Dr. Baland Jalal is a neuroscientist at Harvard University and formerly a visiting researcher at Cambridge University, School of Clinical Medicine, where he obtained his PhD (Trinity College, University of Cambridge). He was also a Fellow at Harvard in 2016 and 2018. He is a close collaborator of renowned V.S. Ramachandran (2011, TIME Magazine “100 Most Influential People in the World”), with whom he has published 10 scientific papers. His PhD supervisors were Barbara Sahakian and Trevor Robbins, ranked “the 4th most influential brain scientist of the modern era” by Semantic Scholar; and the leading neuroscientist and psychologist in the world by research.com.
He has published over 50 scientific papers and co-authored with Devon Hinton, Associate Professor, Harvard Medical School, the book: “Transdiagnostic Multiplex CBT for Muslim Cultural Groups: Treating Emotional Disorders”, published by Cambridge University Press in 2020.
Dr. Jalal has lectured worldwide including at Harvard, Oxford, and London School of Economics, and given two TEDx talks. He has been invited to speak at Oxford University four times, including the Sherrington Society – one of the oldest and most prestigious medical societies in the world, which hosts talks by high-profile doctors and scientists. He was recently recruited as a lecturer at Peterson Academy founded by esteemed Dr. Jordan B. Peterson and his daughter Mikhaela Fuller.
The Daily Telegraph described Dr. Jalal as “one of the world’s leading experts on sleep paralysis”. He was ranked the “top-rated expert in sleep paralysis in the world” on Expertscape based on scientific impact in the past 10 years; and one of the “15 Most Interesting People in Sleep” by Van Winkle (“sleep blog” by Casper Sleep), a list of researchers, writers, and cultural figures. His treatment for sleep paralysis was described in New York Magazine as “the most effective talisman against sleep paralysis”.
His work has been featured in the press in over 30 countries including The New York Times, The Washington Post, Today, The BBC, Chicago Tribune, The Guardian, NBC News, New York Magazine, The Times, Forbes, The Daily Telegraph, Reuters, Al Jazeera, Fox News, Vox Media, Der Spiegel, Discovery, New Scientist, Discover Magazine, VICE, and PBS (NOVA). He’s appeared on TV and radio like BBC one and two, and the Pulse (NPR); and the BBC documentary, “Uncanny”.
He writes for TIME Magazine, Big Think, Scientific American, and his 2022 Op-Ed featured on the cover of the Boston Globe.
