January 2020 - Comp-neuro - lists.cnsorg.org

Save the date! UK Neural Computation 2020 June 22nd-24th in Sheffield
by Hannes Saal 21 Jan '20

21 Jan '20

Save the date! We are pleased to announce the 2nd annual UK Neural Computation conference, June 22nd-24th 2020, at the University of Sheffield This is a national meeting for the UK community working on the computational side of neuroscience, which last year attracted more than 130 researchers. Same basic format as last year, so we will have modelling, maths, data science, theory, machine-learning, and all combinations thereof. Schedule: June 22nd: Tutorials and seminars for early career researchers June 23rd-24th: Main meeting Confirmed speakers for the main meeting: Rui Ponte Costa (Bristol) Dan Goodman (Imperial) Marc de Kamps (Leeds) Leah Krubitzer (UC Davis) Peggy Series (Edinburgh) Huiling Tan (Oxford) Yulia Timofeeva (Warwick) Mark Van Rossum (Nottingham) Keynote: David Willshaw (Edinburgh) For further details, see the website: http://neuralcomputation.uk/ Please look out for the abstract submission and registration announcement, coming soon. Hope to see you there! Hannes Saal (Sheffield) Robert Schmidt (Sheffield) Stuart Wilson (Sheffield) Mark Humphries (Nottingham)

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Industrial Ph.D. on Machine Learning in cognitive rehabilitation (La Rioja, Spain). Deadline January 31, 2020
by Asier Erramuzpe Aliaga 21 Jan '20

21 Jan '20

[Apologies for cross-posting] Industrial Ph.D. position on Machine Learning in cognitive rehabilitation (La Rioja, Spain) Neuronup is a leading company for cognitive rehabilitation working with several thousands of patients worldwide. More information at https://app.neuronup.com/assets/pdf/info/info_en_US.pdf and https://www.neuronup.com/en/ The Neuronup headquarters are located in Logroño, the capital of the region La Rioja, Spain. Logroño is a Northen city in Spain which is only 1.30h far from Bilbao-Basque Country, 1.50h from San Sebastian-Basque Country, 1h from Pamplona-Navarre Duration of the contract: 3 years, 40 h a week Gross salary: 24K EUR Cost of living in Logroño <https://www.numbeo.com/cost-of-living/in/Logro%C3%B1o-Logrono-Spain> Requisites (all the applicants must have): R1. Degree in Computer Science or Telecommunications Engineering R2. MSc in Computer Science or Telecommunications Engineering. R3. Average marks of first degree of 7.5/10 or higher. R4. Experience in Python and R R5. Have a permanent residence in Europe R6. C1 English Level The applicant will finalize an Industrial Ph.D. in Machine Learning in Health, funded by the CDTI-project "Digital solutions for rehabilitation and cognitive stimulation in neuropsychology" Tasks to perform during the Ph.D.: T1. Development of prediction models. T2. Classification and categorization of patients. T3. Model validation. T4. Multi-dimension data visualization T5. Integration of developed tools into the Neuronup database and search engine. *Interested applicants send an updated CV and two reference letters to neuronup(a)neuronup.com <neuronup(a)neuronup.com> before January 31, 2020*

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Deadline extension: Special Entropy Issue "Information Theory in Computational Neuroscience"
by Dimitrije Markovic 20 Jan '20

20 Jan '20

Dear Colleagues, We cordially invite you to submit a manuscript for possible publication in a Special Issue on "Information Theory in Computational Neuroscience" to be published in the journal Entropy (ISSN 1099-4300, IF 2.419, http://www.mdpi.com/journal/entropy). The aim of the Special Issue is to bring together neuronal models and neuronal plasticity mechanisms that are grounded in information theory principles, modern inference, and learning algorithms. We welcome submissions that use information theory as the basis for defining generative principles of neuronal dynamics over multiple spatio-temporal scales, which informs our understanding of information processing in the brain. You can see full details of the scope and submission details at: https://www.mdpi.com/journal/entropy/special_issues/Computational_Neuroscie… The new submission deadline is 31 March 2020. You may send your manuscript at any time before the deadline or a bit later. Submitted papers should not be under consideration for publication elsewhere. Entropy is fully open access. Open access (unlimited and free access by readers) increases publicity and promotes more frequent citations, as indicated by several studies. Please kindly note that an Article Processing Charge (APC) of CHF 1600 currently applies to all accepted papers. Fortunately, it is noticed that your institute have already had a central open access fund established in MDPI's Institutional Open Access Program, it means you do not have to pay the publication fees and your institute will cover it for you if you submit your papers to MDPI journals (see details at: <http://www.mdpi.com/about/ioap><http://www.mdpi.com/about/ioap>). You may contact your library and confirm this. Please do not hesitate to come back to us if there is anything further that we can help with. We look forward to hearing from you. Kind regards, Dimitrije Markovic and Claudius Gros ============================= Dr. Dimitrije Markovic Post-Doc at Technische Universität Dresden, Department of Psychology, Dresden, Germany Lab website: https://tu-dresden.de/mn/psychologie/ifap/ni Phone: +49-351-463-43146 Personal website: http://dimarkov.github.io/ =============================

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Conference on Curiosity, Creativity, and Complexity, NYC, May 18-19
by Pierre-Yves Oudeyer 20 Jan '20

20 Jan '20

On May 18-19 2020, Columbia University in New York will host a conference on Curiosity, Creativity, and Complexity, catalyzing interdisciplinary discussion on these topics across neuroscience, psychology, artificial intelligence, and economics. Registration opens mid-February. Faculty, students, and postdocs are welcome to attend. Full details and updates: https://zuckermaninstitute.columbia.edu/curiosity-creativity-and-complexity… <https://zuckermaninstitute.columbia.edu/curiosity-creativity-and-complexity…>

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Okinawa/OIST Computational Neuroscience Course 2020: application deadline approaching
by Erik De Schutter 20 Jan '20

20 Jan '20

OKINAWA/OIST COMPUTATIONAL NEUROSCIENCE COURSE 2020 Methods, Neurons, Networks and Behaviors June 29 to July 16, 2020 Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University, Japan https://groups.oist.jp/ocnc The aim of the Okinawa/OIST Computational Neuroscience Course is to provide opportunities for young researchers with theoretical backgrounds to learn the latest advances in neuroscience, and for those with experimental backgrounds to have hands-on experience in computational modeling. We invite graduate students and postgraduate researchers to participate in the course, held from June 29th through July 16th, 2020 at an oceanfront seminar house of the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University. Applications are through the course web page (https://groups.oist.jp/ocnc) only; January 1 - February 2, 2020. Applicants will receive confirmation of acceptance in March. Like in preceding years, the 17th OCNC will be a comprehensive three-week course covering single neurons, networks, and behaviors with ample time for student projects. The first week will focus exclusively on methods with hands-on tutorials during the afternoons, while the second and third weeks will have lectures by international experts. The course has a strong hands-on component based on student proposed modeling or data analysis projects, which are further refined with the help of a dedicated tutor. Applicants are required to propose their project at the time of application. There is no tuition fee. The sponsor will provide lodging and meals during the course and provides partial travel support. We hope that this course will be a good opportunity for theoretical and experimental neuroscientists to meet each other and to explore the attractive nature and culture of Okinawa, the southernmost island prefecture of Japan. Invited faculty: • Michael Berry II (Princeton University, USA) • Tiago Branco (Sainsbury Wellcome Centre, London, UK) • Zenas C Chao (University of Kyoto, Japan) • Erik De Schutter (OIST) • Kenji Doya (OIST) • Gaute Einevoll (Norwegian University of Life Sciences, Norway) • Tomoki Fukai (OIST) • Boris Gutkin (Ecole Normale Supérieure, Paris, France) • Bernd Kuhn (OIST) • Devika Narain (Erasmus Medical Center, Rotterdam, Netherlands) • Alex Pouget (University of Geneva, Switzerland) • Ivan Soltesz (Stanford University, USA) • Saori C. Tanaka (ATR, Japan) • Tatjana Tchumatchenko (Max Planck Institute for Brain Research, Frankfur, Germany) • Marylka Yoe Uusisaari (OIST)

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CNS*2020: Abstract Submission and Registration Open
by Martin Zapotocky 15 Jan '20

15 Jan '20

Organization for Computational Neurosciences 2885 Sanford Ave SW #15359 Grandville, MI 49418 USA *Call for Abstracts** **29th Annual Computational Neuroscience Meeting (CNS*2020)** **Melbourne, Australia** **July 18--22, 2020* *Local Organizers:* Anthony N. Burkitt (Chair), Mark Cook, Alex Fornito, David Grayden (Treasurer), Luan Ismahil, Tatiana Kameneva, Levin Kuhlmann, Hamish Meffin The main meeting begins the evening of Saturday July 18 and runs through Tuesday July 21. It will be preceded by a day of tutorials (Saturday July 18) and followed by workshops (Tuesday July 21 mixed with the main meeting and Wednesday July 22 workshops only). *Keynote Speakers:* *Matt Botvinick*, /DeepMind Technologies/ *Zhaoping Li*, /Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics/ *Geoff Goodhill*, /The University of Queensland/ *Daniel Polani*, /University of Hertfordshire/ Registration and abstract submission are open. *Abstract submission deadline: March 4, 2020. * Note that one of the authors must register as sponsoring author for the main meeting *before abstract submission*. In case the abstract is not accepted for presentation, the registration fee will be refunded. Submitted abstracts are used for creating the program and for publication. Please follow the formatting guidelines on the submission site. Travel awards are available for student and postdoc members of OCNS. Please apply using the drop-down box on the abstract submission form and note that an extended abstract is required when applying for a travel award or oral presentation format. Registration: https://ocns.memberclicks.net/index.php?option=com_mc&view=mc&mcid=form_265… Abstract Submission for Main Meeting: https://www.cnsorg.org/cns-2020-abstract-submission Workshop proposals are being accepted at: https://www.cnsorg.org/cns-2020-call-for-workshops Tutorial proposals are being accepted at: https://www.cnsorg.org/cns-2020-call-for-tutorials For up-to-date conference information, please visit: https://www.cnsorg.org/cns-2020-quick -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- OCNS is the international member-based society for computational neuroscientists. Become a member to be eligible for travel awards and more. Visit our website for more information: http://www.cnsorg.org --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

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Call for papers: ICLR workshop on Bridging Cognitive Science and AI
by Jessica Hamrick 15 Jan '20

15 Jan '20

Dear all, Aida Nematzadeh, Kaylee Burns, Alison Gopnik, Josh Tenenbaum, Emmanuel Dupoux and I are organizing a workshop that will be held at the International Conference on Learning Representations (ICLR) 2020. The goal of the workshop will be to showcase research in AI that is inspired by human cognition, as well as cognitive models that leverage AI to provide insight into various aspects of human learning and processing. Please see below for our call for papers. We hope to see some of you there! Cheers, Jess Call for Papers We are pleased to invite papers to our workshop at ICLR 2020, titled “Bridging AI and Cognitive Science”: https://baicsworkshop.github.io/ Cognitive science and artificial intelligence (AI) have a long-standing shared history. Indeed, even today many researchers have an interest in performing multidisciplinary research across the two fields. To this end, our workshop aims to inspire connections between AI and cognitive science across a broad set of topics, including perception, language, reinforcement learning, planning, human-robot interaction, animal cognition, child development, and reasoning. We are sourcing short, four-page papers (deadline: February 5, 2020) from cognitive science, neuroscience, and AI across two tracks: The Research track will highlight advances at the intersection of AI, cognitive science, and neuroscience. We welcome submissions on: - AI systems which draw inspiration from natural intelligence, - Computational models of natural intelligence that leverage methods from AI, - Demonstrations of failure cases of AI systems where humans or animals succeed, - Datasets or environments for AI systems which target a particular aspect of natural intelligence, or - Papers which address privacy and fairness in machine learning, using insights from the behavioral sciences, or - Works which otherwise combine AI and cognitive science. The Blue Sky Ideas track will showcase longer-term ideas or positions on ways to connect AI with cognitive science. While we will not require such ideas to be fully instantiated in a working system, we do expect them to be grounded in empirical or computational evidence. We welcome submissions on: - Aspects of cognition which are under-explored in AI, - The order in which the research community should solve cognitive tasks in AI, - How research in AI could inform research in cognitive science, - Survey papers which summarize one area of research in AI or cognitive science for researchers in the other field, or - Works which otherwise propose a longer-term idea or position about the intersection of cognitive science and AI.

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Leverhulme doctoral programme: Interested in both Machine Learning and Neuroscience?
by Christopher Laurie Buckley 15 Jan '20

15 Jan '20

Hi all, Applications for our interdisciplinary Leverhulme Doctoral Scholarship Programme at the University of Sussex, “From Sensation and Perception to Awareness”, for entry in September 2020 are now open. There are many great projects and you can propose your own but if you're interested in both Machine Learning and Neuroscience then why not come study Active Inference in brains and machines with myself and the venerable Prof Anil K. Seth. See our project description on the website below. For this project please inquire at c.l.buckley(a)sussex.ac.uk FUNDED PHD POSITIONS AT THE UNIVERSITY OF SUSSEX The University of Sussex invites applications for PhD studentship awards within its Leverhulme Doctoral Scholarship Programme entitled “From Sensation and Perception to Awareness”, directed by Jamie Ward and Anil Seth. The prestigious Sussex Leverhulme Trust Doctoral Scholarship Programme <https://www.findaphd.com/common/clickCount.aspx?theid=3783&type=185&url=htt…> brings together doctoral researchers from different disciplines to advance our understanding of the interactions between sensing, perception, and awareness in humans, animals, and machines. The Programme will support an intake of up to NINE students starting in September 2020. PhD students will be registered within one of the participating schools (Life Sciences, Informatics, Psychology, Media Film & Music, and Brighton and Sussex Medical School). The closing date for applications is January 31st, 2020. For further details, including how to apply, see… https://www.findaphd.com/phds/program/studentships-available-from-the-unive… <https://www.findaphd.com/phds/program/studentships-available-from-the-unive…> Dr Christopher L. Buckley Senior Lecturer in Neural Computation Evolutionary and Adaptive Systems Group Sussex Neuroscience Department of Informatics and Engineering University of Sussex Falmer Brighton, UK c.l.buckley(a)sussex.ac.uk

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Call for Satellite Workshop Proposals, Bernstein Conference 2020 in Berlin
by Anja Dorrn 15 Jan '20

15 Jan '20

Call for Satellite Workshop Proposals, Bernstein Conference 2020 in Berlin +++ The Bernstein Network Computational Neuroscience invites proposals for Satellite Workshops preceding the Bernstein Conference 2020 in Berlin at the Technical University. +++ ____ BERNSTEIN CONFERENCE The Bernstein Conference has established itself as the largest annual Computational Neuroscience conference in Europe attracting an international audience from across the world. The Satellite Workshops provide a stage to discuss topical research questions, novel scientific approaches and challenges in Computational Neuroscience and related fields. www.bernstein-conference.de<http://www.bernstein-conference.de> ____ IMPORTANT DATES - Satellite Workshops: September 29 – 30, 2020 o Tuesday, Sep 29, 2 pm – 6.30 pm o Wednesday, Sep 30, 8.30 am – 12.30 pm - Main Conference: September 30 – October 2, 2020 - Deadline for Satellite Workshop proposal submission: +++ March 31, 2020 +++ - Notification of workshop acceptance: planned in April 2020 ____ WORKSHOP PROPOSALS Workshops addressing controversial issues, open problems, and comparisons of competing approaches are encouraged. The format should be designed to foster debate, rather than a series of talks. The Workshop Selection Committee<https://www.bernstein-network.de/de/bernstein-conference/2020/conference-co…> will take scientific excellence, topical relevance and gender diversity into account as their selection criteria. Workshop proposals are welcome for either half-day or full-day workshops. Workshop Proposal Forms can be downloaded here: https://www.bernstein-network.de/en/bernstein-conference/2020/satellite-wor… Please submit the completed form to bernstein.conference(a)fz-juelich.de<mailto:bernstein.conference@fz-juelich.de> +++ Deadline: March 31, 2020 – not to be extended +++ ____ FINANCIAL SUPPORT Workshop registration is free for all organizers and speakers of workshops. Workshop organizers will additionally receive a waiver for the main conference fee. From the accepted workshops up to ten workshops will be selected to receive financial support of up to 1500 € each. ____ WORKSHOP SELECTION COMMITTEE Tim Vogels (Workshop Chair) Marion Silies (Workshop Vice Chair) Danielle Bassett Matthew Botvinick Peter Dayan Alain Destexhe Julijana Gjiorgjieva (Program Vice Chair) Tim Gollisch Stephanie Palmer Nathalie Rochefort Nicole Rust Elad Schneidmann (Program Chair) Gasper Tkacik ____ For any further questions, please contact: bernstein.conference(a)fz-juelich.de<mailto:bernstein.conference@fz-juelich.de> ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Forschungszentrum Juelich GmbH 52425 Juelich Sitz der Gesellschaft: Juelich Eingetragen im Handelsregister des Amtsgerichts Dueren Nr. HR B 3498 Vorsitzender des Aufsichtsrats: MinDir Volker Rieke Geschaeftsfuehrung: Prof. Dr.-Ing. Wolfgang Marquardt (Vorsitzender), Karsten Beneke (stellv. Vorsitzender), Prof. Dr.-Ing. Harald Bolt, Prof. Dr. Sebastian M. Schmidt ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

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Feb 15 Application Deadline - 2020 Nengo Summer School
by Peter Blouw 14 Jan '20

14 Jan '20

[All details about this school can be found online at https://www.nengo.ai/summer-school] The Centre for Theoretical Neuroscience at the University of Waterloo is excited to announce our 7th annual Nengo summer school on large-scale brain modelling and neuromorphic computing. This two-week school will teach participants to use the Nengo simulation package to build state-of-the-art cognitive and neural models to run both in simulation and on neuromorphic hardware. Summer school participants will be given on-site access to Loihi, Intel’s neuromorphic research chip [1], and will learn to run high-level applications on Loihi using Nengo! More generally, Nengo provides users with a versatile and powerful environment for designing cognitive and neural systems, and has been used to build what is currently the world's largest functional brain model, Spaun [2], which includes spiking deep learning, reinforcement learning, adaptive motor control, and cognitive control networks. For a look at last year's summer school, check out this short video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5w0BzvNOypc We welcome applications from all interested graduate students, postdocs, professors, and industry professionals with a relevant background. [1] Davies, et al. (2018). Loihi: A neuromorphic manycore processor with on-chip learning. IEEE Micro. Vol. 38 no. 1 pp. 82-99. [ https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/8259423] [2] Eliasmith, C., Stewart T. C., Choo X., Bekolay T., DeWolf T., Tang Y., Rasmussen, D. (2012). A large-scale model of the functioning brain. Science. Vol. 338 no. 6111 pp. 1202-1205. DOI: 10.1126/science.1225266. [ http://compneuro.uwaterloo.ca/files/publications/eliasmith.2012.pdf] ***Application Deadline: February 15, 2020*** Format: A combination of tutorials and project-based work. Participants are encouraged to bring their own ideas for projects, which may focus on building neuromorphic applications, modeling neural or cognitive data, implementing specific behavioural functions with neurons, expanding past models, or providing a proof-of-concept of various neural mechanisms. Hands-on tutorials, work on individual or group projects, and talks from invited faculty members will make up the bulk of day-to-day activities. A project demonstration event will be held on the last day of the school, with prizes for strong projects! Participants will have the opportunity to learn how to: - interface Nengo with various kinds of neuromorphic hardware (e.g. Loihi, SpiNNaker, BrainDrop) - interface Nengo with (spiking and normal) cameras and robotic systems - integrate machine learning methods into biologically oriented models - implement modern nonlinear control methods in neural models - build perceptual, motor, and sophisticated cognitive models using spiking neurons - model anatomical, electrophysiological, cognitive, and behavioural data - use a variety of single cell models within a large-scale model - and much more… Date and Location: June 7th to June 19th, 2020 at the University of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. Applications: Please visit https://www.nengo.ai/summer-school/, where you can find more information regarding costs, travel, lodging, along with an application form. We ask that you provide a short description of a possible project, and to briefly indicate how this project might make use of the tools and methods that the summer school will be covering, as listed above. If you have any questions about the school or the application process, please contact Peter Blouw (peter.blouw(a)appliedbrainresearch.com). The school is partially supported by Applied Brain Research, Inc. We look forward to hearing from you!

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