Q.lab
KREN

QUASI-CONSCIOUSNESS LAB

Exploring consciousness.Understanding life.

From quasi-consciousness and recovery to primate research, robotics, and AI.
We study the brain through thoughtful questions and rigorous experiments.

Explore research Publications

Question·Quality·Qualia

01 / RESEARCH

Questions about the brain.
Research for life.

From the mechanisms of consciousness
to questions from clinical practice.

01

Quasi-consciousness
& recovery

What remains of consciousness after brain injury, and how might it recover?

We study the stupor spectrum through interactions between neural circuits and glial cells.

Consciousness · Glia · Recovery

02

Primate &
autism research

How does brain development shape behavior?

Using non-human primate models, we investigate astrocytes and cortical changes to understand autism and neurodevelopmental disorders.

Primates · Autism · Astrocytes

03

Surgical robotics
& AI

How can technology address questions from clinical practice?

Our work spans robot-assisted surgery, medical image synthesis, and machine learning for physiological state estimation and surgical outcome prediction.

Robotics · Imaging · AI

02 / OUR APPROACH

Three Qs.
One approach.

Q-lab takes its name from quasi-consciousness. Asking questions, building evidence, and understanding experience shape both our research and our everyday lives.

Question

Keep asking.

We ask why, even when something seems familiar. Better questions give direction to the next experiment.

Quality

Build reliable evidence.

We design experiments around clear questions and examine the results with care. Rigor guides the evidence we build.

Qualia

Attend to experience.

We explore subjective experience: what it is like to see, feel, and be. In research and everyday life, we seek a deeper understanding of experience.

03 / PUBLICATIONS

Our published work.

Papers and book chapters19 publications · 2016–2026

Accepted manuscripts & manuscripts under revision2

Manuscript statuses are based on the principal investigator’s CV. Where a public link is not yet verified, the title links to a search.

04 / PEOPLE

Shared questions.
Collective discovery.

Seungjun Ryu
Photo: BRIC Hanbitsa

PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Seungjun Ryu

MD, PhD

Principal Investigator · Neurosurgeon

  • Assistant Professor, Eulji University School of Medicine
  • Visiting Scientist, Johns Hopkins University
  • Invited Research Fellow, IBS Center for Memory and Glioscience
ORCID

Farid Haq

Postdoctoral Researcher

홍정숙

Senior Manager

최가람

Research Manager

김지현

Researcher

정동민

Researcher

Taewon Yoo

Researcher

Alumni

이해나Research Administration

지영호Researcher

양성혁Researcher

05 / NETWORK

Connected by
the pursuit of knowledge.

Affiliations

Eulji University School of MedicineInstitute for Basic ScienceJohns Hopkins University

Collaborating institutions

Yonsei UniversitySeoul National UniversityChungnam National UniversityPusan National UniversityK-MEDI hubDaegu-Gyeongbuk Medical Innovation FoundationKBIOHealthOsong Medical Innovation FoundationKRIBB · NPRCNational Primate Research CenterKAISTUNISTGISTDGIST

06 / CONTACT

Let’s explore
the next question.

Get in touch about research and collaboration.

spinesj@eulji.ac.kr

Department of Neurosurgery
Eulji University School of Medicine
Daejeon, Republic of Korea