- Comp-neuro - lists.cnsorg.org

POSTDOCTORAL POSITIONS, BROWN UNIVERSITY (TRUCCOLO LAB)

by Wilson Truccolo

Applications for postdoctoral positions in Computational Neuroscience are invited for the laboratory of Dr. Wilson Truccolo in the Department of Neuroscience at Brown University, Providence, RI, USA. The positions are for the development of theoretical and data-driven stochastic models of neuronal network dynamics, including applications to propagation and control of epileptic seizures, and collective dynamics in neocortex. Neural data consist of recordings of ensembles of single-neurons and high-density local field potentials obtained via multiple intracortical microelectrode arrays implanted in human and non-human primates. The ideal candidate will have a strong background in computational/theoretical neuroscience and modeling of stochastic neural dynamics. Related publications can be found on the Truccolo lab website ( http://www.truccololab.com/) Inquiries should be addressed to Dr. Truccolo (wilson_truccolo(a)brown.edu) Applications including a CV, statement of research interests, and the names and full contact details of three referees should be sent to wilson_truccolo(a)brown.edu. -- Wilson Truccolo, Ph.D. Pablo J. Salame '88 Goldman Sachs Associate Professor of Computational Neuroscience Department of Neuroscience & Carney Institute for Brain Science, Brown University Lab website: http://www.truccololab.com/

July 15, 2019

Code release: SpykeTorch

by MASQUELIER Timothee

We are proud to release our SpykeTorch open source code! https://github.com/miladmozafari/SpykeTorch SpykeTorch is an efficient PyTorch-based simulator of convolutional spiking neural networks, in which the neurons emit at most one spike per stimulus, and use rank-order-coding. It currently supports the STDP and Reward-modulated STDP learning rules. It can reproduce various recent papers by us and others. A Jupyter tutorial is provided, and an extensive documentation can be found here: http://cnrl.ut.ac.ir/SpykeTorch/doc/ See also the SpykeTorch paper: https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnins.2019.00625/ Milad Mozafari, Mohammad Ganjtabesh, Abbas Nowzari-Dalini and Timothée Masquelier

July 15, 2019

Dual Award PhD (UH/WSU) in Neuromorphic olfaction

by Michael Schmuker

An exceptional opportunity for a dual award PhD position in Neuromorphic olfaction is open for EU/UK candidates at the University of Hertfordshire, UK, that includes a year abroad at Western Sydney University, Australia. The successful candidate will obtain a PhD degree from both institutions. We offer an exciting 3-year project in Neuromorphic computing under joint supervision of Dr Michael Schmuker (UHERTS), and Dr André van Schaik (WSU). The first and third year of the programme will be spent in the Biocomputation research group at UH, with the second year spent at the International Centre for Neuromorphic Systems, led by André van Schaik (WSU). The successful candidate has the unique opportunity to join two vibrant and research-driven teams at opposite ends of the world and carry home two PhD awards. The position comes with a bursary of £15,009 per year. Airfare to and from WSU in Australia is covered, too. The PhD is due to start in October 2019. EU/UK candidates with an exceptional interest in at least one of Neuromorphic computing, Event-based data processing, and chemical sensing should get in touch informally with Dr. Michael Schmuker <mailto:m.schmuker@biomachinelearning.net> by email as soon as possible. Shortlisting will begin on 21st July 2019. How to apply Download the application form <https://www.herts.ac.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0010/31105/uh-application-fo…>, fill it out, save it to your disk, and return it to: Lynette Spelman and Emma Thorogood <mailto:doctoralcollegeadmissions@herts.ac.uk> Research Student Administrators University of Hertfordshire College Lane Hatfield, Herts AL10 9AB tel: +44 (0)1707 286083 — Dr Michael Schmuker AFHEA Reader in Data Science Biocomputation Group University of Hertfordshire https://biomachinelearning.net

July 11, 2019

The Journal of Mathematical Neuroscience - recent articles

by Stephen Coombes

The Journal of Mathematical Neuroscience publishes research articles on the mathematical modelling and analysis of all areas of neuroscience. The Impact Factor of the journal is 2.091 The current list of journal articles is available at http://www.mathematical-neuroscience.com/ : Drift–diffusion models for multiple-alternative forced-choice decision making Alex Roxin https://mathematical-neuroscience.springeropen.com/articles/10.1186/s13408-… A modified Hodgkin–Huxley model to show the effect of motor cortex stimulation on the trigeminal neuralgia network Mohammadreza Khodashenas, Golnaz Baghdadi and Farzad Towhidkhah https://mathematical-neuroscience.springeropen.com/articles/10.1186/s13408-… Linking demyelination to compound action potential dispersion with a spike-diffuse-spike approach Richard Naud and André Longtin https://mathematical-neuroscience.springeropen.com/articles/10.1186/s13408-… Efficient calculation of heterogeneous non-equilibrium statistics in coupled firing-rate models Cheng Ly, Woodrow L. Shew and Andrea K. Barreiro https://mathematical-neuroscience.springeropen.com/articles/10.1186/s13408-… Special Issue from the 2017 International Conference on Mathematical Neuroscience Zachary P. Kilpatrick, Julijana Gjorgjieva and Robert Rosenbaum https://mathematical-neuroscience.springeropen.com/articles/10.1186/s13408-… All articles are Open Access. ------------------------------------------------------- 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.

July 11, 2019

3-year Research Associate in ActiveAI - University of Sheffield, UK

by Michael Mangan

Are you a talented and ambitious computer scientist, computational neuroscientist or machine learner? Are you looking for an opportunity to develop the next generation AI algorithms that are required to realise the third wave of AI? We have a rare opportunity for a Research Associate to work on this problem within the Dept of Computer Science at the University of Sheffield (a world top 100 university) and in collaboration with world-leading neuroscientists in Australia through the prestigious £1.2m EPSRC Centre to Centre project (ActiveAI: active learning and selective attention for rapid, robust and efficient AI). Your primary role will be to develop a new class of ActiveAI controllers for problems in which insects excel but deep learning methods struggle. These problems have one or more of the following characteristics: (i) learning must occur rapidly, (ii) learning samples are few or costly, (iii) computational resources are limited, and (iv) the learning problem changes over time. Insects deal with such complex tasks robustly despite limited computational power because learning is an active process emerging from the interaction of evolved brains, bodies and behaviours. Through a virtuous cycle of modelling and experiments, you will develop insect-inspired models, in which behavioural strategies and specialised sensors actively structure sensory input while selective attention drives learning to the most salient information, massively reducing the search space. In this way, we will both advance neuroscience and enable ActiveAI solutions which are efficient in learning and final network configuration, robust to real-world conditions and learn rapidly. You will work under the supervision of Dr Mike Mangan, and Professors Eleni Vasilaki and James Marshall, within the Department of Computer Science (top five in the UK in the most recent REF) in partnership with UK-based research collaborators in the £4.8m EPSRC Brains on Board Programme Grant. You will also lead a new collaboration with world-leading research partners in Australia (led by Prof Andrew Barron, Macquarie University) through extended secondments. You should be educated to PhD level (or be close to completion) in a related computational field (or equivalent industrial experience), with excellent skills in computational modelling, ideally the use of neural networks to either model biological systems or to solve complex tasks. Previous experience of GPU computing, embedding models onto robots, verification of models through neuroscientific or behavioural assays, are desirable although not essential, but candidates must have an aptitude for learning or improving these skills. The formal advert with application guidelines can be found here -> http://tiny.cc/gq268y -- Dr. Mike Mangan *Lecturer in Machine Learning & RoboticsSheffield Robotics & Dept of Computer ScienceUniversity of Sheffield* https://www.sheffield.ac.uk/dcs/people/academic/mmangan

July 11, 2019

Bristol workshop 9-13 September 2019 - The Neuroscience Data Challenge

by Conor Houghton

The Neuroscience Data Challenge is a collaborative workshop which will bring people together to apply modelling and data approaches to neuroscience. It will be a workshop and hackathon designed to give us the opportunity to work as colleagues to solve problems. The Neuroscience Data Challenge will be held in Bristol from 9-13 September 2019. All are welcome, there is no fee and there are some bursaries for students and postdocs. The format is based on the "study week" that is successful and popular in applied mathematics - there will be four neuroscience problems presented at the start of the week and we will self-organize around working on them together in groups. We are hoping for an informal, fun and productive week of collaborative research! For more information go to http://www.bristol.ac.uk/neural-dynamics/information/neuroscience-data-chal… All Welcome Conor on behalf of the organizing committee: Conor Houghton, Cian O'Donnell, Rui Ponte Costa, Amelia Burroughs. ________________________________________________________________________________ The Neuroscience Data Challenge is being supported by Reimagining Recruitment, a study funded by the EPSRC and hosted by Bath University, it aims to examine the success of collaborative workshops like this.

July 9, 2019

Postdoc position in Computational Cognitive Neuroscience - TU Dresden

by Dimitrije Markovic

Dear colleagues, We are looking for candidates for a four-year post-doctoral position in Computational Cognitive Neuroscience. The position is part of the newly established Transregio (TRR) 265 Funding Programme: "Losing and Regaining Control over Drug Intake: From Trajectories to Mechanisms to Interventions". The candidates should show strong interest in combining research in cognitive and computational neuroscience with research in clinical psychology and psychiatry. The position is an ideal opportunity to work in an interdisciplinary group of researchers, and contribute to projects investigating computational and neuronal underpinning of human behaviour. For further details and application instructions, please see https://www.uniklinikum-dresden.de/de/jobs-und-karriere/stellenangebote/wis… Note : the application deadline has been extended to 31 July 2019. Best wishes, Dimitrije Markovic ============================= Dr. Dimitrije Markovic Post-Doc at Technische Universität Dresden, Department of Psychology, Dresden, Germany Lab website: https://tu-dresden.de/mn/psychologie/ifap/ni Phone: +49-351-463-43146 Personal website: http://dimarkov.github.io/ =============================

July 9, 2019

Post doc at the NYU ECoG Lab

by Lucia Melloni

Are you looking for an ambiguous postdoc opportunitu? keep reading ... The NYU ECoG group has an exciting opportunity for a postdoctoral fellow to contribute to a project aimed at unravelling laminar cortical computations and validating laminar resolution functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) in humans. Laminar fMRI is becoming increasingly popular as it enables the study of feedback and feedforward flow of information in the living human brain (e.g., Muckli, Current Biology 2015). Yet, the neurovascular and physiological computations underlying laminar signals are not well understood. Our group is part of an exciting international collaboration that aims to rigorously validate laminar fMRI against laminar electrophysiology and develop a proper neurovascular coupling model. The postdoctoral fellow would contribute to this team effort involving researchers at NYU Langone Health, the Center for Magnetic Resonance Imaging in Minessotta (Essa Yacoub), and Maastrich University (Elia Formisano, Federico de Martino, Kamil Uludag). The project is funded by a BRAIN initiative RO1 grant. The role of the postdoc is to perform laminar electrophysiology in human subjects with epilepsy and as well as to conduct laminar fMRI in the same patients. We are seeking an enthusiastic and ambitious postdoc, with a strong background in human and/or animal electrophysiology and a desire to learn high-field MRI. No previous experience with MRI is required. A strong background in signal processing, and strong quantitative skills (e.g., Matlab, C++, Python) are required. The initial post is for 1 year with the opportunity to renew for up to 4 years. Postdoctoral researchers will be given the opportunity to participate in other lab research endeavors, and they are expected to make a strong contribution to the lab's overall research efforts. The research facilities at NYU are exceptional and include laminar electrophysiology setups as well as 7T MRI. The postdoc will join a vibrant community of researchers within NYU (NYU ECog, NYU Neuroscience Institute, and the NYU Center for Neural Science) and across the consortium of investigators at University of Minnesota and University of Maastricht. This is an excellent post for candidates who want to expand their research repertoire and learn new techniques, and to position themselves uniquely in the scientific landscape, leveraging laminar fMRI in humans to understand cortical computations. The possibility of dual training in electrophysiology and fMRI is unique. Interested individuals should apply by sending a cover letter, a CV and names of 2 referees who have agreed to provide recommendation letters to Lucia Melloni (lucia.melloni(a)nyulangone.org <mailto:lucia.melloni@nyulangone.org>) and Sasha Devore (sasha.devore(a)nyulangone.edu <mailto:sasha.devore@nyulangone.edu>). The post will be open until August 15, 2019. For any inquires please contact Lucia Melloni at lucia.melloni(a)nyulangone.org <mailto:lucia.melloni@nyulangone.org>

July 9, 2019

PhD Position / Computational Neuroscience / Bordeaux, France

by Nicolas Rougier

---------------------------------------------------------------------- Position: Phd in Computational Neuroscience Keywords: Basal Ganglia, Frontal Cortex, Decision Making, Planning Duration: 3 years, starting 01/09/2019 Location: Bordeaux, France Net salary: 1680 euros / month Contact: Fréderic Alexandre & Nicolas Rougier ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Mnemosyne (https://team.inria.fr/mnemosyne/) is an Inria research team associated with Labri, Bordeaux's computer research laboratory, hosted at the Neurocampus in Bordeaux (https://www.bordeaux-neurocampus.fr/) We work closely with labs in Neurosciences and Medicine in order to understand executive functions such as decision, reasoning and planning, using computational models of the main structure involved (frontal cortex, basal ganglia and hippocampus). We are currently looking for a motivated doctoral student to join us on the theme of decision making modeling, considering in particular the integration of indices of a different nature. This work is part of a collaborative project with the city and the university of La Rochelle and the funding for the thesis is secured (salary of 1680 euros net per month). The candidate may come from different Masters (computer science, cognitive science, neuroscience) and must have experience in computational neuroscience and machine learning with an interest in a bio-inspired approach. In addition to the CV, a letter of motivation will be proposed before an interview. Application to be sent to Frederic.Alexandre(a)inria.fr and Nicolas.Rougier(a)inria.fr

July 5, 2019

15th Granada Seminar on Stochastic and Collective Effects in Neural Systems

by Prof. Dr. Joaquín J. Torres

Dear Computational Neuroscience community This is an official announcement of the next "15th Granada Seminar on Computational and Statistical Physics" that will be held in Granada Spain, next September 17-20, 2019 in the Science Faculty of the University of Granada, Spain. The Granada Seminar is a topical conference whose pedagogical power is especially channelled towards young researchers. In fact, one interesting aspect of this meeting is the opportunity given to young researchers to present their results and to discuss their problems with leading specialists. The Granada Seminar is Organized by the "Institute Carlos I for Theoretical and Computational Physics, University of Granada, and it is Sponsored by: - Institute Carlos I, for theoretical and computational physics, University of Granada: http://ic1.ugr.es/home/ - European Physical Society This year edition the main topic of the conference is "Stochastic and Collective Effects in Neural Systems" including Biological aspects, Modeling, Dynamics, Networks, Function and Applications. The aim of this meeting is to bring together scientists interested in Neural Systems and their statistical and collective effects from real experiments, theoretical and computational models to applications. Confirmed Main Speakers: Roberto Barrio, Universidad de Zaragoza (Spain): Insect movement gaits: neuron model, CPG and patterns Ginestra Bianconi, Queen Mary University of London (UK) Jesús Cortés, Ikerbasque (Spain) Lucilla de Arcangelis, University of Campania "Luigi Vanvitelli" (Italy) Jose Maria Delgado, Universidad Pablo de Olavide (Spain): Learning as a functional state of the brain Andrea Gabrielli, Istituto dei Sistemi Complessi (Italy): Brain Network Topology Maps Schizophrenia Dysfunctional Substrates Andre Longtin, University of Ottawa (Canada): Detecting and Learning in Noisy Neurons: From Dendrites to Spontaneous Movements Joaquin Marro, Universidad de Granada (Spain):Is the Mind just an assembly of Phase Transitions? Jorge F. Mejías, University of Amsterdam (The Netherlands) Cyriel Pennartz, University of Amsterdam (The Netherlands): Predictive representations and population coding in visual and multisensory systems Dietmar Plenz, NIH National Institute of Mental Health (USA) Ander Ramos, Tecnalia (Spain) Alex Roxin, CRM Barcelona (Spain):A network model of place-cell turnover in CA1 Mavi Sánchez-Vives, Institut d'investigacions Biomèdiques (Spain) Samir Suweis, Universita di Padova (Italy): Simple (but not too simple) models to investigate complex brain dynamics Yuhai Tu, IBM Thomas J. Watson Research Center (USA): Optimal coding strategies in the periferal olfactory systems: Compressed sensing for an array of nonlinear olfactory receptor neurons with and without spontaneous activity Pablo Varona, Universidad Autonoma de Madrid (Spain) People interested to attend the conference and present their contributions please follow the link below for further information: http://ergodic.ugr.es/cp/index.php Contributions to the conference will be invited to submit an original manuscript for a forthcomming "Special Issue on Emergent Effects in Stochastic Neural Networks with Application to Learning and Information Processing", in the Elsevier Journal Neurocomputing (Impact Factor: 4.072, Q1) -- Prof. Dr. Joaquín J. Torres Department of Electromagnetism and Physics of the Matter. Institute "Carlos I" for Theoretical and Computational Physics. University of Granada.

July 4, 2019