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

PhD position in theoretical and experimental neuroscience
by Nicolas P. Rougier July 24, 2020

July 24, 2020

PhD position in theoretical and experimental neuroscience Application deadline: 15/08/2020 What: PhD position in theoretical and experimental neuroscience Where: Bordeaux, France When: October 2020 (3 years duration) Who: Nicolas Rougier (Inria) & Arthur Leblois (CNRS) A PhD position is available at Inria Bordeaux Sud-Ouest center and the Institute of Neurodegenerative Disease in Bordeaux, France. Candidate profile ================= The future PhD candidate must have a strong experience at both the theoretical and experimental level. In particular, the following qualities and skills will be highly valued, if not required: * Solid bases in maths and/or physics; * Previous experience in experimental neuroscience; * Programming experience (Python or similar coding language); * Experience in machine learning or data mining is a plus; * Good English reading/speaking skills. How to apply ============ Please send your application (CV, letter of motivation, and the names and email addresses of one or two persons who can provide recommendation letters) to Dr. Nicolas Rougier (nicolas.rougier(a)inria.fr) and Arthur Leblois (arthur.leblois(a)u-bordeaux.fr) before the 15/08/2020. Proposed research ================= Temporally precise movement patterns underlie many motor skills and innate actions, yet the origin of temporal control in motor behaviors remains unclear. While cortical motor regions traditionally have been viewed as encoding features of motor gestures, these models do not address how sequences of motor gestures are produced or appropriately timed. Recently, a number of studies have suggested that, beyond just representing features of motor output, motor regions may have intrinsic oscillatory dynamics or sequential dynamics to act as their own pattern generators. However, in the order of milliseconds, the neural and anatomical correlates of time processing are still largely unknown because the dominant model, which is based on internal clock fails at giving account on experimental data. Understanding the neural dynamics underlying the acquisition and performance of complex sensorimotor tasks has been hindered by the complexity of the underlying brain networks in common animal models used in neuroscience (e.g. rodents or primates). In particular, the complex interactions between cortical areas (primary and secondary motor cortex in rodents, motor, premotor and supplementary motor areas in primates) related to many different sensorimotor associations and motor skills is daunting. Conversely, in birds, the sensorimotor skill of song production and its learning has a dedicated set of interconnected brain nuclei known as the “song system”, making them an outstanding model to study the neural mechanisms of vocal learning and more generally, of sensorimotor learning. Songbirds indeed rely on learned vocalizations to communicate during courtship or aggressive behaviours. Just as speech learning in humans, vocal learning in young birds requires the coordination of vocal muscles to reproduce previously experienced adult vocalizations. Song learning is also limited to a critical period during development and heavily relies on auditory feedback. The proposed research lies at the interface of neurophysiology, cognitive science, applied mathematics, and theoretical physics. The concepts and methods that will be used will draw on single neuron physiology, electrophysiological studies in behaving animals, statistical mechanics, dynamical system theory, and stochastic differential equations. To this end, we will combine a theoretical approach (development of a mathematical model of the timing system) and an experimental one (chronic neural recording in awake birds, behavioural manipulations). Therefore, a collaboration with a team of physiologists at the Institute of Neurodegenerative Diseases, and in particular with Arthur Leblois who has a long-established expertise in the neural mechanisms underlying vocal learning in songbirds. The model will be designed under the supervision of Nicolas Rougier who has extensive experience in computational modelling. Predictions of the model will then be tested experimentally by measuring neuronal activity in the brain areas controlling song timing in songbirds under the supervision of Arthur Leblois. Chronic electrophysiological recordings in singing birds are routinely performed in the lab of Arthur Leblois, and will be implemented in a protocol allowing the induction of plasticity in the duration of song syllables in young adult birds over short periods of time.

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PhD position: stimulation of the visual cortex
by Pieter Roelfsema July 22, 2020

July 22, 2020

The Vision & cognition group (Roelfsema lab) at the Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience has an exciting opportunity for a PhD student position to investigate circuit mechanisms of brain stimulation and its perception Project description Circuit mechanisms of brain stimulation and its perception The rapidly emerging field of neurotechnology is bringing a surge of new technological possibilities for transferring information to the brain for patients with neurological disabilities. To successfully apply these technological advances to clinical applications, a deep understanding of stimulation-based information transfer and its processing at the level of neurons and neuronal circuits is essential. In this project, we will combine novel intracortical neural interfaces devices with electrical microstimulation, optical stimulation, 2-photon calcium imaging, electrophysiology, and behavior to investigate this in the mouse visual cortex. Ultimately, we aim to develop next-generation intracortical stimulation strategies for high-fidelity information transfer into the visual cortex for a visual prosthesis. We expect from you: You are a highly motivated, self-driven candidate. You have an MSc degree (or equivalent) in neuroscience or a related discipline; or an MSc degree in a quantitative discipline (e.g. physics/biophysics, mathematics, engineering) with strong interest and experience in neuroscience. A high level of written and spoken English and good programming skills are essential. An ideal candidate would additionally possess practical experience in collecting and analyzing neurophysiological data from awake, behaving animals. You should expect from us: • Mentoring, supervision and training • Access to state-of-the art infrastructure • A stimulating international research environment Environment The Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience (www.nin.nl) is the country’s leading fundamental neuroscience research institute, in the international and progressive city of Amsterdam. It provides a critical mass of scientists (spanning more than 27 nationalities) and neuroscience facilities, in a highly interactive, dynamic, multi-cultural environment, with English as the working language. Appointment We offer an exciting job at a dynamic research institute and an attractive package of fringe benefits. The position is for a period of 4 years in total for a PhD student. The first appointment is for one year with the option for an extension for the remaining period pending on an evaluation. Salary The salary will be commensurate with experience and institutional guidelines based on the Collective Labour Agreement for Dutch Universities; CAO NU). Full-time monthly salary for a PhD student is € 2.395,- in the 1st year to € 3.061,- in the 4th year before taxes. In addition, an 8% holiday allowance and an 8.3% year-end bonus are provided. We offer travel expenses, paid parental leave, flexible working hours, 30 days paid leave per year and assistance in finding an accommodation. Starting date The position is available from September 2020, but the starting date can be later. To apply Please send your application to s.wolff(a)nin.knaw.nl including: 1. A Curriculum Vitae 2. An application letter 3. Two reference letters Evaluation of candidates will begin immediately, and continue until the position is filled. We aim to fill the position in the autumn of 2020. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, religion, sexual orientation, nationality, disability, etc. Any acquisition further to this advertisement will not be appreciated.

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Virtual Telluride Neuromorphic Engineering Workshop (July 27-31 2020)
by Emre Neftci July 22, 2020

July 22, 2020

We are happy to announce a Virtual Telluride Neuromorphic Cognition Engineering Workshop 2020 (https://tellurideneuromorphic.org/) this year in replacement of our usual Workshop in Telluride. The workshop will take place from July 27 to July 31 (8am to 10am PDT, or 17:00 to 19:00 CET). The format will be a week of lectures and tutorials on current topics in neuromorphic engineering (two hours per day) followed by four hands-on, collaborative challenges which will be carried out in the month of August. The results of the challenges will be presented on September 10 and 11. More up-to-date information on the list of speakers and the challenges can be found at the 2020 Neuromorphic Workshop website (https://sites.google.com/view/telluride2020/home) The workshop is free to attend and is open to everyone upon registration. Please pass this announcement to other interested parties. Regards, The Telluride Neuromorphic Cognition Engineering 2020 Organizing Committee -- Emre Neftci, PhD, Assistant Professor, Neuromorphic Machine Intelligence Lab (http://nmi-lab.org/) Department of Cognitive Sciences, 2308 Social & Behavioral Sciences Gateway Building, UC Irvine 92697-5100

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[BCI-UC] Final program online
by Moritz Grosse-Wentrup July 21, 2020

July 21, 2020

Dear colleagues: The final program of the 1st BCI Un-Conference is now online: https://bciunconference.univie.ac.at/program/ In addition to the keynotes by Mariska J Vansteensel and Christian Herff, the BCI-UC features nine contributed talks. These talks were selected from 31 submissions by 190 registered participants casting a total of 427 votes. All lectures will be streamed free of charge via Crowdcast this Thursday, July 23rd, from 3 pm to 9:15 pm (CEST) under the following URL: https://www.crowdcast.io/e/1st-brain-computer-interface-unconference/ If you would like to receive future updates about the BCI-UC series, please sign up to the mailing list: https://lists.univie.ac.at/mailman/listinfo/bciuc You are very welcome to also use this mailing list for any announcements that are of interest to the BCI community at large. Best regards, The BCI-UC Organizing Committee: Moritz Grosse-Wentrup Anja Meunier Philipp Raggam Anita Resch Jiachen Xu -- Univ.-Prof. Dr.-Ing. Moritz Grosse-Wentrup Research Group Neuroinformatics Faculty of Computer Science University of Vienna Hörlgasse 6, A-1090 Wien, Austria moritz.grosse-wentrup(a)univie.ac.at +43-1-4277-79610 http://neural.engineering/

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Post-doc position: Visual control
by Fajen, Brett July 21, 2020

July 21, 2020

Please post the job ad below on the computational neuroscience email list. POSTDOCTORAL RESEARCH ASSOCIATE VISUAL CONTROL IN HUMANS AND AERIAL ROBOTS Cognitive Science Department Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute A post-doctoral position is available in the Perception and Action (PandA) Lab at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute to study optic flow-based control. The aims of the project are to develop computational and mathematical models of visual perception and control in humans and adapt these models for use on board small aerial robots. The successful candidate will be expected to conduct experiments, develop models, and present research at conferences and in journal articles. This is a one-year position with an anticipated start date in September 2020. The position could be extended beyond one year depending on performance and availability of funding. The PI’s lab is situated within the Cognitive Science Department at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, NY. Minimum qualifications Candidates for the position must have a Ph.D. in Computer Science, Cognitive Science, Neuroscience, Psychology, or a related field. All degree requirements must be completed by the time the appointment starts. In addition, candidates should have research experience in vision science, a strong quantitative background, and good programming skills. Experience with virtual reality, motion capture, and/or eye tracking is also desirable, although not required. Application information Please contact Brett Fajen at fajenb[at]rpi.edu for information about the application process or with any questions about the position. We welcome candidates who will bring diverse intellectual, geographical, gender and ethnic perspectives to Rensselaer’s work and campus communities. Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute is an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity, Race/Gender/Veterans/Disability Employer.

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Postdoc position at International Research Center for Neurointelligence (IRCN), the University of Tokyo
by Yukie Nagai July 21, 2020

July 21, 2020

Dear colleagues, Nagai, Yazaki and Tsuji labs at the International Research Center for Neurointelligence (IRCN), the University of Tokyo are seeking a postdoctoral candidate for the transdisciplinary project “The Development of Social Intelligence”. The goal of this project is to identify the neuronal and biological basis of social effects on learning. The successful candidate will be involved in developing experiments in songbirds and human infants in interaction with robots, including the recording and analysis of behavioral, auditory, and physiological measures. The candidate will primarily be supervised by Dr. Nagai, and co-supervised by Dr. Yazaki and Dr. Tsuji. https://ircn.jp/en/careers/20200720-socialintelligence If you are interested in being considered, please send the required documents to yukie(a)ircn.jp. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1. Job title Project Researcher (Postdoctoral Fellow) 2. Starting Date Negotiable 3. Term The first contract will be ended on March 31, 2021. The contract is renewable on a fiscal year basis (from April 1 to March 31; every year) according to research budget, research activity, and research achievements. Contract can be extended for up to 3 years. 4. Place of Work International Research Center for Neurointelligence The University of Tokyo, Institutes for Advanced Study 7-3-1 Hongo Bunkyo-ku Tokyo, 113-0033 JAPAN *This can be changed due to work circumstances. 5. Qualifications (Required) - Ph.D. or equivalent in a related field - Good communication skill in English (Preferred) - Experiences in computer science, cognitive science, neuroscience, and/or psychology will be preferred. 6. Compensation & Benefits - Salary: To be determined in accordance with the University of Tokyo Regulations - Commuter allowance: JPY55,000 per month at maximum - Social Insurance: Eligible for MEXT Mutual Aid Association membership, employees’ pension, employment insurance, and workers’ accident compensation insurance. - Vacation: Annual paid vacation, Sick leave (paid), Special vacation (paid) 7. Working Hours Discretionary labor system, based on 7 hours, 45 minutes per day, or 38 hours 45 minutes per week 8. Holidays Saturdays and Sundays; Statutory public holidays of Japan; Year-end and New Year holidays (December 29 through January 3); Summer holidays 9. Applications and Selection Process - Applications deadline: When the position is filled - Application documents: (a) Cover letter in English (b) Curriculum vita in English (c) Publication list (d) Name and contact address for two references, one of which should be a previous employer - Submission: Interested applicants should send application materials to: yukie(a)ircn.jp with a subject "Application for Project Researcher in Social Intelligence”. - Selection Process: All applications will be screened, and only those qualified will be scheduled for an interview. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- — Yukie Nagai, Ph.D. Project Professor, The University of Tokyo nagai.yukie(a)mail.u-tokyo.ac.jp | http://developmental-robotics.jp CREST Cognitive Mirroring: http://cognitive-mirroring.org

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International Brain Laboratory postdoc position at UCLA
by Hannah M Bayer July 20, 2020

July 20, 2020

The Churchland lab at UCLA has an opening for a postdoctoral fellow in neuroscience who will be part of the International Brain Laboratory (IBL). The IBL (https://www.internationalbrainlab.com/) is a large-scale international collaboration in brain research, which combines the efforts of approximately 50 scientists in 22 laboratories toward understanding the brain-wide basis of a complex behavior. Now in its third year, the IBL has already achieved standardization and replication of the mouse behavioral paradigm across labs and the effort to map the entire mouse brain at single neuron resolution is now underway. Postdocs in the IBL contribute to collecting datasets and building collaborative infrastructure in addition to developing and leading their own personal projects, which are accelerated and enhanced by taking advantage of the IBL experimental and computational tools and by mentoring from the other members of the collaboration. It is expected therefore that IBL postdocs will publish multiple impactful first-author papers in addition to being part of consortium-wide papers. For more information about the advantages of postdoctoral research at IBL, see www.internationalbrainlab.com/postdocs/. The ideal candidate for this position has experience in rodent physiology experiments and in data analysis (ideally using Python). They will have a record of rigorous and creative scientific work, and are excited about the possibility of joining a large, innovative collaboration at the forefront of modern neuroscience. The International Brain Laboratory is committed to opposing all forms of discrimination, raising awareness and tackling the causes and consequences of discrimination. We pledge to provide a learning and working environment in which the rights and dignity of all members are respected and which is free from discrimination, prejudice, intimidation and all forms of harassment including bullying; to making a diverse mix of talented people feel valued, motivated and enabled to do their best work; and to creating a safe, welcoming working environment accessible to all. We encourage individuals who will contribute to achieving these aims to apply. Please send CV and cover letter to Anne.Churchland(a)internationalbrainlab.org

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The Annual BiasWatchNeuro Award for Equity and Inclusivity
by Bias WatchNeuro July 20, 2020

July 20, 2020

We wanted to let you know of this new award, for a department/institute/program that is making special (and effective) efforts to ensure inclusivity and equity for trainees from minoritized and historically marginalized group. We hope you will circulate the below call for nomination among trainees in your department. Letters of nomination are due by end of August, for a September award date (in time for graduate recruiting season). Even if your department does not win this year, letters of nomination for the winning departments will be made public, so other departments can learn and copy their best practices. We are looking forward to a day where all neuroscientists feel welcome and supported in any university. The call for nominations is below, and also at https://biaswatchneuro.com/bwn-award/. > Call for nominations The Annual BiasWatchNeuro Award for Equity and Inclusivity > > Diverse voices and ideas deserve to be heard equitably in science. Since > 2015, BiasWatchNeuro has worked to increase the representation of women in > neuroscience and related fields, emphasizing in particular the > representation of women as invited speakers at conferences. However, women > are not the only group that is confronted with implicit biases and systemic > obstacles in science. Minoritized groups are severely underrepresented at > every level of the academic career path — from undergraduate education to > faculty. Attempts to diversify departments have increased, but the reality > is that many universities and institutions still embody and perpetuate both > the historical influence of being established by men of privilege, and the > persisting effects of systemic racism in our society. Even as more diverse > student bodies are recruited, the culture in many departments and > institutions is not welcoming to and supportive of those that belong to > minoritized groups. Intersectionality adds another layer of disadvantage, > with minoritized women being especially underrepresented and unsupported. > > It is time to change this reality and build a new one, in our departments > and institutions. Black scientists matter. Latinx scientists matter. > LGBTQAI+ scientists matter. First generation scientists matter. Low income > scientists matter. Intersectionality matters. > > BiasWatchNeuro is excited to announce a new Annual Award for Equity and > Inclusivity, awarded to a neuroscience or neuroscience-related department, > institute or program that demonstrates the exceptional creation of a > culture where individuals underrepresented and/or marginalized in STEM feel > integral to the community and thrive. > > We recognize that no department/institute/program is perfect. However, > some are doing much better than others, and should be recognized for this. > Nomination letters for winners and runner ups will be made public (without > the list of signatories, which will remain confidential), to showcase > successful methods for creating an inclusive and equitable culture, and to > provide prospective trainees at all levels with information that can inform > their decisions of where to apply to. We hope that this will help us all > improve our practices and move toward a day in which all neuroscientists > feel seen, respected, and supported. > > Nominations for the 2020 award will be accepted through *August 31, 2020*. Awards > will be announced in September. > > Letter of nomination signed by one or more trainees (current and/or > alumni; including post-bacc/RAs; faculty cannot nominate their current > program) should be sent to biaswatchneuro(a)gmail.com. Letters should > describe in detail specific actions and elements that promote inclusivity > and equity, and their impact on underrepresented/marginalized groups. More > than one letter and/or letters with multiple signatories will be viewed > favorably. > Sincerely, The BiasWatchNeuro team ----------------------------------------------------- Please feel free to send conferences and meetings our way by filling out this <https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSe5ydak4RqHyrVU2BGc17T_SXsFiYB9j_Y…> form. For more information: www.biaswatchneuro.com

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Invitation for papers submission to In Silico Pharmacology
by boris gutkin July 20, 2020

July 20, 2020

On behalf of the In Silico Pharmacology (Springer) editorial board, we would like to invite papers at the interface between computational neuroscience, artificial intelligence, machine learning and neuropharmacology. In Silico Pharmacology provides a forum for peer-reviewed research articles at the cross-roads of computation, neuroscience, pharmacology and toxicology. It is anticipated that all computational and experimental approaches are represented within In Silico Pharmacology. The journal primarily publishes interdisciplinary papers that address computational approaches in multi-scale analysis of bioactive substances from the cellular up to behavioral level as well as drug-design. The journal especially encourages deterministic and stochastic modeling of biological (e.g., biochemical, biophysical and immunological) processes leading to therapeutic advancements, as well as mathematical methods characterizing the pharmacology of substances within the living organism. Papers investigating substance- or material-induced morphological and genetic alterations are also welcome. More information can be found at the journal website: https://www.springer.com/journal/40203/

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PhD Position in Computational Neuroscience at the University of Edinburgh
by CHADWICK Angus July 20, 2020

July 20, 2020

Applications are invited for a fully-funded 3 year PhD studentship in Computational Neuroscience with Dr. Angus Chadwick at the Institute for Adaptive and Neural Computation in the School of Informatics, University of Edinburgh. Applicants should hold, or be close to completion of, an undergraduate or masters degree in physics, mathematics, computer science, engineering, or a related subject, and be interested in applying their analytical skills to tackle problems in neuroscience. Highly motivated students with other backgrounds may also apply. Research in our group focuses on the neural circuit computations underlying perceptual and cognitive function, with a focus on vision and spatial navigation. We use a combination of approaches, including 1) analysis and simulation of biological neural networks, 2) development of novel data analytic methods for large-scale neural recordings, and 3) normative models of neural circuit function informed by machine learning and artificial intelligence. Typical techniques used include dynamical systems theory, statistical physics, signal processing and machine learning. We collaborate closely with experimental neuroscience laboratories both in Edinburgh and further afield. A number of projects are available, and there is flexibility to develop a project to suit the interests and skills of the candidate. Edinburgh is a vibrant and international city with a large student population, and has been voted as “best place to live in Britain”. The School of Informatics hosts an internationally-leading research environment in Computational Neuroscience, Machine Learning and Robotics, with close links to the Centre for Discovery Brain Sciences and the School of Philosophy, Psychology and Language Sciences. Applicants should email Dr. Angus Chadwick directly at angus.chadwick(a)ed.ac.uk with their CV and a brief statement of interest, or for informal enquiries and discussion. Applications will be considered until the position is filled. The start date for the position is flexible (with earliest possible start September 2020). The University of Edinburgh is a charitable body, registered in Scotland, with registration number SC005336.

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Release of CARLsim5 - Latest version of our GPU-accelerated Spiking Neural Network Simulator
by Jeffrey Krichmar July 19, 2020

July 19, 2020

Dear Colleagues, We are pleased to announce the release of CARLsim5. CARLsim is an efficient, easy-to-use, GPU-accelerated library for simulating large-scale spiking neural network (SNN) models with a high degree of biological detail. CARLsim allows execution of networks of Izhikevich spiking neurons with realistic synaptic dynamics on both generic x86 CPUs and standard off-the-shelf GPUs. The simulator provides an intuitive programming interface in C/C++, which allows for details and parameters to be specified at the synapse, neuron, and network level. The new release has a python frontend that is compatible with PyNN. Software and user documentation can be found at: https://github.com/UCI-CARL/CARLsim5 New and improved features in CARLsim5 include: · PyNN compatibility · Neuron monitor for observing the voltage and current traces of individual neurons · Improved installation for the Evolutionary Computations in Java (ECJ) interface (coming soon) · Docker images for Windows users and computer cluster users · Saving and loading simulations For those interested in the pyCARL interface, our IJCNN paper will be presented at the Plenary Poster Session I-P7: Spiking Neural Networks, Tuesday, July 21, 2:30PM-4:30PM GMT+1), IJCNN Poster Room 1: P1317 PyCARL: A PyNN Interface for Hardware-Software Co-Simulation of Spiking Neural Network [#20903] Sincerely, The CARLsim team Jeff Krichmar Department of Cognitive Sciences 2328 Social & Behavioral Sciences Gateway University of California, Irvine Irvine, CA 92697-5100 jkrichma(a)uci.edu http://www.socsci.uci.edu/~jkrichma

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The Journal of Mathematical Neuroscience - recent articles
by Stephen Coombes July 17, 2020

July 17, 2020

The Journal of Mathematical Neuroscience publishes research articles on the mathematical modelling and analysis of all areas of neuroscience. The current list of journal articles is available at http://www.mathematical-neuroscience.com/ : Methods to assess binocular rivalry with periodic stimuli Authors: Farzaneh Darki and James Rankin https://mathematical-neuroscience.springeropen.com/articles/10.1186/s13408-… Understanding the dynamics of biological and neural oscillator networks through exact mean-field reductions: a review Authors: Christian Bick, Marc Goodfellow, Carlo R. Laing and Erik A. Martens https://mathematical-neuroscience.springeropen.com/articles/10.1186/s13408-… Spatially extended balanced networks without translationally invariant connectivity Authors: Christopher Ebsch and Robert Rosenbaum https://mathematical-neuroscience.springeropen.com/articles/10.1186/s13408-… Geometry of color perception. Part 1: structures and metrics of a homogeneous color space Authors: Edoardo Provenzi https://mathematical-neuroscience.springeropen.com/articles/10.1186/s13408-… Mesoscopic population equations for spiking neural networks with synaptic short-term plasticity Authors: Valentin Schmutz, Wulfram Gerstner and Tilo Schwalger https://mathematical-neuroscience.springeropen.com/articles/10.1186/s13408-… All articles are Open Access. The Impact Factor of the journal is 2.091 ------------------------------------------------------- Stephen Coombes Professor of Applied Mathematics School of Mathematical Sciences Nottingham, UK Tel: 0115 846 7836 http://www.maths.nott.ac.uk/~sc/ ------------------------------------------------------- This message and any attachment are intended solely for the addressee and may contain confidential information. If you have received this message in error, please contact the sender and delete the email and attachment. Any views or opinions expressed by the author of this email do not necessarily reflect the views of the University of Nottingham. Email communications with the University of Nottingham may be monitored where permitted by law.

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3 PhD/MSc Positions at the University of Calgary
by Wilten Nicola July 17, 2020

July 17, 2020

The Nicola Computational Neuroscience lab at the University of Calgary in the Hotchkiss Brain Institute is looking for three talented researchers at the PhD/Masters level. *PhD/MSc Position 1: Analysis and Modelling of Trained Recurrent and Spiking Neural Networks * The Nicola Lab is looking for a talented Master's or PhD candidate with a strong background in pure or applied mathematics, or physics. The project will involve analyzing the structure and operation of trained spiking and recurrent neural networks to determine how these trained networks perform dynamics, solve tasks, and emulate behaviours. The ideal candidate will have a background in dynamical systems theory, functional analysis, and some statistical analysis, and have a BSc in pure or applied mathematics. Some knowledge of numerical methods and neuroscience is beneficial, but not required. *PhD/MSc Position 2: Modelling Spatiotemporal dynamics in whole-brain imaging* We are looking for a talented Master's or PhD candidate with a background in computational neuroscience, mathematics, or physics. The project will involve analyzing the emergent spatiotemporal dynamics of whole-brain Calcium imaging data obtained in the McGirr Lab for mice undergoing experimentally induced stress paradigms. The ideal candidate will have a background in dynamical systems theory, statistical analysis, and a particular focus on spatial models (Partial Differential Equations), or Markov Processes. The ideal candidate will have a background in scientific programming and numerical methods for the simulation and analysis of these models. *PhD/MSc Position 3: Investigating Synchrony in Spiking Neural Networks * The Nicola Lab is looking for a talented Master's or PhD candidate with a strong background in Applied or Pure mathematics with an emphasis on dynamical systems theory. The project will involve analyzing the synchronizability of non-smooth, integrate-and-fire type spiking neural networks under a variety of conditions. The ideal candidate will have a background in dynamical systems theory, functional analysis, and some statistical analysis, and have a BSc in pure or applied mathematics. The ideal candidate will have a background in scientific programming and numerical methods for conducting simulations. Interested candidates should clarify which position they are applying for in an email to wilten.nicola(a)ucalgary.ca and attach to this email their CV, undergraduate/master's degree transcripts, a letter of research interests, and the contact information for 2 referees. The start-dates are flexible. The University of Calgary is a global intellectual hub located in Canada’s most enterprising city. In our spirited, high-quality learning environment, students thrive in programs made rich by research, hands-on experiences and entrepreneurial thinking. Our strategy drives us to be recognized as one of Canada’s top five research universities, engaging the communities we both serve and lead. This strategy is called Eyes High, inspired by the university's Gaelic motto, which translates as 'I will lift up my eyes.' For more information, visit ucalgary.ca/eyeshigh.

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Scientific software developer position at the SimLab Neuroscience, Juelich, Germany
by Charl Linssen July 16, 2020

July 16, 2020

(with apologies for any cross-posting) Dear colleagues, We have a Scientific software developer position available in the SimLab Neuroscience at the Jülich Supercomputing Centre, Jülich Research Centre, Germany. We are looking for candidates with a proven track record in developing scientific software who are interested in further developing NESTML, a modelling language and corresponding toolchain for the convenient specification of neuron and synapse models and the automatic generation of efficient C++ code from this specification modelling language. For a full description and details of how to apply, please see the announcement on our website: *Scientific Software Developer in Computational Neuroscience* https://www.fz-juelich.de/SharedDocs/Stellenangebote/_common/dna/2020-230-E… The application deadline for the position is August 5th. Thank you for your consideration! With kind regards, Charl Linssen _____________________________________ Charl Linssen Ir. MSc SimLab Neuroscience / IAS-6 Jülich Supercomputer Centre (JSC) Institute for Advanced Simulation Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH c.linssen(a)fz-juelich.de +49 (0)2461 61-5269 _____________________________________

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IMRF2020 postponed to June 07-10 2021 in Ulm, Germany
by Marc Ernst July 15, 2020

July 15, 2020

Dear participants of the IMRF, Although, the COVID-19 situation is getting better in some places around the world, it is still getting worse in a lot of other places, and travelling to and from Germany is still far away from normal. Additionally, distancing restrictions apply and will likely apply for quite some more time (maybe until a vaccination has been found), which would not allow us to host as many people as anticipated at the venue we reserved in October 2020. As many other conferences, we also considered moving to an online format for the IMRF meeting (https://cops.ifp.uni-ulm.de/imrf2020/ <https://cops.ifp.uni-ulm.de/imrf2020/>). However, we feel the community would not benefit as much as having a meeting in person. Therefore, we decided to postpone the IMRF meeting once again (and hopefully for the last time) to June 07-10, 2021. Abstract submission and registration will stay open. All abstracts already submitted will further be considered. However, as there may be new data or insights gathered even during the COVID-19 pandemic, you can of course log on and adapt your abstracts until the new deadline for abstract submission. Same applies for the symposia already accepted. However, as the symposia have already gone through a review process, we would check these changes again and in case of substantial revisions we would probably re-review them again. We will announce the new deadlines for submission and registration in due time. The abstract submission and registration page can be found here: https://cops.ifp.uni-ulm.de/imrf2020/index.php/imrf-2020/registration-submi… <https://cops.ifp.uni-ulm.de/imrf2020/index.php/imrf-2020/registration-submi…> Also for those who already registered, your registrations will stay valid. Others can register at any time. The new registration deadlines will also be announced soon. Sorry for the inconvenience this second postponement may cause and thanks for your understanding. Be safe and stay healthy!!!! Best, Mac Ernst on behalf of the IMRF Organizers.

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Professorship position in explainable/interpretable Machine Learning
by Jörg Lücke July 15, 2020

July 15, 2020

Dear list, Let me draw your attention to a currently advertised position on explainable / interpretable learning algorithms. The position is in the Health Sciences but researchers with a data analysis background interested in developing in the direction of health data analysis are of interest. Also candidates with a computational neuroscience background or a robotics background are of interest. So the spectrum of potential candidate profiles is relatively broad. Please see the following link for the official advertisement. https://uol.de/stellen/?stelle=67364 The position is a German W2 Professorship position (similar Associate Professor). Thanks and best wishes, Jörg Lücke -- Jörg Lücke (PhD) Professor and Head of the Machine Learning Lab Department of Medical Physics and Acoustics School of Medicine and Health Sciences University of Oldenburg 26111 Oldenburg Germany www.uol.de/ml

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CNS*2020 Workshop on "Multi-disciplinary approaches to quantify and model calcium signaling in nervous systems and beyond", July 21-22, 2020 (8.30 am-5 pm BST / GMT+1)
by Maurizio De Pittà July 14, 2020

July 14, 2020

Dear colleagues, Please share it with your contacts. I am delighted to be able to share with you the finalized program of the forthcoming Workshop on "Multi-disciplinary approaches to quantify and model calcium signaling in nervous systems and beyond," July 21-22, 2020 (8.30 am-5 pm BST / GMT+1) as part of the CNS*2020 Virtual Conference. Workshop website: https://sites.google.com/view/cns2020-calcium-workshop/home We are joining together some of the prominent scientists in the field, touching a whole range of topics and approaches, ranging from techniques and machine learning tools to acquire calcium signals in living systems, to modeling in neurons, synapses, glial and other systems of the body. Confirmed speakers (in alphabetical order): Amit Agarwal, Heidelberg University, Germany Johnatan Aljadeff, University of California at San Diego, USA Alexey Brazhe, Lomonosov Moscow State University, Russia Pengxing Cao, School of Mathematics and Statistics, University of Melbourne, Australia Evan Cresswell-Clay, National Institute of Health, USA & The Basque Center for Applied Mathematics, Spain Silvina Ponce Dawson, Department of Physics, FCEN-UBA & IFIBA, CONICET-UBA, University of Buenos Aires, Argentina Martin Falcke, Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine Berlin, Germany Johannes Friedrich, Simons Foundation, USA Andrea Giovannucci, UNC-Chapel Hill/North Carolina State University, USA Michael Graupner, Université de Paris, CNRS, SPPIN, France Shawn Means, School of Natural and Computer Sciences, Massey University, New Zealand Vijai Rajagopal, University of Melbourne, AUS Leonid Savtchenko & Dimitri Rusakov, Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, UK Simon Schultz, Centre for Neurotechnology and Department of Bioengineering, Imperial College London, UK Alexey Semyanov, Shemyakin and Ovchinnikov Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, Russia Ivo Siekmann, Department of Applied Mathematics, Liverpool John Moores University, UK Alexander Skupin, University of Luxembourg, Luxembourg James Sneyd, The University of Auckland, New Zealand Ghanim Ullah, University of South Florida, USA Agne Tilūnaitė, School of Mathematics and Statistics, University of Melbourne, Australia Ruediger Thul, The University of Nottingham, UK Attendance to the online Workshop is FREE but requires registration to the CNS*2020 meeting (this year free of charge). More Info: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1N45m5I4lZ4wUX4kOkxgPqEK4yeIdADuKgdqPuBF… Schedule of the Workshop's talks, along with Crowdcast links for individual sessions may be found on the Sched page of CNS*2020: https://cns2020online.sched.com/overview/type/Workshop/W02%3A+Calcium+signa… CALCIUM WORKSHOP webpage: https://sites.google.com/view/cns2020-calcium-workshop/home Thank you for your consideration. The workshop organizers: Pengxing Cao, University of Melbourne, Australia Maurizio De Pitta, Basque Center for Applied Mathematics, Spain Ivo Siekmann, Liverpool John Moores University, UK ----- Maurizio De Pitta' Research Fellow MCEN -- Group of Mathematical, Computational and Experimental Neuroscience BCAM -- Basque Center of Applied Mathematics https://sites.google.com/site/mauriziodepitta/home

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Postdoc position at the Research Center Juelich
by Daun, Silvia July 13, 2020

July 13, 2020

Dear All, I have a Postdoc postion to offer in my lab: "Researchers at the subinstitute Cognitive Neuroscience (INM-3) investigate the neural mechanisms underlying cognitive (dys-) function in healthy subjects and patients suffering from neurological and psychiatric disorders. Functional imaging (PET, MRI) and electrophysiological methods (EEG, TMS, tDCS) are combined with computational approaches. The successful candidate will investigate how neural information processing within the human motor system is impaired by (non-)pathological aging under the supervision of Prof. Dr. Silvia Daun. We are looking to recruit a Postdoc - Cognitive Neuroscience / Computational Neurology at the Research Center Juelich Your Job: • Design, acquisition and analysis of EEG data from healthy subjects and stroke patients • Development of analysis algorithms and mathematical models • Presentation and publication of the results • Interaction with team members and collaborators from Psychology, Medicine, and Computational Neuroscience Your Profile: • Completed study in Computer Science, Computational Neuroscience, Physics, Mathematics, Biomedical Engineering including an excellent doctoral degree • Significant programming skills (preferably in Matlab or Python) • Keen interest in cognitive and systems neuroscience • Experience with the conduction of EEG experiments • Proven scientific achievements as evidenced by publications in international, peer-reviewed journals • Interest in combining basic research and translational research on stroke patients • Good command of English • High social competence and organizational talent • High motivation Our Offer: • Exciting working environment on an attractive research campus with excellent infrastructure, located between the cities of Cologne, Düsseldorf, and Aachen • A stimulating, collaborative, and international research environment • A comprehensive further training programme • Flexible working hours and various opportunities to reconcile work and private life • Full-time position with the option of slightly reduced working hours • Limited for 3 years with possible longer-term prospects • Salary and social benefits in conformity with the provisions of the Collective Agreement for the Civil Service (TVöD). Depending on the applicant`s qualifications and the precise nature of the tasks, salary grade EG 13 TVöD-Bund Forschungszentrum Jülich promotes equal opportunities and diversity in its employment relations. We also welcome applications from disabled persons." To apply, please follow the link: https://www.fz-juelich.de/SharedDocs/Stellenangebote/_common/dna/2020-212-E… All the best, Silvia Prof. Dr. rer. nat. Silvia Daun Kognitive Neurowissenschaften Institut für Neurowissenschaften und Medizin (INM-3) Forschungszentrum Jülich Leo-Brandt-Str. 5 52425 Jülich Telefon: 02461-61-8638 Telefax: 02461-61-9853 Email: s.daun(a)fz-juelich.de und Professorin für Computational Neuroscience - Modeling Neural Network Function Zoologisches Institut Universität zu Köln Biowissenschaftliches Zentrum, Zi. 1.104 Zülpicher-Straße 47b 50674 Köln Telefon: 0221-470-3829 Telefax: 0221-470-4889 Email: silvia.daun(a)uni-koeln.de http://www.neuro.uni-koeln.de/neuro-gruhn-staff-sg.html ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 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 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

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job post: machine learning research scientist at NIMH
by Francisco Pereira July 12, 2020

July 12, 2020

*** HIRING: machine learning research scientist The Machine Learning Team at the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) in Bethesda, MD, has an open position for a machine learning research scientist. The NIMH is the lead federal agency for research on mental disorders and neuroscience, and part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). *** About the NIMH Machine Learning Team Our mission is to help NIMH scientists use machine learning methods to address a diverse set of research problems in clinical and cognitive psychology and neuroscience. These range from identifying biomarkers for aiding diagnoses to creating and testing models of mental processes in healthy subjects. We work with many different data types, including very large brain imaging datasets from various imaging modalities, behavioral data, and picture and text corpora. We have excellent computational resources, both of our own (tens of GPUs for deep learning) and shared within the NIH (a cluster with hundreds of thousands of CPUs, and hundreds of GPUs). As a machine learning research group, we develop new methods and publish in the main machine learning conferences (e.g. NeurIPS and ICLR), as well as in psychology and neuroscience journals. Many of our problems require devising research approaches that combine imaging and non-imaging data, and leveraging structured knowledge resources (databases, scientific literature, etc) to generate explanations and hypotheses. You can find more about our work and publications at https://cmn.nimh.nih.gov/mlt *** About the position We are seeking candidates who are capable of combining machine learning, statistical, and domain-specific computational tools to solve practical data analysis challenges (e.g. designing experiments, generating and testing statistical hypotheses, training and interpreting predictive models, and developing novel models and methods). Additionally, candidates should be capable of visualizing and communicating findings to a broad scientific audience, as well as explaining the details of relevant methods to researchers in a variety of domains. Desirable experience that is not required, but will be considered very favorably: - neuroimaging data processing and analysis (any MRI modality, as well as MEG and EEG) - other types of neural data (e.g. neural recording, calcium imaging) - modelling of human and animal learning and decision-making - Bayesian statistical modelling Finally, you should have demonstrable experience coding in languages currently used in data-intensive, scientific computing, such as Python, MATLAB or R. Experience with handling large datasets in high performance computing settings is also very valuable. Although this position requires a Ph.D. in a STEM discipline, we will consider applicants from a variety of backgrounds, as their research experience is the most important factor. This is an ideal position for someone who wants to establish a research career in method development and applications driven by scientific and clinical needs. Given our access to a variety of collaborators and large or unique datasets, there is ample opportunity to match research interests with novel research problems. We also maintain collaborations outside of the NIH, driven by our own research interests. If you would like to be considered for this position, please send francisco.pereira(a)nih.gov a CV, with your email serving as cover letter. If you already have a research statement, please feel free to send that as well. There is no need for reference letters at this stage. Other inquiries are also welcome. Thank you for your attention and interest!

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Two Research (PhD) Positions in Machine Learning Theory and Applications - Oldenburg University, Germany
by Jörg Lücke July 10, 2020

July 10, 2020

The Machine Learning Lab at the University of Oldenburg, Germany, is seeking to fill two positions for doctoral researchers Our Machine Learning Lab conducts mathematically grounded research on novel approaches in Machine Learning with a focus on probabilistic generative approaches including deep generative models. Examples are deep variational autoencoders, deep mixture models, and Bayesian networks. Our research projects are conducted in collaboration with leading international labs, and we publish in leading international journals and present on leading conferences. Our interests are in understanding methods and in developing novel approaches to solve difficult problems in Machine Learning. We are interested in problems with strong data corruptions, strong noise and in problems with few data or few labels. Furthermore, we are in general interested in the development of novel approaches that significantly improve learning efficiency (with applications to Big Data). At the same time, we model neural information processing using Machine Learning models in order to understand the nature of biological intelligence. The two positions will both allow for basic research, and they will both allow for applications to data for tasks such as data enhancement (denoising, inpainting, deblurring), unsupervised and semi-supervised learning, super-resolution, outlier detection etc. Part of one position has a focus on addressing such tasks for medical data. Ideal candidates have a strong background in a theoretical subject and/or a high interest in further advancing Machine Learning methods such as variational optimization. Example degrees that qualify for the positions are degrees in Physics, Mathematics, Statistics, in the Data Sciences or degrees of related disciplines. Strong programming skills are a big plus. Candidates have to hold a MSc degree or have to be sufficiently close to obtaining one. Interested researchers are invited to apply for both positions simultaneously (please indicate in the cover letter). This is an informal description of the positions. The only officially relevant descriptions can be found here (please follow the instructions therein): https://uol.de/stellen/?stelle=67425 https://uol.de/stellen/?stelle=67430 Both positions are funded for 2.5 / 3 years with an intention for extensions. Oldenburg is a nice and affordable place to live, and is located within 40mins travel time of the North Sea coast. It is part of the Bremen/Oldenburg metropolitan region of Germany with close cultural and academic links to Dutch cities like Groningen across the German/Dutch border. The application deadline for the positions is July 19, 2020. -- Prof. Dr. Jörg Lücke Leiter Abteilung Machine Learning Department für Medizinische Physik und Akustik Fakultät für Medizin und Gesundheitswissenschaften Carl von Ossietzky Universität Oldenburg D-26111 Oldenburg www.uol.de/ml

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Workshop: Open data, tools, and models from the Allen Institute supporting systematic computational studies in neuroscience
by Anton Arkhipov July 10, 2020

July 10, 2020

Dear Colleagues, The Workshop “Open data, tools, and models from the Allen Institute supporting systematic computational studies in neuroscience” will take place online on July 21-23, 2020, as a part of the 29th Annual Computational Neuroscience Meeting (CNS*2020). Join us at the Workshop to learn about unique open datasets, software tools, and computational models from the Allen Institute and to discuss how the community can utilize these free resources to support and inform computational and theoretical work. To attend, please register for CNS*2020 at https://www.cnsorg.org/cns-2020 <https://www.cnsorg.org/cns-2020%0b>The registration is free. When: July 21-23, 2020, 8:00am-12:00pm, Pacific Time Workshop Reference: W6 Workshop Organizers: Anton Arkhipov (Allen Institute for Brain Science, Seattle, WA) Saskia de Vries (Allen Institute for Brain Science, Seattle, WA) Nuno da Costa (Allen Institute for Brain Science, Seattle, WA) Confirmed Speakers: Michael Buice (Allen Institute for Brain Science, Seattle, WA) Forrest Collman (Allen Institute for Brain Science, Seattle, WA) Eva Dyer (Georgia Tech, Atlanta, GA) Gaute Einevoll (University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway) Michael Hawrylycz (Allen Institute for Brain Science, Seattle, WA) Tim Jarsky (Allen Institute for Brain Science, Seattle, WA) Jerome Lecoq (Allen Institute for Brain Science, Seattle, WA) Gabriela Michel (Janelia Research Campus, Ashburn, VA) Stefan Mihalas (Allen Institute for Brain Science, Seattle, WA) Lydia Ng (Allen Institute for Brain Science, Seattle, WA) Blake Richards (McGill University, Montreal, Canada) Josh Siegle (Allen Institute for Brain Science, Seattle, WA) Bosiljka Tasic (Allen Institute for Brain Science, Seattle, WA) Jennifer Whitesell (Allen Institute for Brain Science, Seattle, WA) Joel Zylberberg (York University, Toronto, Canada) Further details: https://alleninstitute.org/what-we-do/brain-science/events-training/2020-cn… We hope to see you there! Best wishes, Anton. Anton Arkhipov Associate Investigator T: 206.548.8414 [cidimage001.png(a)01D5F0E2.E3F24C00] www.alleninstitute.org<https://nam12.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.alleni…>

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9th International Summer School in Biomedical Engineering (2020)
by Dölker Eva-Maria TU Ilmenau July 9, 2020

July 9, 2020

Dear Colleagues, We are pleased to announce that we have an excellent list of lecturers at the 9th International Summer School in Biomedical Engineering (2020) hold from 5th-11th August 2020 in Augustinerkloster in Erfurt, Germany. The program can be found on the summer school webpage: https://www.tu-ilmenau.de/bmti/wissenschaftliche-veranstaltungen/summer-sch… We are currently accepting PhD students and advanced Master students applications. Registration info can be found at the point “General Information”. Please send any enquiries to Eva-Maria Dölker <eva-maria.doelker(a)tu-ilmenau.de<mailto:eva-maria.doelker@tu-ilmenau.de>>. Best regards, Eva-Maria Dölker Organization of the Summer School

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FENS Workshop on Glial interfaces: Technology & Methods to uncover the 4D glial role in brain function & dysfunction
by Maurizio De Pittà July 9, 2020

July 9, 2020

Dear colleagues, please mark it on your calendar and disseminate among your contacts: https://cslide.ctimeetingtech.com/fens2020/attendee/confcal/show/session/281 This year's FENS Forum of Neuroscience, which will take place online due to the ongoing Covid19 health emergency, will feature a multidisciplinary workshop on "Glial Interfaces: Technology & Methods to uncover the 4D glial role in brain function & dysfunction" on Saturday, July 11, 2020, 9 am-11.30 am (BST: British Summer Time, GMT+1). *** Program at a glance: Multiscale excitation and recording of astrocytes signaling and conductance by nanostructured devices, Valentina Benfenati, National Research Council, CNR-ISOF, Italy, Exposure to graphene oxide alters astrocyte homeostasis and astrocyte-to-neuron communication, Fabrizia Cesca, University of Trieste, Italy. Lessons learned from a tissue-engineered 3D model of the glial scar, Ana Paula Pêgo, Institute for Bioengineering (INEB), and Institute for Research and Innovation in Health (I3S), Portugal. Reverse engineering neuron-glial interactions: An overarching approach from cellular biophysics to medicine, Maurizio De Pitta, Basque Center for Applied Mathematics, Spain. Exploring the structure, neuronal content, and functional significance of astrocytic domains of behaving animals with CLARITY and 2-photon imaging, Adi Doron, The Hebrew University, Israel. The color of pain: Technology advances allowing the future objective quantification, Mark Hutchinson, University of Adelaide, Australia. *** A Live Q&A session will follow the workshop. For further information: https://cslide.ctimeetingtech.com/fens2020/attendee/confcal/show/session/281 Thank you for your consideration. Maurizio De Pitta ----- Maurizio De Pitta' Research Fellow MCEN -- Group of Mathematical, Computational and Experimental Neuroscience BCAM -- Basque Center of Applied Mathematics https://sites.google.com/site/mauriziodepitta/home

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Call for papers: GEM 2021 - workshop on generative episodic memory
by Vinita Samarasinghe July 9, 2020

July 9, 2020

Call For Papers: *GEM 2021**- Generative Episodic Memory: Interdisciplinary perspectives from psychology, neuroscience and philosophy* https://for2812.rub.de/gem2021 16-18 February 2021 /Ruhr University Bochum, Germany/ The DFG-funded research consortium “FOR 2812 – Constructing scenarios of the past” https://for2812.rub.de is proud to announce a call for papers for its first workshop on generative episodic memory. Depending on the public health situation in February next year, the workshop will be in-person, virtual or a hybrid event. We invite submissions for talks and posters https://easychair.org/cfp/gem2021. Episodic memories are widely regarded as memories of personally experienced events. Early concepts about episodic memory were based on the storage model, according to which experiential content is preserved in memory and later retrieved. However, overwhelming empirical evidence suggests that the content of episodic memory is – at least to a certain degree – constructed in the act of remembering. Even though very few contemporary researchers would oppose this view of episodic memory as a generative process, it has not become the standard paradigm of empirical memory research. This is particularly true for studies of the neural correlates of episodic memory. Further hindering progress are large conceptual differences regarding episodic memory across different fields, such as neuroscience, philosophy, and psychology. This interdisciplinary workshop therefore aims to bring together researchers from all relevant fields to advance the state of the art in the research on generative episodic memory. FOR 2812 “Constructing scenarios of the past: A new framework in episodic memory” consists of 9 researchers. Seven from the Ruhr University Bochum and two from the University of Münster. The consortium adopts an interdisciplinary approach and investigates generative episodic memory from a conceptual, modeling, and experimental perspective using a common conceptual framework: scenario construction. Keynote Speakers: Karl-Heinz Bäuml - University Regensburg, Germany Dorthe Berntsen - Aarhus University, Denmark Amy Criss - University of Syracuse, USA Dorothea Debus - University of Konstanz, Germany David Huber - University of Massachusetts, USA Sarah Robins - University of Kansas, USA Deadlines [GMT +1 (CET)]: Abstract submission - 15.11.2020 Notification of acceptance - 19.12.2020 Submission guidelines: Abstracts must be submitted in English and be no longer than 1 page. Submitted work must be original and unpublished. Abstracts must be submitted electronically through the GEM 2021 paper submission site on EasyChair https://easychair.org/cfp/gem2021. Authors will receive confirmation of receipt of their abstracts including an ID number after submission. You can edit your submission at any time before the deadline. We will consider only the final version. Program committee: Nikolai Axmacher - Faculty of Psychology - Ruhr University Bochum Sen Cheng - Institute for Neural Computation - Ruhr University Bochum Gerald Echterhoff - Faculty of Psychology - University of Münster Albert Newen - Faculty of Philosophy - Ruhr University Bochum Ricarda Schubotz - Faculty of Psychology - University of Münster Markus Werning - Faculty of Philosophy - Ruhr University Bochum Laurenz Wiskott - Institute for Neural Computation - Ruhr University Bochum Oliver Wolf - Faculty of Psychology - Ruhr University Bochum All questions regarding the workshop should be emailed to for2812(a)rub.de Coordinator - Vinita Samarasinghe Secretary - Christiane Dahl -- Vinita Samarasinghe M.Sc., M.A. Science Manager Arbeitsgruppe Computational Neuroscience Institut für Neuroinformatik Ruhr-Universität Bochum, NB 3/26 Postfachnummer 110 Universitätstr. 150 44801 Bochum Tel: +49 (0) 234 32 27996 Email: samarasinghe(a)ini.rub.de

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Fully funded Ph.D. Studentship in Cognitive Computational Neuroscience
by Wong-Lin, Kongfatt July 8, 2020

July 8, 2020

Applications are invited for a fully funded 3-year Ph.D. studentship in Cognitive Computational Neuroscience at Ulster University, UK. This Ph.D. project aims to develop computational modelling techniques to understand brain and behavioural data across primate species, and to apply techniques in computational neuroscience particularly biologically based neural network modelling to elucidate the mechanisms underlying abstract decision making. This Ph.D. project is part of an externally funded international collaboration: Prof. Michael Shadlen at Columbia University (USA), Prof. Stephan Bickel at Northwell-Hofstra School of Medicine (USA), Prof. Redmond O'Connell at Trinity College Dublin (Ireland), Prof. Simon Kelly at University College Dublin (Ireland), and Dr. KongFatt Wong-Lin at Ulster University (UK). Some relevant references: (i) O'Connell RG, Shadlen MN, Wong-Lin K, Kelly SP. Bridging Neural and Computational Viewpoints on Perceptual Decision-Making. Trends Neurosci. 2018;41(11):838‐852. doi:10.1016/j.tins.2018.06.005 (ii) Atiya NAA, Rañó I, Prasad G, Wong-Lin K. A neural circuit model of decision uncertainty and change-of-mind. Nat Commun. 2019;10(1):2287. doi:10.1038/s41467-019-10316-8 (iii) O'Connell RG, Dockree PM, Kelly SP. A supramodal accumulation-to-bound signal that determines perceptual decisions in humans. Nat Neurosci. 2012;15(12):1729‐1735. doi:10.1038/nn.3248 This timely and exciting project is available in the Computer Science Research Institute and is tenable in the Faculty of Computing, Engineering and the Built Environment at Magee Campus. The successful Ph.D. candidate will benefit from the expertise of Ulster’s Cognitive and Computational Neuroscience, Machine Learning, and Computational Biology communities, and will interact closely with experimental collaborators. The student will gain valuable skills and knowledge in computational and mathematical modelling, biological signal processing, machine learning, high-performance computing, mathematics/statistics, and brain sciences. All applicants should hold a first or upper second class honours degree (or equivalent) in Physics, Mathematics, Computer Science, Mathematics, Engineering, Statistics, Neuroscience, Biology, or a cognate area. Applications will be considered on a competitive basis with regard to the candidate’s qualifications, skills, experience and interests. Successful candidates will enrol as of 1st January 2021, on a full-time programme of research studies leading to the award of the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. The Ph.D. studentship will comprise fees together with an annual stipend and will be awarded for a period of up to three years subject to satisfactory progress. Additional financial support may be available from research funding. If you wish to discuss your proposal or receive advice on this project please contact: Dr. KongFatt Wong-Lin, email: k.wong-lin(a)ulster.ac.uk . Procedure: For more information on applying: https://www.ulster.ac.uk/doctoralcollege Apply online: https://www.ulster.ac.uk/doctoralcollege/find-a-phd?type=funded The closing date for receipt of completed applications is 31st August 2020. Interviews will be held in September 2020, and starting date is on 1st January 2021. ------------------- Dr. KongFatt Wong-Lin Reader Intelligent Systems Research Centre School of Computing, Engineering and Intelligent Systems Ulster University, UK https://www.ulster.ac.uk/staff/k-wong-lin This email and any attachments are confidential and intended solely for the use of the addressee and may contain information which is covered by legal, professional or other privilege. If you have received this email in error please notify the system manager at postmaster(a)ulster.ac.uk and delete this email immediately. Any views or opinions expressed are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of Ulster University. The University's computer systems may be monitored and communications carried out on them may be recorded to secure the effective operation of the system and for other lawful purposes. Ulster University does not guarantee that this email or any attachments are free from viruses or 100% secure. Unless expressly stated in the body of a separate attachment, the text of email is not intended to form a binding contract. Correspondence to and from the University may be subject to requests for disclosure by 3rd parties under relevant legislation. The Ulster University was founded by Royal Charter in 1984 and is registered with company number RC000726 and VAT registered number GB672390524.The primary contact address for Ulster University in Northern Ireland is Cromore Road, Coleraine, Co. Londonderry BT52 1SA

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