August 2025 - Comp-neuro - lists.cnsorg.org

[Meetings] Call for Participation – Workshop on NeuroDesign in Human–Robot Interaction (IEEE RO-MAN 2025)

by NeuroDesign in HRI

Dear Colleagues, We are pleased to invite you to the 3rd Workshop on NeuroDesign in Human–Robot Interaction, held in conjunction with the IEEE International Conference on Robot and Human Interactive Communication (RO-MAN 2025). The event will take place on August 25, 2025 in Eindhoven, the Netherlands, with both onsite and online participation options. ================================================== CALL FOR PARTICIPATION Date: August 25, 2025 Time: 9:00 am – 5:00 pm CEST Location: Eindhoven, Netherlands Format: Hybrid (Onsite & Online via Zoom) Workshop Website: https://neurodesign-in-hri.webflow.io Conference Website: https://www.ro-man2025.org Registration (Zoom link): https://forms.gle/fQMxJtkXb8JEU2WR6 ================================================== WORKSHOP DESCRIPTION The NeuroDesign in Human–Robot Interaction Workshop explores how neuroscience, AI, psychology, wearable robotics, and human-centered design can converge to create the next generation of brain-centered, intuitive, and engaging human–robot systems. NeuroDesign goes beyond performance metrics, focusing on cognitive and physical interactions (cHRI/pHRI) that feel natural to the brain and body—adaptive, ergonomic, and socially meaningful. The program will feature cutting-edge research, live demonstrations, and interdisciplinary discussion on themes such as: Themes include: - Brain–Computer Interfaces (BCI) and Cognitive HRI - Wearable and Assistive Robotics - Neuroergonomics and Human Factors - Embodied AI and Human–AI Co-adaptation - Affective and Social Robotics - Soft Robotics, Exosuits, and Human Augmentation ================================================== DISTINGUISHED SPEAKERS Keynote Speakers: - Jeff Krichmar, University of California, Irvine - Alessandra Sciutti, Italian Institute of Technology - Matteo Bianchi, University of Pisa - Raphaëlle N. Roy, Université de Toulouse - Kyle Yoshida, University of California, Los Angeles - Kai Arulkumaran, Araya Inc. - Kinsey Herrin, Georgia Institute of Technology - Alexis E. Block, Case Western Reserve University Industry Spotlight: - Tharun Iyer, OpenBCI - Ryan Hanson, Wearable Sensing ================================================== STUDENT EXPO & COMPETITION The Student EXPO & Competition is still open for submissions. Undergraduate, Master’s, and PhD students are invited to present their concepts, prototypes, or exploratory studies in HRI, BCI, and neuro-inspired design. Highlights: - Prizes doubled compared to the previous call - All 10 selected finalists will receive awards - Awards include: * Best Innovation in HRI NeuroDesign (up to €500) * Most Popular Project Award (including a full APC waiver for Frontiers in Robotics and AI) * Lucky Draw Prizes (e.g., DIY Neuroscience Kit, Raspberry Pi 5, wearable EMG kits, etc.) * Certificates for all finalists Intent-to-Participate Deadline: August 20, 2025 Intent Form: https://forms.gle/TeywZB55NchRXeWn6 Competition Guidelines: https://neurodesign-in-hri.webflow.io/#competition-guidelines ================================================== JOIN US The NeuroDesign in HRI Workshop provides a unique platform to engage with leading researchers, industry innovators, and student projects shaping the future of human–machine synergy. We look forward to welcoming you in Eindhoven or online. Best regards, Organizing Committee 3rd Workshop on NeuroDesign in Human–Robot Interaction @ IEEE RO-MAN 2025 Email: neurodesign.hri(a)gmail.com Website: https://neurodesign-in-hri.webflow.io

Aug. 18, 2025

Postdoctoral Research Fellowship in AI for Low-Cost PET–MRI Imaging at the University of Cape Town, South Africa

by jon.shock＠gmail.com

The Shocklab, picoPET, and SoLow research groups at the University of Cape Town (UCT) invite suitably qualified candidates to apply for a Postdoctoral Research Fellowship in AI for low-cost medical imaging. The fellowship advances research at the intersection of artificial intelligence, image reconstruction, and multimodal neuroimaging, with applications to global health and diagnostic equity in low-resource settings. Call for Applications The successful fellow will be jointly hosted by the Department of Mathematics and Applied Mathematics, the picoPET group in the Department of Physics, and the SoLow group in the Department of Biomedical Engineering, and will conduct research on AI-based PET/MRI reconstruction, PET–MRI fusion, and advanced image analysis techniques. Conditions of Award (General) • Applicants must have achieved a doctoral degree within the past five (5) years. • Applicants may not previously have held full-time, permanent professional or comprehensive academic posts. • The successful incumbent will be required to comply with UCT’s approved policies, procedures, and practices for postdoctoral fellows. • No benefits or allowances are included other than those stated under Value and Tenure. • Postdoctoral fellows may undertake up to 12 hours per week of remunerated employment outside the fellowship for professional development; such remuneration is taxable and processed via UCT HR. Value and Tenure • Value of the fellowship: R500,000 per annum, compliant with the SARS Binding Class Ruling and therefore tax-exempt. • Travel allowance: R50,000 per annum for conferences and collaborations. • Tenure: One (1) year, renewable for up to one (1) additional year (maximum two years). In line with UCT policy, further extension up to five years of enrolment may be considered under exceptional circumstances. • Location: University of Cape Town, South Africa. • Start date: Available immediately or from early 2026. Academic Criteria • PhD in a relevant field (e.g., AI, biomedical engineering, medical imaging, applied mathematics, physics). • Experience with image reconstruction/medical imaging or a strong computer vision background, and deep learning. • Proficiency in Python-based ML frameworks (e.g., JAX, PyTorch). • Strong publication record and ability to work independently. Project Description The fellow will lead research at the interface of AI and low-cost imaging hardware, including: • Design of AI-based PET and MRI reconstruction algorithms optimized for signal recovery, clinical interpretability, and efficiency. • Validation on simulated and experimental data, benchmarking against MLEM, OSEM, and FBP using PSNR/SSIM or related metrics. • Development of PET–MRI image fusion pipelines combining picoPET and SoLow data. • Evaluation of the diagnostic utility of fused images through expert review or pilot clinical studies. • Exploration of advanced techniques (e.g., end-to-end multimodal models, latent-space regularization, attention mechanisms, diffusion-based denoising, super-resolution). The long-term aim is to demonstrate that AI can enable high-quality medical imaging in low-resource settings using affordable hardware. Research Environment • Shocklab, led by Associate Professor Jonathan Shock (Department of Mathematics and Applied Mathematics; Interim Director of the UCT AI Initiative). • picoPET, led by Dr James Keaveney, developing novel low-cost PET systems. • SoLow, led by Professor Ernesta Meintjes, pioneering low-field MRI technology. The fellow will join an interdisciplinary team across Biomedical Engineering, Mathematics and Applied Mathematics, Physics, and the Neuroscience Institute. Computing Resources • Access to the UCT High Performance Computing cluster. Application Requirements Please submit a single PDF including: • Letter of application stating expertise, research interests, and experience. • Curriculum vitae with publication list. • Description of prior research and its relevance to AI-based medical imaging. • Research statement (1–2 pages) outlining ideas for the PET–MRI project. • Certified copies of academic transcripts. • Either names and contact details or letters of reference from at least two academics who have taught, supervised, or worked with the applicant. Applications and enquiries: Associate Professor Jonathan Shock, jonathan.shock(a)uct.ac.za Selection Process Eligible and complete applications will be considered by the hosting departments in consultation with the relevant research groups. Shortlisted candidates may be invited for interview. Key Dates Application deadline: 15 September 2025 Interviews: October 2025 About UCT and Cape Town UCT, founded in 1829, is consistently ranked among Africa’s leading universities, with a diverse community of over 30,000 students and a strong international profile. The main campus lies at the foot of Table Mountain in Cape Town, a city offering a unique blend of natural beauty and urban culture. Living costs in Cape Town are substantially lower than in major US or European cities. See: https://www.numbeo.com/cost-of-living/in/Cape-Town Equity Statement UCT is committed to the pursuit of excellence, diversity and redress in achieving its equity targets in accordance with the Employment Equity Plan of the University and its Employment Equity goals and targets. The Employment Equity Policy is available at Employment Equity Policy. Indemnity The University of Cape Town reserves the right to disqualify ineligible, incomplete and/or inappropriate applications, change the conditions of award, or make no awards at all.

Aug. 17, 2025

[OIST Visiting Program] Open Calls for Visiting Scholars in FY2026 and Thematic Programs in FY2027

by Kenji Doya

We are pleased to announce new calls for Visiting Programs at Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology (OIST). OIST is a university with no departments, eliminating artificial barriers between people working in different fields, with students and faculty from all over the world. We are seeking for applicants from interesting researchers from around the world. There are opportunities to spend several months on a beautiful subtropical island in the south of Japan, and focus solely on research. All fields are eligible, as long as the proposed project has overlap or shared interests with researchers at OIST. Invitees will be provided with travel/visa support, on-campus housing, office space in the visiting program area, access to OIST computing resources, ... Inquiries are welcome, please write to tsvp(a)oist.jp<mailto:tsvp@oist.jp> __________ OIST's Visiting Program<https://www.oist.jp/visiting-program> (TSVP) currently has open calls for Visiting Scholars in FY2026 and Thematic Programs in FY2027. Summary of currently open calls: * Thematic Programs<https://www.oist.jp/visiting-program/application-thematic-program> in FY2027: : Group of researchers, 1-2 months, all fields. (short) pre-proposals to be submitted by September 15, 2025. * Visiting Scholars <https://www.oist.jp/visiting-program/application-visiting-scholars> in FY2026: : Visits of 3-12 months, all fields. Deadline: September 15, 2025. * Experimental Visiting Scholars<https://www.oist.jp/visiting-program/application-exp-scholars> in FY2026 (only if lab access is required) * Domestic Visitors<https://www.oist.jp/visiting-program/application-domestic> in FY2025: Flexible duration, all fields, Rolling Deadline. Details: https://www.oist.jp/visiting-program/application and in the below overview image [call for tsvp visiting program2025 banner] [Visiting Program Call for Pre-Proposals for Thematic Programs banner] Overview of all OIST's Visiting Programs [8tgbpZzgdD0Fh3az.png]<https://www.oist.jp/visiting-program/application> ---- Kenji Doya <doya(a)oist.jp> Neural Computation Unit, Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University 1919-1 Tancha, Onna, Okinawa 904-0495, Japan Phone: +81-98-966-8594; Fax: +81-98-966-2891 https://groups.oist.jp/ncu

Aug. 17, 2025

Deep Math 2025 call for papers

by Ahmed El Hady

DeepMath 2025: Call for Abstracts We are pleased to announce *DeepMath 2025*: the 7th installment of the Conference for the Mathematical Theory of Deep Learning (www.deepmath-conference.com) This year DeepMath will be held at the *University of Michigan in Ann Arbor Michigan*. We have a stellar lineup of invited speakers including: * Laura Balzano (University of Michigan) * Rama Chellappa (Johns Hopkins University) * Jelena Diakonikolas (University of Wisconsin) * Surbhi Goel (University of Pennsylvania) * Thomas Icard (Stanford University) * Robert Nowak (University of Wisconsin) We are inviting researchers to present a poster during our poster session. Please submit your work no later than *August 31, 2025* on OpenReview using the following link: https://openreview.net/group?id=deepmath-conference.com/DeepMath/2025/Confe… <https://openreview.net/group?id=deepmath-conference.com/DeepMath/2025/Confe…> DeepMath is a highly interdisciplinary conference focused on understanding fundamental theory driving the success of Deep Learning. A principal goal of this conference is to bring together theoreticians working on deep learning from various disciplines and perspectives. We, therefore, encourage submissions from researchers from diverse disciplines including but not limited to * Statistics * Physics * Computer science * Neuroscience * Mathematics * Psychology * Engineering Topics may address any area of deep learning research such as: * Expressivity * Generalization * Optimization * Representations * Computation * Network architectures * Recurrent networks * Emergent abilities like in-context learning, reasoning To complement the many conferences with applications and theory the focus for DeepMath will be exclusively on the theoretical and mechanistic understanding of the underlying properties of neural networks. Abstracts will not be made public (i.e., no official proceedings), and will be doubly-blind reviewed and selected for quality. All poster submissions should be properly anonymized in order to allow for blind refereeing. *Submissions should be no more than 1 page* although a second page may be used for references. Authors should submit a pdf file prepared using the *Latex style file available **here* <https://storage.googleapis.com/wzukusers/user-23451351/documents/5c90d93c12…>and should adopt all formatting, subject headings, font sizes, etc. defined therein. Submissions that fail to meet the format requirements will not be reviewed. The first author listed on the abstract is considered to be the presenting author. Each presenting author may submit only one abstract.

Aug. 17, 2025

To Spike or Not to Spike: A neural network model of how neurons communicate

by Grossberg, Stephen

Dear Comp-Neuro colleagues, I am writing to announce the publication of my new article that describes psychological and neurobiological properties of neural network models that are composed of spiking neurons. The article is: Grossberg, S. (2025). Spiking neural network models of neurons and networks for perception, learning, cognition, and navigation: A review. Brain Sciences, 15(8), 870. https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/15/8/870 The Abstract of the article summarizes some of its high points: This article reviews and synthesizes highlights of the history of neural models of rate-based and spiking neural networks. It explains that theoretical and experimental results about how all rate-based neural network models, whose cells obey the membrane equations of neurophysiology, also called shunting laws, can be converted into spiking neural network models without any loss of explanatory power, and often with gains in explanatory power. These results are relevant to all the main brain processes, including individual neurons and networks for perception, learning, cognition, and navigation. The results build upon the hypothesis that the functional units of brain processes are spatial patterns of cell activities, or short-term-memory (STM) traces, and spatial patterns of learned adaptive weights, or long-term-memory (LTM) patterns. It is also shown how spatial patterns that are learned by spiking neurons during childhood can be preserved even as the child’s brain grows and deforms while it develops towards adulthood. Indeed, this property of spatiotemporal self-similarity may be one of the most powerful properties that individual spiking neurons contribute to the development of large-scale neural networks and architectures throughout life. Get Outlook for Mac <https://aka.ms/GetOutlookForMac>

Aug. 15, 2025

Two tenure-track positions at University of Oregon

by James Murray

Dear colleagues, The Department of Bioengineering at the University of Oregon’s Knight Campus for Accelerating Scientific Impact invites applications for two complementary tenure-track faculty positions in computational and experimental neuroengineering: 1. Computational & Data-Science Neuroengineering Examples include but are not limited to the following: neural signal processing & data analytics for feature extraction, decoding, and adaptive control, high-throughput behavior tracking and closed-loop perturbations (e.g. pose estimation, unsupervised behavior clustering, neural conditional feedback), neuromorphic computing & AI hardware or brain-inspired AI algorithm development, spatial analysis of multi-omics data. 2. Experimental & Translational Neuroengineering Examples include but are not limited to the following: clean-room micro- and nanofabrication methods for neural interfaces, neurophotonics methods for brain stimulation, recording, and imaging, pre-clinical models in bioelectric medicine or brain injury repair, brain organoid technology development, and disease models. We are particularly interested in applicants with a demonstrated track record of translating discoveries into real-world impact, including through entrepreneurial activities; a demonstrated commitment to mentoring and advancing inclusive participation in scientific training and career pathways; and success in pedagogical environments that employ evidence-based teaching practices. All ranks (Assistant, Associate, or Full Professor) with a track record of research excellence commensurate with their seniority will be considered. Further details and application instructions can be found here: https://careers.uoregon.edu/en-us/job/535571/assistantassociatefull-profess… Please pass along this announcement to any potential candidates you know who might be interested. Any inquiries regarding this search may be sent to jmurray9(a)uoregon.edu. -James -- James M Murray Assistant Professor Depts. of Biology and Mathematics and Institute of Neuroscience University of Oregon murraylab.uoregon.edu<https://murraylab.uoregon.edu>

Aug. 15, 2025

Super early bird tickets now available—AE Global Summit on Open Problems for AI, London (Oct 28-30th, 2025)

by Battleday, Ruairidh

Super-early-bird registration is now open for the AE Global Summit on Open Problems for AI, taking place in London from 28–30th October 2025. Over three days, we will bring together more than 1,000 researchers, policymakers, engineers, entrepreneurs, and artists to discuss the most important open problems in AI, and how we might solve them. Programme highlights Day 1: New Algorithmic Breakthroughs and AI Infrastructure Featuring Dr David Silver <https://davidstarsilver.wordpress.com/>and Dr Raia Hadsell (DeepMind), <https://raiahadsell.com/index.html> Prof Jakob Foerster (Meta & Oxford), <https://www.jakobfoerster.com/> Dr Laura Gilbert (Tony Blair Institute) <https://www.linkedin.com/in/dr-laura-gilbert/>, Prof Emine Yilmaz (UCL) <https://www.linkedin.com/in/emine-yilmaz-978b937/>, and senior research leaders from NVIDIA <https://www.nvidia.com/en-gb/>, Thomson Reuters <https://www.thomsonreuters.com/en>, Bertelsmann <https://www.bertelsmann.com/#st-1>, Wayve <https://wayve.ai/>, and others. Day 2: AI Safety, and AI in Enterprise & Society Speakers include Prof Chris Summerfield (AISI & Oxford) <https://www.psy.ox.ac.uk/people/christopher-summerfield>, Dr Samuel Bell (Meta) <https://samueljamesbell.com/>, Dr Artemis Seaford (ElevenLabs <https://www.linkedin.com/in/artemisseaford/>), Dr Marius Hobbhahn (Apollo Research) <https://www.linkedin.com/in/marius-hobbhahn-128927175/?originalSubdomain=uk>, and leaders from ADVAI <https://www.advai.co.uk/>, Academy, Tony Blair Institute <https://institute.global/>, and Bernstein Insights <https://www.bernstein.com/our-insights/insights.html>. Day 3: AI Entrepreneurship & Application With Alexander Straub (Straub Ventures) <https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexanderstraub/?originalSubdomain=uk>, Dr Trias Gkikopoulos (Innovate UK) <https://www.linkedin.com/in/triantafyllosgkikopoulos/?original_referer=http…>, Erwann Le Lannou (XTX Markets) <https://www.linkedin.com/in/erwann-le-lannou/?originalSubdomain=uk>, Prof Rose Luckin (UCL & Educate Ventures) <https://www.linkedin.com/in/rose-luckin-5245003/?authType=&authToken=&trk=m…>, Dr Irina Jurenka (DeepMind) <https://www.linkedin.com/in/irina-jurenka-74455235/?originalSubdomain=uk>, and contributors from Google Health <https://health.google/>, Raspberry Pi Foundation <https://www.raspberrypi.org/>, and Newton’s Tree. <https://www.newtonstree.ai/> The conference will feature keynote talks, panels, breakout rooms, and an expo hall, alongside opportunities for informal discussion with colleagues from institutions including Oxford <https://www.ox.ac.uk/>, Harvard <https://www.harvard.edu/>, MIT <https://www.mit.edu/>, UCL <https://www.ucl.ac.uk/>, DeepMind <https://deepmind.google/>, Meta <https://www.meta.com/en-gb/about/?srsltid=AfmBOooyD76gNdU_z8E_JulzOLafvKow3…>, Microsoft <https://www.microsoft.com/en-gb/>, and NVIDIA <https://www.nvidia.com/en-gb/>. We’d love to see some of you there! Register via the link below: http://bit.ly/4ozMsdY -- Dr Ruairidh McLennan Battleday BMBCh (Oxon) PhD President Thinking About Thinking, Inc <https://thinkingaboutthinking.org> Postdoctoral Research Fellow Center for Brain Science, Harvard University Center for Brains, Minds, and Machines, MIT

Aug. 15, 2025

Asst. Prof in AI @ Göttingen, Germany

by Ecker, Alexander

We have an opening for a tenure track assistant professor position (W1 t.t. W2) in AI in our CS dept @uni-goettingen.de, Germany: https://uni-goettingen.de/en/697924.html Application deadline: Sept 19 It's a deliberately broad call. Areas of interest include: RL; VR, AR & digital avatars; Embodied AI, NLP; HCI; Causal models; Time series models; Multimodal data integration; Image analysis and CV; Computational and simulation science; Visualization; HPC and Energy-efficient AI. The position is embedded in the recently founded Lower Saxony Center for AI and Causal Methods in Medicine (CAIMed; https://caimed.de/en/) as well as the Campus Institute Data Science (CIDAS; https://www.uni-goettingen.de/en/690135.html) Göttingen. The Göttingen Campus is highly collaborative, has a great variety of data-intensive research in natural and life sciences, social science and humanities, including top-notch places like MPIs (MPI for Multidisciplinary Sciences, MPI for Solar Systems Research, MPI for Dynamics and Self-Organization), the German Primate Center (DPZ) and the German Aerospace Center (DLR). Göttingen is located in the center of Germany and Europe, in a region known for its green hills, lovely small towns with half-timbered houses and the Harz Mountains. Well-connected through motorways and high-speed trains. It is a small university town (around 120k people) and very family friendly. Everything within the city can be reached by bike within 15 min. Touch base with me if you have any questions. I’m happy to chat!

Aug. 15, 2025

Assistant Professor position in human cognitive neuroscience at Princeton

by Kenneth Norman

The Department of Psychology and the Princeton Neuroscience Institute at Princeton University invite applications for a tenure-track Assistant Professor position in the area of human cognitive neuroscience to be hired jointly in Neuroscience and Psychology. We seek a faculty member with a demonstrated record of excellence in research and a strong commitment to teaching and mentoring. Relevant research approaches include, but are not limited to, computational, clinical, and neuroimaging research. Applicants are expected to hold a Ph.D. in Psychology, Neuroscience, Computer Science, or a related discipline. The successful applicant will be expected to teach both undergraduate and graduate courses in Psychology and Neuroscience, and to establish an active, internationally-recognized research program. To support their research, the successful applicant will have access to the Scully Center for the Neuroscience of Mind and Behavior, which operates a suite of facilities to study the human brain including two 3T Siemens MR scanners, OPM-MEG, EEG, eye tracking, and TMS laboratories. They will also have access to Princeton's world-class computational infrastructure, including GPU systems capable of running large-scale AI workflows. Applicants should submit online at https://www.princeton.edu/acad-positions/position/39681 and include a cover letter, curriculum vitae, research statement, teaching statement, and contact information for three references. Review of applications will begin on October 15, 2025. Expected Salary Range: $135,000 - $145,000 The University considers factors such as (but not limited to) scope and responsibilities of the position, candidate's qualifications, work experience, education/training, key skills, market, collective bargaining agreements as applicable, and organizational considerations when extending an offer. The posted salary range represents the University's good faith and reasonable estimate for a full-time position; salaries for part-time positions are pro-rated accordingly. The University also offers a comprehensive benefit program to eligible employees. Please see this link <https://hr.princeton.edu/benefits-overview-prospective-candidates> for more information.

Aug. 14, 2025

Göttingen Cognition Forum on "Curiosity and Interaction" - Oct 13-15, 2025

by Priesemann, Viola

Dear colleagues, hereby, we would kindly like to draw your attention to the upcoming Göttingen Cognition Forum<https://events.gwdg.de/event/1099/> (Oct 13-15, 2025). It is organized jointly by the CRC 1690 Cognition of Interaction, the RTG Curiosity, the Bernstein Center for Computational Neuroscience, and the EKFZ. We kindly invite you to join us in Göttingen for this interactive workshop! The abstract submission deadline (for posters as well as for presentations) to the satellite workshops has been extended to August 17. Contributions can be submitted here<https://events.gwdg.de/event/1099/abstracts/>. Plenary speakers are Jacqueline Gottlieb Bahador Bahrami Judith Burkart Steve Chang Nachum Ulanovsky and Agostina Palmigiano Participation is free of charge. Please don’t hesitate to contact me in case of questions. Information are available on: https://events.gwdg.de/event/1099/ _____________________ Prof. Dr. Viola Priesemann Max Planck Institute for Dynamics and Self-Organization & Georg-August-University Göttingen Am Fassberg 17, 37077 Göttingen viola.priesemann(a)ds.mpg.de

Aug. 13, 2025