Exp. 1 we used a number line task with meaningless leading leftmost zeroes (0398/0403) to ask if there would still be a “left digit” effect for the digits in the hundreds place. In Exp. 2 we used a number line task with a 10000-11000 range (10398/10403) to ask if there would still be a “left digit” effect for the digits in the hundreds place when the leftmost digits were meaningful, but unchanging in the context of the task. We found “left digit” effects for the hundreds digits in both cases, showing that the digits that serve as “left digits” creating this effect are context-dependent and need not be literal leftmost digits.
