- Comp-neuro - lists.cnsorg.org

Group Leader Position(s) in the Institute of Experimental Medicine, Budapest

by Balazs Ujfalussy

Group Leader Position(s) in the Institute of Experimental Medicine The Institute of Experimental Medicine in Budapest, Hungary invites applications for independent scientific group leader positions. The Institute, an internationally renowned Center of Excellence in neuroscience, hosts scientific groups in diverse fields of neuroscience applying molecular, anatomical, physiological, pharmacological and behavioral approaches, and offers several state-of-the-art core facilities supporting research (see detailed information at http://koki.hu/english/introduction-106273) The successful applicant(s) is(are) expected to establish an internationally competitive research group that integrates into and strengthens the existing research profile of the Institute, and preferably offers interdisciplinary cooperation opportunities. The successful applicant(s) should have a Ph.D. in natural sciences and should be an international expert in experimental or computational neuroscience. Requirements are strong scientific track-record, demonstrating independent research leadership abilities, international experience, competence in supervising a scientific team and excellent cooperation skills. Applications should include (1) a CV, (2) a full publication list and 5 selected (most important) publications, (3) the summary of research achievements (max. 2 pages), (4) scientific concept and plans (2 pages) and (5) presentation of leadership and cooperation experience (half a page). The applications should be submitted by 21st September 2020 by email to: igazgato(a)koki.mta.hu Zoltan Nusser Director Institute of Experimental Medicine Prof. Zoltan Nusser Laboratory of Cellular Neurophysiology Institute of Experimental Medicine H-1083 Budapest, Szigony street 43. Phone: +36-1-210 9983 Fax: +36-1-210 9984 E-mail: nusser.zoltan(a)koki.mta.hu www.nusserlab.hu

Sept. 11, 2020

PhD studentship in Computational and Cognitive Neuroscience

by Shabnam Kadir

*PhD in Computational & Cognitive Neuroscience, University of Hertfordshire, UK* An exciting full-time funded PhD opportunity has arisen at the University of Hertfordshire associated to a collaborative project with King’s College London and Brunel University London funded by the US Air Force. The project aims to build an explorative and predictive model of the brain that is sensitive to the transitions between sustained attention and mind-wandering states using an already collected simultaneously acquired EEG/fMRI dataset. Towards this goal, novel methods for characterizing, sequencing, and predicting neural dynamics at two complementary spatio-temporal resolution levels will be developed: level 1) electroencephalography (EEG) microstates, which are short quasi-stable topographies of brain electrical activity as measured at the scalp; and level 2) functional connectivity maps derived from the functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) data. *Requirements* We are seeking to appoint a graduate in Computer Science, Bioengineering, Physics, Mathematics, Neuroscience, or related fields, with an interest in cognitive neuroscience and neuroimaging, who has proven programming skills (e.g., Python, Matlab, C++). Knowledge of signal processing, time-series analysis, and machine learning would be an advantage. Previous experience of EEG and/or fMRI data analysis is highly desirable. The 3-year full-time PhD studentship includes a stipend of £15,285 per annum in addition to covering tuition fees. *Only EU and UK citizens are eligible to apply.* The start date of the PhD will be January 2021. The PhD will be supervised by *Dr Shabnam Kadir* (University of Hertfordshire), *Dr Elena Antonova* (Brunel University London), *Prof Robert Leech* (Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King’s College London), and *Prof Chrystopher Nehaniv* (University of Hertfordshire, United Kingdom, and University of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada). Interested candidates are encouraged to make informal inquiries with *Dr Shabnam Kadir* (s.kadir2(a)herts.ac.uk) before making a formal application. Full details available here: http://biocomputation.herts.ac.uk/2020/08/25/phd-in-computational-cognitive… To apply, submit an application form (downloadable from https://www.herts.ac.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0010/31105/uh-application-fo…) together with a cover letter, CV, and scanned copies of university transcripts and degree certificates (BSc, and if relevant MSc) via email to doctoralcollegeadmissions(a)herts.ac.uk, cc-ing Dr Kadir on s.kadir2(a)herts.ac.uk and Dr Antonova on elena.antonova(a)brunel.ac.uk *Closing Date for the applications: 28 September 2020.* -- ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Dr. Shabnam Kadir Senior Lecturer School of Physics, Engineering and Computer Science, University of Hertfordshire, Hatfield, Hertfordshire AL10 9AB, United Kingdom. Tel. +44 1707 284641 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sept. 9, 2020

CFP Frontiers Research Topic: Affective Shared Perception

by Pablo Vinicius Alves De Barros

Call For Papers - Frontiers Research Topic: Affective Shared Perception I. Aim and Scope Our perception of the world depends on both sensory inputs and prior knowledge. This applies in general to sensing and has particular implications for affective understanding. Humans adapt their social and affective perception as a function of the current stimulation, of the context, of the history of the interaction, and as of the status of the partner. This influences their behavior, which in turn modifies the social and affective perception of both partners and the evolution of the interaction. Understanding shared perception as part of affective processing will allow us to tackle this problem and to provide the next step towards a real-world affective computing system. The goal of this research topic is to present and discuss new findings, theories, systems, and trends in affective shared perception and computational models. We are interested in collecting interesting and exciting research from researchers on the areas of social cognition, affective computing, and human-robot interaction, including also, but not restricted to specialists in computer and cognitive science, psychologists, neuroscientists, and specialists in bio-inspired solutions. We envision that it will allow us to tackle the existing problems in this area and it will provide the next step towards a real-world affective computing system. II. Potential Topics Topics include, but are not limited to: - Affective perception and learning - Affective modulation and decision making - Developmental perspectives of shared perception - Machine learning for shared perception - Bio-inspired approaches for affective shared perception - Affective processing for embodied and cognitive robots - Multisensory modeling for conflict resolution in shared perception - New psychological findings on shared perception - Assistive aspects and applications of shared affective perception III. Submission - Abstract - 24 October 2020 - Paper Submission - 21 February 2021 IV. Guest Editors Pablo Vinicius Alves De Barros, Italian Institute of Technology (IIT), Genova, Italy Alessandra Sciutti, Italian Institute of Technology (IIT), Genova, Italy Ginevra Castellano, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden Yukie Nagai, The University of Tokyo, Bunkyō, Japan ---------------------------------------- Dr. Pablo Barros Postdoctoral Researcher - CONTACT Unit Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia – Center for Human Technologies Via Enrico Melen 83, Building B 16152 Genova, Italy email: pablo.alvesdebarros(a)iit.it website: https://www.pablobarros.net<http://www.pablobarros.net><https://www.p> twitter: @PBarros_br

Sept. 9, 2020

PhD Opportunities for the Cognitive Anteater Robotics Laboratory at UC Irvine

by Jeffrey Krichmar

Dear Colleagues, We are recruiting PhD students for the Fall of 2021 in the Department of Cognitive Sciences and the Department of Computer Science at the University of California, Irvine. Students will have the opportunity to work in the Cognitive Anteater Robotics Laboratory, which conducts research in assistive robotics, computational neuroscience, machine learning, neural networks, neuromorphic engineering and neurorobotics. Applicants should have a strong mathematical and computer programming background, as well as good communication skills. Current Federally funded projects include: · Artificial Intelligence for Novelty Detection · Cognitive Maps in Rats, Robots and Men · Lifelong Learning Machines · Sparse Predictive Coding for Efficient Visual Navigation More information about the lab, recent publications, software, and videos can be found at: · http://www.socsci.uci.edu/~jkrichma · https://www.youtube.com/user/cognitiveroboticsuci/videos Successful applicants will receive funding toward their Ph.D. for at least 5 years. Students interested in applying can contact me at: jkrichma(a)uci.edu Details about the graduate programs can be found at: · https://www.cogsci.uci.edu/graduate/index.php · https://www.ics.uci.edu/grad/admissions/index About UCI (www.uci.edu) In 1965, the University of California, Irvine was founded with a mission to catalyze the community and enhance lives through rigorous academics, cutting-edge research, and dedicated public service. Today, we draw on the unyielding spirit of our pioneering faculty, staff and students who arrived on campus with a dream to inspire change and generate new ideas. We believe that true progress is made when different perspectives come together to advance our understanding of the world around us. And we enlighten our communities and point the way to a better future. At UCI, we shine brighter. 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

Sept. 7, 2020

OCNS Software/Tools/Infrastructure Special Interest Group (SIG)

by Ankur Sinha

Hello everyone, (Please excuse the cross posts.) At this year's annual CNS meeting[0], the Organization for Computational Neurosciences (OCNS) discussed the formation of OCNS Special Interest Groups (SIGs). The idea is for the OCNS membership to be able to self-organise, based on common interests, to work on various tasks/projects to develop themselves and computational neuroscience in general[1]. The OCNS Board will enable SIGs by providing them with the necessary resources. As you will see on the Neurostars topic, a number of OCNS members have expressed interest in different SIGs. In my capacity as the current OCNS webmaster, I'd like to focus on the software/tools/infrastructure that is critical for computational neuroscience research. From the topic on Neurostars[2]: "Computational neuroscience cannot exist without the tools that we all rely on. So, this SIG will focus on these. We’ll find and discuss tools, we will learn how to use them, we will test and review them, we will file bugs to inform the developers of issues, and finally we will try to learn how they work and try to get involved in their development---to ensure that these tools that we rely on remain in good shape by having communities looking after them. While we do all of this, we will improve our knowledge of transferable skills: anything involved in modern software development (which are not limited to only writing tools, but are extremely important/useful when developing models using these tools)." Please join the discussion on Neurostars if this interests you. We will start to mobilise in the next few weeks. You can learn more about OCNS membership here[3]. [0] https://www.cnsorg.org/cns-2020 [1] https://neurostars.org/t/cns-2020-ocns-members-meeting/15273/3?u=sanjayanku… [2] https://neurostars.org/t/ocns-infrastructure-software-tools-sig-meet-and-gr… [3] https://www.cnsorg.org/join-ocns -- Thanks, Regards, Ankur Sinha (He / Him / His) OCNS webmaster | https://www.cnsorg.org/ Research Fellow at the Silver Lab | http://silverlab.org/ Time zone: Europe/London

Sept. 7, 2020

Call for papers : Cognitive Computation - Springer Journal, Special Issue on Brain Simulation and Spiking Neural Networks

by Zhe Sun

Dear all, Please find below the call for papers for the journal of Cognitive Computation, Special Issue on Brain Simulation and Spiking Neural Networks. The submission deadline is April 1, 2021. Call For Papers: Journal : Cognitive Computation Special Issue : Brain Simulation and Spiking Neural Networks https://www.springer.com/journal/12559/updates/18336610?fbclid=IwAR28sBPPk0… Scope and Motivation During the past 10 years, many experiments have been implemented with the aim of improving our understanding on the brain’s structure and function. Alongside, simulation neuroscience has become an important strategy to investigate how the brain works. The Human Connectome Project in the US started in 2009, and aimed to provide a big human brain mapping dataset on which many brain models have already been tested. In the Human Brain Project in the EU, a large-scale virtual rodent brain simulation is being built with the purpose of revealing various brain activities. In Japan, whole human-scale brain simulations on the Fugaku supercomputer are being established to investigate how neural networks develop their learning process. On the other hand, the foundation of cognitive computing and control mechanism can be revealed from the simulations of brain circuits and the neural dynamics. Moreover, these are also critical to improve current artificial intelligent systems and for building brain intelligence level algorithms. In this special issue, we invite researchers to present their state-of-the-art approaches, introduce recent advances and therefore show the potential of brain-simulation-related technologies. Guest Editors Jordi Solé-Casals (jordi.sole(a)uvic.cat) Cesar F. Caiafa (ccaiafa(a)fi.uba.ar) Zhe Sun (zhe.sun.vk(a)riken.jp) Vassilis Cutsuridis (vcutsuridis(a)lincoln.ac.uk) Topics Topics include but are not limited to: • Brain Connectivity mapping and functional mapping • Data analysis methods for connectome data • Multi-scale neural system simulation • Neuromorphic hardware • High-performance computing system for large scale simulations • Neural system inspired spiking neural network • Neuro-robotics systems • Sensorimotor learning model Deadlines Submissions Deadline: April 1, 2021 First notification of acceptance: June 1, 2021 Submission of revised papers: August 1, 2021 Final notification to the authors: Oct 1, 2021 Submission of final/camera-ready papers: Nov 1, 2021 Publication of special issue: Nov 22, 2021 Submission Instruction: Prepare your paper in accordance with the Journal guidelines: www.springer.com/12559. Submit manuscripts at: http://www.editorialmanager.com/cogn/. Select “SI: Granular Computing and Three-Way Decisions for Cognitive Analytics” for the special issue under “Additional Information.” Your paper must contain significant and original work that has not been published nor submitted to any journals. All papers will be reviewed following standard reviewing procedures of the Journal. If you have questions, please send us an e-mail. Best wishes, Sun Zhe --------------------------------------------------------- Zhe Sun, PhD Research Scientist RIKEN Center for Advanced Photonics Image Processing Research Team RIKEN, Japan 国立研究開発法人　理化学研究所光量子工学研究センター　画像情報処理研究チーム研究員　孫　哲 E-mail： zhe.sun.vk(a)riken.jp sunzhe839(a)gmail.com Tel :　048-462-1111　(ext. 7828) ---------------------------------------------------------

Sept. 6, 2020

PhD position: Machine learning for big sleep data

by Martin Dresler

Hi, Rhine-Waal University of Applied Sciences and the Donders Institute Sleep & Memory Lab are looking for a joint PhD candidate combining data science/AI, wearable EEG technology, and sleep research. In this project, we will use machine learning to investigate big sleep data, using both large open sleep EEG datasets and unique novel studies with multiple repeated sleep EEG recordings via full polysomnography and sleep EEG wearables in naturalistic home-based settings. The results will be fed back into the development of sleep EEG software and hardware, and clinical applications in psychiatry and neurology. Further info: https://dreslerlab.org/phd-position-machine-learning-for-big-sleep-data Cheers, Martin -- Donders Sleep & Memory Lab, Radboud University Medical Center Kapittelweg 29, 6525 EN Nijmegen, Netherlands https://dreslerlab.org

Sept. 3, 2020

Call for submissions to frontier research topic

by alekhya mandali

Dear all We invite contributions to the Frontier's Research topic - ' Exploring Psychopathology: Utility, Action-Selection and Beyond' ABSTRACT ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- A huge body of work on understanding each of many psychiatric conditions in the context of behaviors, neural correlates, and intervention is available and still on-going. One area of research that is rapidly gaining ground is that of impaired decision making in psychiatric disorders such as anxiety, OCD, schizophrenia, etc. The role of more abstract constructs such as emotion, effort, and motivation in utility or value computation and action selection or policymaking is still quite nascent. This Research Topic attempts to bring together research projects that address this need. We welcome theoretical and experimental studies that apply ‘reward or utility maximization and action-selection’ framework to psychiatric conditions such as impulsive (e.g. gambling, addiction), mood and anxiety, and compulsive disorders. Novel approaches that expand this framework and incorporate constructs such as emotion, effort, and motivation are of special focus. The call is open but not restricted to: ● Novel experimental studies/paradigms that investigate effort, motivation, mood, and anxiety in a reward-utility framework in health and disease such as OCD, depression, anxiety, and mood disorders. ● Computational models that utilize either data-driven, simulation-based approaches, and reinforcement learning models where the abstract factors such as effort, motivation, mood, and anxiety are represented in terms of value or utility. ● Research that focuses on studying the causal relationship between decision making and effort, motivation, mood, and anxiety ● Translation research such as pharmacological interventions where insights gained could potentially help design novel treatment/ diagnostic methods. SUBMISSION DATES ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Abstract deadline: 30th September 2020 Manuscript deadline: 01 Jan 2021 DETAILS ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/15163/exploring-psychopathology… -- https://sites.google.com/view/alekhyamandali/home

Sept. 3, 2020

Tobii Pro & ePrime NOW INCLUDED! | Call for Research Projects | Bitbrain

by Eduardo López-Larraz

Dear all, >From Bitbrain we pleased to announce that *Tobii Pro* and *Psychology Software Tools* are joining our *Call for Research Projects* to provide additional research solutions. In addition to the hardware and software provided by Bitbrain, Psychology Software Tools and Tobii Pro have kindly offered to complete our offering with their solutions. Their contribution will be as follows: - *Psychology Software Tools*: E-Prime Licenses for up to two projects that need comprehensive stimulus presentation. - *Tobii Pro:* Up to two projects may choose between the Tobii Pro Fusion 250 Hz remote eye tracking system or the Tobii Pro Glasses 3 50 Hz. In addition, a one year access to the Tobii Pro Lab software will be granted, to ensure successful analysis of the eye tracking data. Accordingly, the awards comprise up to *150K€ **in equipment and software licenses of Bitbrain, plus Psychology Software Tools and Tobii Pro selected solutions* (more info below), for research projects in the areas of *human behavior research *and *brain-computer interfaces*. The deadline for submissions is *September 21st, 2020.* See full information here <https://bit.ly/2QKWslU> [image: sponsor-brands-call2] Call for Research Projects *Aim of the Call* This year has been unexpectedly complicated for all of us. We have had an ongoing threat to public health with a strong impact on economic activity in every country and organization. Scientific endeavors have been delayed in most research fields, and many research conferences and symposiums have been postponed or canceled. The aim of this call is to catalyze and mobilize research in human behavior and brain-computer interfaces during this difficult time, by supporting outstanding research projects for 2 years of duration starting in 2021. This is our way of giving back to the scientific community and helping research projects start-up in the wake of COVID 19. Bitbrain's mission is to boost real-world research and real-life applications that enhance people's lives. For this reason, we particularly welcome project proposals from academia or research institutions that are exploring neuroscience research in real-world settings. *The Awards* *This initiative awards projects with up 150K€ in equipment and software licenses of Bitbrain, plus Psychology Software Tools and Tobii Pro selected solutions (see below or in our website).* Applicants should list all the equipment necessary to successfully carry out their research project proposal, selecting from these options, and irrespective of the cost: - *Bitbrain equipment:* Systems specifically designed to facilitate research in real-world settings and include high-tech EEG brain sensing devices and 35+ complementary monitoring technologies (GSR, BVP, ExG, etc), as well as Bitbrain's software solutions for synchronized multimodal data acquisition and analysis. The equipment will belong to the awarded institutions once the project is completed, but they are free to use it for other types of research. - *Psychology Software Tools*: E-Prime Licenses for projects that need stimulus presentation. - *Tobii Pro:* Up to two of the winning projects may choose between the Tobii Pro Fusion 250 Hz remote eye tracking system or the Tobii Pro Glasses 3 50 Hz. In addition, a one year access to the Tobii Pro Lab software will be granted, to ensure successful analysis of the eye tracking related parts of the project. *Call topics* 1. *Topic 1: Human Behavior Research:* We are looking for projects that expand the understanding of human behavior using multimodal approaches, preferably in ecological and natural conditions. The research includes, but is not limited to, cognitive sciences, clinical research, education, developmental psychology, human performance, UX or human factors, neuroeconomics, hyperscanning, neuroaesthetics, etc. 2. *Topic 2: Brain-Computer Interfaces (BCI):* We are looking for projects that expand the introduction or usage of brain-computer interfaces in ecological and natural conditions. Research project proposals should focus on the application of brain-computer interfaces in real-world scenarios, in areas such as immersive environments, neurorehabilitation, neuroadaptive technologies, hyperscanning, neuroprosthetics, etc *Jury* - Alan Kingstone, Ph.D., Professor, Department of Psychology, University of British Columbia. Canada. - Ander Ramos, Ph.D., Head of the Neurorehabilitation Lab. University of Tübingen. Germany. - Dima Amso, Ph.D., Professor, Department of Psychology at Columbia University. USA. - Gernot Müller-Putz, Ph.D., Professor and Head of the Institute of Neural Engineering. Graz University of Technology. Austria. - Marco Congedo, Ph.D., Charge de Research (CNRS), France. - Tad Brunye, Ph.D., Visiting Associate Professor, Department of Psychology, Tufts University; Senior Research Psychologist, Army Natick Soldier Research, Development, and Engineering Center, USA. - Tiago Falk, Ph.D., Associate Professor and Multimedia/Multimodal Signal Analysis and Enhancement (MuSAE) Laboratory. University of Toronto. Canada. *Important Dates* - Submission of applications: 21st September - Communication of the awards: 6th October - Contracts: 12th October - Equipment delivering: 20th December - Kick-off Meetings: 11th January See full information here <https://bit.ly/2QKWslU> The Bitbrain Team

Sept. 3, 2020

postdoc position in mouse electrophysiology at Ernst Strungmann Institute (Frankfurt, Germany)

by Scholvinck, Marieke

We are hiring! We are looking for an enthusiastic postdoctoral researcher to lead the mouse work of the Zero-Noise Lab at the Ernst Strüngmann Institute for Neuroscience in Frankfurt, Germany. THE LAB The Zero-Noise Lab investigates how neuronal population activity unfolds in real time during naturalistic behaviour - and how this simultaneously encodes multiple ongoing cognitive processes like learning, attention, and perceptual decision making. What's more, we compare this across species: We conduct chronic electrophysiological recordings in the visual cortex of macaques and mice while they perform the same naturalistic foraging task in a virtual environment. We are no fans of cross-trial averaging - if the brain only gets one shot at making sense of its activity, so should we! The lab is jointly headed by Marieke Schölvinck and Martha Havenith, and funded by the Max Planck Society. It is a highly collaborative environment - postdocs and PhD students focus on either mouse or monkey, but work together intensely to constantly align experiments across species. YOU We are looking for a postdoc to lead the mouse side of the lab, while developing their own ideas and research interests. If you hold (or are about to hold) a Ph.D. in Systems Neuroscience, and are eager to decipher the neuronal basis of naturalistic cognitive processing in an interdisciplinary lab, we would love to hear from you! Useful skills: - Experience with electrophysiological recordings in awake animals - Programming skills (Matlab/Python) - Technical skills to build an electrophysiology set-up - Experience with behavioural training HOW TO APPLY If you are interested, please send an email to Marieke (marieke.scholvinck(a)esi-frankfurt.de<mailto:marieke.scholvinck@esi-frankfurt.de>) and Martha (martha.havenith(a)esi-frankfurt.de<mailto:martha.havenith@esi-frankfurt.de>) before September 30, 2020. In your email, please explain your background, what you expect from your postdoc, and why you want to join us. The application remains open until the position is filled. We look forward to hearing from you! Martha and Marieke

Sept. 2, 2020