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Applications open for Okinawa/OIST Computational Neuroscience Course 2024 (OCNC 2024)

by Erik De Schutter

OKINAWA/OIST COMPUTATIONAL NEUROSCIENCE COURSE 2024 Methods, Neurons, Networks and Behaviors June 17 to July 4, 2024 Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University, Japan https://groups.oist.jp/ocnc The aim of the Okinawa/OIST Computational Neuroscience Course is to provide opportunities for young researchers with theoretical backgrounds to learn the latest advances in neuroscience, and for those with experimental backgrounds to have hands-on experience in computational modeling. We invite graduate students and postgraduate researchers to participate in the course, held from June 17th through July 4th, 2024 at an oceanfront seminar house of the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University. Applications are through the course web page (https://groups.oist.jp/ocnc) only; January 1 - January 31, 2024. Applicants will receive confirmation of acceptance end of March. Like in preceding years, the 19th OCNC will be a comprehensive three-week course covering single neurons, networks, and behaviors with ample time for student projects. The first week will focus exclusively on methods with hands-on tutorials during the afternoons, while the second and third weeks will have lectures by international and local experts. The course has a strong hands-on component based on student proposed modeling or data analysis projects, which are further refined with the help of a dedicated tutor. Applicants are required to propose their project at the time of application. There is no tuition fee. The sponsor will provide lodging and meals during the course. We hope that this course will be a good opportunity for theoretical and experimental neuroscientists to meet each other and to explore the attractive nature and culture of Okinawa, the southernmost island prefecture of Japan. Lecturers: Erik De Schutter (OIST) Kenji Doya (OIST) Tomoki Fukai (OIST) Izumi Fukunaga (OIST) N. Alex Cayco Gajic (École Normale Supérieure, Paris, France) Yukiko Goda (OIST) Arvind Kumar (KTH, Stockholm, Sweden) Bernd Kuhn (OIST) Matthew Larkum (Humboldt University, Berlin, Germany) Hakwan Lau (RIKEN CBS, Tokyo, Japan) Sukbin Lim (NYU Shangai, China) Gerald Pao (OIST) Thomas Parr (Oxford University, UK) Sam Reiter (OIST) Kazumasa Tanaka (OIST)

Jan. 3, 2024

ICDL Confirmed Speakers – paper deadline Jan 8, poster deadline March 1

by nagai.yukie＠mail.u-tokyo.ac.jp

Dear colleagues, Join us in Austin May 20-23 2024 for the IEEE International Conference on Development and Learning (ICDL). ICDL is an intimate and unique meeting gathering researchers interested in development from the perspective of ecological psychology, robotics, and computation. We have confirmed an amazing list of speakers for the event - including a keynote by Jitendra Malik, the research director for Facebook AI - as well as 20 of the most important thinkers in this space. Our goal is to encourage deep conversations through carefully curated single-track symposia, including: Curiosity-Driven Learning and Predictive Models Yukie Nagai - The University of Tokyo, Japan Elizabeth Bonawitz - Harvard University, USA Gert Westermann - Lancaster University, UK Michael Goldstein - Cornell University, USA Language Development in Humans and Machines Xavier Hinaut - Inria & Bordeaux University, France Casey Lew-Williams - Princeton University, USA Daniel Messinger - University of Miami, USA Catherine Laing - University of York, UK Developmental Machine Learning and Everyday Inputs Karen Adolph - New York University, USA Linda Smith - Indiana University, USA Jochen Triesch - Frankfurt Institute for Advanced Studies, Germany Marvin Lavechin - Ecole Normale Supérieure, France Egocentric vision and attention John Franchak - University of California, Riverside, USA Kristen Grauman - The University of Texas at Austin, USA Mary Hayhoe - The University of Texas at Austin, USA Jim Rehg - University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, USA Body Representation and Sensorimotor Organization Daniela Corbetta - The University of Tennessee, USA Matej Hoffmann - Czech Technical University in Prague, Czech Republic Hoshinori Kanazawa - The University of Tokyo, Japan Peter Marshall - Temple University, USA Website: https://la.utexas.edu/users/dil/ICDL_Austin_2024/ Deadline for full paper submissions extended: December 15, 2023, January 8, 2024 Deadline for 1-page poster abstracts and journal track poster submissions: March 1, 2024 Full papers and other submissions are invited on a range of topics including but not limited to: • Embodied learning and development in biological systems and robots • Developmental stages and sensitive periods • Emergence of verbal and nonverbal communication • Curiosity, intrinsic motivations, exploration, play and active learning • Architectures for lifelong learning • Emergence of body and affordance perception • Learning control of body movement • Emotional development and the role of emotion in learning • Prediction, planning, and problem solving • The relationship between evolution and development • Epistemological foundations and philosophical issues • Robotic and computational models of human and animal development • Developmentally-inspired machine learning • Human-robot interaction in developmental contexts • Applications of machine learning to human and animal development Submissions may take the form of full (6-page) papers, 1-page poster abstracts, journal track posters, and workshops or tutorials. Please see below for details on each submission type. Decisions regarding acceptance will be based on technical quality, novelty, and expected interest to the conference’s interdisciplinary audience. In addition to talks and posters originating from these submissions, the conference will feature a keynote speaker as well as several invited symposia showcasing recent research on a set of themes, with different disciplines and perspectives featured, to prompt lively and productive discussion at the conference. Submission types: Full six-page paper submissions Papers of at most 6 pages in IEEE double column format will undergo peer-review, and accepted and presented submissions will be included in the conference proceedings published by IEEE Xplore. Up to two extra pages are acceptable for a publication fee of $100 per page. Accepted papers will be invited for presentation either in oral or poster format Please make use of the template provided at https://www.ieee.org/conferences/publishing/templates.html 1-page poster abstracts To encourage discussion of late-breaking results or for work that is not sufficiently mature for a full paper, we will accept 1-page abstracts. These submissions will not be included in the conference proceedings. Accepted abstracts will be presented during the poster session. Journal-track posters Journal track poster submissions must be about a journal paper that has been published recently (no earlier than December 2022), on a topic relevant to ICDL. Best regards, Yukie Nagai, on behalf of the organizing committees — Yukie Nagai, Ph.D. Project Professor, The University of Tokyo nagai.yukie(a)mail.u-tokyo.ac.jp | https://developmental-robotics.jp CREST Cognitive Feelings: https://cognitive-feeling.jp CREST Cognitive Mirroring: https://cognitive-mirroring.org

Jan. 3, 2024

CfP Social Interaction for Human and Virtual Agents

by Treur, J. (Jan)

SIHVA 2024: Computational Modeling of Social Interaction for Human and Virtual Agents Special Session at the 16th Asian Conference on Intelligent Information and Database Systems (ACIIDS 2024) 15-18 April 2024, Ras Al Khaimah, UAE Website: https://aciids.pwr.edu.pl/2024/session.php?acronym=SIHVA Organizers Sophie C.F. Hendrikse University of Amsterdam, Psychological Methods Group E-mail: s.c.f.hendrikse(a)uva.nl<mailto:s.c.f.hendrikse@uva.nl> Jan Treur Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Social AI Group E-mail: j.treur(a)vu.nl<mailto:j.treur@vu.nl> Objectives From a Computer Science or AI perspective, social interaction for human or virtual agents might simply be modeled like exchange of information. However, as many researchers involved in this area know, in a realistic context there is much more to it than that. Some examples of quite relevant aspects are how information about the other agent is represented and interpreted, how the interaction behaviour is context-sensitive and has flexibility in responses, and can be adaptive over time, for example, like in bonding. Research on all of such and other relevant aspects can be addressed in this track. Topics Some of the specific topics covered are (but the scope is not limited to these): * Multimodal interaction * Representing and learning about the other agent, self-other distinction * Social contagion and mirroring * Emergence of similarity during social interaction: homophily, synchrony * Adaptivity of interaction behaviour over shorter and longer time periods * Interpersonal regulation of emotions between agents * Joint-decision making * Collaborative learning * Artificial social systems * Social affective computing * Socially intelligent agents and multi-agent systems Important dates Paper submission: January 5, 2024 (2nd extension) Notification of acceptance: February 28, 2024 Camera-ready papers: March 15, 2024 Registration & payment: March 15, 2024 Conference date: April 15-18, 2024

Dec. 29, 2023

Postdoctoral fellowships at the Neuromathematics Center in Sao Paulo State, Brazil

by Antonio Roque

Positions for Postdoctoral Researchers The Research, Innovation and Dissemination Center for Neuromathematics (NeuroMat), hosted by the University of São Paulo (USP), Brazil, and funded by the São Paulo Research Foundation (FAPESP), is offering post-doctoral fellowships for recent PhDs with outstanding research potential. The fellowship will involve collaborations with research teams and laboratories associated with NeuroMat. The research to be developed by the post-doc fellow shall be strictly related to ongoing research lines developed by the NeuroMat team that can be consulted at our website. The project may be developed at the laboratories of USP, campuses of São Paulo or Ribeirão Preto, or at UNICAMP, Campinas, in person. We seek candidates capable of developing independent research in one of the research lines below. 1. Stochastic modeling of neurobiological data. 2. Acquisition, processing, and quantitative analysis of neurobiological data. 3. Instrumentation development associated with brain stimuli. Candidates to the first research line are required to have a strong background in probability theory with emphasis on stochastic processes. Candidates to the second research line are required to have a strong background in neuroscience with previous experience in neurophysiological data acquisition, processing and analysis, and knowledge of computer programming. Candidates to the third research line are required to have a strong background in electronic instrumentation, robotics, programing, and safety in medical equipment. The initial appointment is for one year, with a possible extension, conditional on research progress. The fellowship is competitive at an international level, and fellows benefit from extra funds for travel and research expenses plus limited support for relocation expenses. Application Instructions: Applicants should complete and submit the application form <https://neuromat.numec.prp.usp.br/postdoc/new/>. The following documents and information are requested (please see the form for further details): - Summary of the CV, in the format required by FAPESP (see fapesp.br/en/6351 <http://www.fapesp.br/en/6351> for instructions); - List of publications, with links to those available online. - A summary of the research plan for the next year, up to 5 pages in length. This document must explicitly state for which of the three research lines the candidate has applied. It should also address how this research plan fits within the framework of the NeuroMat research program <https://neuromat.numec.prp.usp.br/scientific-project/>. - Pointers to other research related output, such as software, web pages, and so forth. Candidates should be willing to send copies of publications, if requested. - Any further information deemed relevant to the application. In addition to the above, we require at least two recommendation letters. Those should be mailed by the recommenders directly to postdoc-appl(a)numec.prp.usp.br. Timetable: Candidates are encouraged to apply at their earliest convenience until the deadline of February 02, 2024. Appointment is expected to start by March 2024. The initial period of the position lasts for 12 months, with possible renewals to up to the end of the project, July 31, 2025. This opportunity is open to candidates of any nationality. The selected candidates will be awarded FAPESP Postdoctoral fellowships in the amount of BRL 9,047.40 monthly and a research contingency fund, equivalent to 15% of the annual value of the fellowship, which should be spent on items directly related to the research activity. More details on FAPESP's postdoctoral fellowships are available at: fapesp.br/en/5427 <http://www.fapesp.br/en/5427>. -- Antonio C. Roque Professor Associado Departamento de Fisica FFCLRP, Universidade de Sao Paulo 14040-901 Ribeirao Preto-SP Brazil - Brasil antonior(a)usp.br <antonior(a)ffclrp.usp.br> aroquesilva(a)gmail.com www.sisne.org ORCID: 0000-0003-1260-4840 <https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1260-4840> ResearcherID: C-2316-2011 <http://www.webofscience.com/wos/author/record/C-2316-2011> Google Scholar: GqHWF74AAAAJ <http://scholar.google.com.br/citations?user=GqHWF74AAAAJ> CV Lattes: 4609096963207702 <http://lattes.cnpq.br/4609096963207702>

Dec. 27, 2023

First Call for Papers: RaPID-5@LREC-COLING 2024

by Dim X

************************************************************************************* *First Call for Papers:* The 5th workshop on: "*Resources and ProcessIng of linguistic, para-linguistic and extra-linguistic Data from * * people with various forms of cognitive/psychiatric/developmental impairments*" *Workshop*: co-located with LREC-COLING 2024 | Turin, Italy | May 21st, 2024 RaPID-5 serves as an interdisciplinary platform for researchers to exchange insights, methods, and experiences related to collecting and processing data from individuals with mental, cognitive, neuropsychiatric, or neurodegenerative impairments. The workshop focuses on creating, processing, and applying such data resources from individuals at different stages and severity levels of these impairments. The ultimate goal of RaPID-5 is to facilitate the study of relationships among linguistic, paralinguistic, and extra-linguistic observations, with applications ranging from aiding diagnosis to enhancing monitoring and predicting individuals at higher risk, ultimately promoting multidisciplinary collaboration across clinical, language technology, computational linguistics, and computer science communities. *Submission deadline*: Sun., 31st of March, 2024 (anywhere on earth) *Paper submission*: https://softconf.com/lrec-coling2024/rapid2024/ *Website and more details*: https://spraakbanken.gu.se/en/rapid-2024 *Contact*: Dimitrios Kokkinakis *Contact email*: dimitrios.kokkinakis(a)gu.se *Organizing committee*: - Kathleen C. Fraser, National Research Council, Canada; - Dimitrios Kokkinakis, University of Gothenburg, Sweden; - Kristina Lundholm Fors, Lund University, Sweden; - Charalambos K. Themistocleous, University of Oslo, Norway - Athanasios Tsanas, The University of Edinburgh, UK - Fredrik Öhman, University of Gothenburg and Sahlgrenska University Hospital, Sweden **************************************************************************************

Dec. 27, 2023

Neuro-AI Conference in Chile, April 2024

by Christopher Pack, Dr.

Abstract submission is now open for the Pucón Summit on Neuroscience and Artificial Intelligence, to be held in Pucón, Chile, from April 8-12, 2024. The Summit will aim to explore the intersection of neuroscience and Artificial Intelligence (AI), with a particular focus on mechanisms of learning. This event will provide a platform for AI and experimental neuroscience researchers to delve into the mechanisms of learning at the cellular, systems, and behavioral levels. The meeting aims to address three fundamental questions that have been the subject of intense research and theoretical debate: 1) What cellular mechanisms enable learning on different timescales? 2) How do brain networks modify their connectivity to support adaptive behaviors? 3) How do popular AI learning algorithms relate to biological mechanisms of learning at the cellular and systems levels? The emphasis will be on exchanging information between theoretical and experimental scientists. How can AI generate testable predictions for neuroscientists? How can neuroscientific discoveries inform the next generation of AI models? More information is available at the website: https://plena.cenia.cl/<https://plena.cenia.cl/registration/> This five-day meeting will involve talks in the morning, free afternoons for speakers, workshops for students, and round table discussions in the evenings. There is also a possibility of satellite workshops and other activities involving trainees before and after the meeting. Important dates Abstract submission: January 24, 2024 Early registration: February 2, 2024 Regular registration: March 5, 2024 Keynote speakers Sara Solla (Northwestern University) Nelson Spruston (HHMI) Full list of invited talks: https://plena.cenia.cl/speakers/ Chile is renowned for its beautiful landscapes, rich culture, and vibrant research community. We have selected the city of Pucón, as an exceptional venue providing a secluded and conducive environment for stimulating conversations, fruitful collaborations, and unique outdoor activities (i.e., Volcano trekking, river rafting, lake activities, etc.). We hope to see you there. Regards, The Scientific Committee [cid:image003.jpg@01DA37E3.2F598230]Roberto Araya (U. Montreal, Canada) Christopher Pack (McGill University, Canada) Pedro Maldonado (Universidad de Chile, Chile) Markus Diesmann (Jülich Research Center, Germany) For any questions, please contact us by email: plena(a)cenia.cl<mailto:plena@cenia.cl>

Dec. 26, 2023

COSYNE 2024: Travel grants; Pre-Cosyne Brainhack

by Tomas Hromadka

==================================================== Computational and Systems Neuroscience 2024 (Cosyne) MAIN MEETING 29 February - 03 March 2024 Lisbon, Portugal WORKSHOPS 04 March - 05 March 2024 Cascais, Portugal www.cosyne.org ==================================================== IMPORTANT DATES Registration is now open Travel grants applications are now open. Travel grant applications deadlines: *31 December 2023, 11.59PM PST (Undergraduate Travel Grant)* 24 January 2024, 11.59PM PST (Other travel grants) ---------------------------------------------------- COSYNE MEETING & WORKSHOPS ---------------------------------------------------- The annual Cosyne meeting provides an inclusive forum for the exchange of empirical and theoretical approaches to problems in systems neuroscience, in order to understand how neural systems function. The MAIN MEETING is single-track. A set of invited talks is selected by the Executive Committee, and additional talks and posters are selected by the Program Committee, based on submitted abstracts. The WORKSHOPS feature in-depth discussion of current topics of interest, in a small group setting. Cosyne topics include but are not limited to: neural basis of behavior, sensory and motor systems, circuitry, learning, neural coding, natural scene statistics, dendritic computation, neural basis of persistent activity, nonlinear receptive field mapping, representations of time and sequence, reward systems, decision-making, synaptic plasticity, map formation and plasticity, population coding, attention, neuromodulation, and computation with spiking networks. ----------------------------------------------- TRAVEL GRANTS ----------------------------------------------- Applications are now open for travel grants to attend the conference. Each awardee will receive at least $500 to help offset the costs of travel, registration, and accommodations. Larger grants may be available to those traveling from outside Europe. Special consideration is given to scientists who have not previously attended the meeting, under-represented minorities, students who are attending the meeting together with a mentor, undergraduate students, and authors of submitted Cosyne abstracts. We currently offer five travel grant programs for New Attendees, Presenters, Mentors, Undergraduates, and Childcare travel grants. For details on applying, see www.cosyne.org/travel-grants. ----------------------------------------------------- PRE-COSYNE BRAINHACK ----------------------------------------------------- Pre-COSYNE Brainhack is a satellite event and hackathon from 27-28 February 2024 in Lisbon, Portugal, immediately preceding the COSYNE conference. This hackathon brings together people who are passionate about open science, open-source tools, and collaboration around computational and systems neuroscience. It provides an opportunity for people from different institutions to work together on projects of shared interest and learn from each other. Anyone is welcome to participate. Space is limited to 25 people. To learn more and apply, please visit the Pre-COSYNE Brainhack website: https://pre-cosyne-brainhack.github.io/hackathon2024 ----------------------------------------------------- COSYNE 2024 SPEAKERS ----------------------------------------------------- Blaise Aguera y Arcas (Google Research) Dora Angelaki (NYU) Silvia Arber (U Basel) Laura Busse (LMU Munich) Lars Chittka (Queen Mary U) Kafui Dzirasa (Duke U) Elizabeth Hong (Caltech) Alex Pouget (U Geneva) Rajesh Rao (U Washington) Mac Shine (U Sydney) David Sussillo (Meta Reality Labs & Stanford) Claire Wyart (ICM Brain & Spine Institute) ----------------------------------------------------- COSYNE 2024 COMMITTEES ----------------------------------------------------- COSYNE ORGANIZING COMMITTEE General Chairs: Jessica Cardin (Yale) and Blake Richards (McGill) Program Chairs: Bing Brunton (U Washington) and Chandramouli Chandrasekaran (Boston U) Workshop Chairs: SueYeon Chung (NYU/Flatiron) and Andrew Saxe (Oxford) Tutorial Chair: Il Memming Park (Champalimaud) Undergraduate Travel Chairs: Kimberly Stachenfeld (DeepMind) and Marcelo Mattar (NYU) DEIA Committee: Hysell Oviedo (Washington U) and Luke Sjulson (Albert Einstein) Fundraising Chair: Michael Long (NYU) Social Media Chair: Sabera Talukder (Caltech) Audio-Video Media Chair: Carlos Stein Brito (Champalimaud) Poster Design: Maja Bialon COSYNE PROGRAM COMMITTEE Bing Brunton (U Washington) Co-chair Chandramouli Chandrasekaran (Boston U) Co-chair Yashar Ahmadian (U Cambridge) Athena Akrami (UCL) Timothy Buschman (Princeton) Alex Cayco Gajic (Ecole Normale Superieure) Hannah Choi (Gatech) Brian DePasquale (Boston U) Sridhar Devarajan (Indian Inst Sci) Laura Driscoll (Stanford) Ann Duan (UCL) Lea Duncker (Stanford) Annegret Falkner (Princeton) Rainer Friedrich (Friedrich Miescher Institute) Juan Gallego (Imperial) Matthew Golub (U Washington) Bilal Haider (Georgia Tech) Kiah Hardcastle (Harvard) Kameron Harris (W Washington U) Santiago Jaramillo (U Oregon) Jonathan Kao (UCLA) Kohitij Kar (York U) Ann Kennedy (Northwestern) Guillaume Lajoie (MILA) Laura Lewis (MIT) Camilo Libedinsky (National U Singapore) Scott Linderman (Stanford) Ashok Litwin-Kumar (Columbia) Emily Mackevicius (Basis) Jorge Mejias (U Amsterdam) Leenoy Meshulam (U Washington) Jonathan Michaels (York U) James Murray (U Oregon) Hendrikje Nienborg (NIH) Gouki Okazawa (Chinese Acad Sci) Marino Pagan (UCL) Chethan Pandarinath (Emory) Il Memming Park (Champalimaud) Hannah Payne (Columbia) Talmo Pereira (Salk) Supratim Ray (Indian Inst Sci) Erin Rich (Mount Sinai) Ben Scott (Boston U) Alireza Soltani (Dartmouth) Nicholas Steinmetz (U Washington) Carsen Stringer (HHMI) Marie Suver (Vanderbilt) Aparna Suvrathan (McGill) John Tuthill (U Washington) Ali Weber (Bryn Mawr) Brady Weissbourd (MIT) Alex Williams (NYU) Klaus Wimmer (CRM) Brad Wyble (Penn State) Dan Yamins (Stanford) COSYNE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE Stephanie Palmer (U Chicago) Anne-Marie Oswald (U Pittsburgh) Zachary Mainen (Champalimaud) Alexandre Pouget (U Geneva) Anthony Zador (CSHL) COSYNE CONTACT meeting [at] cosyne.org ----------------------------------------------------- COSYNE MAILING LISTS ----------------------------------------------------- Please consider adding yourself to Cosyne mailing lists (groups) to receive email updates with various Cosyne-related information and join in helpful discussions. See www.cosyne.org/mailing-lists lists for details.

Dec. 24, 2023

Job offer: schizophrenia, pharmacology, modeling

by BREYTON Martin

Dear all, Please find below the description for an available position at INS in Marseille, France: Main contact : Dr Martin Breyton martin.breyton(a)univ-amu.fr<mailto:martin.breyton@univ-amu.fr> Additional contacts : romain.guilhaumou(a)ap-hm.fr<mailto:romain.guilhaumou@ap-hm.fr>, spase.petkoski(a)univ-amu.fr<mailto:spase.petkoski@univ-amu.fr> REPORTS (bRain modEling and PharmacOclinical Response To Schizophrenia) Description: Schizophrenia affects approximately 0.7 to 1% of the world's population. Although there is a large available therapeutic panel, the clinical effectiveness of the antipsychotics used remains limited with 30 to 50% of schizophrenic patients showing an insufficient response to treatment. At the pharmacological level, drug response results from the interaction of genetic (e.g. drug-metabolizing enzymes, drug transporters, drug targets), personal (e.g. age, sex, disease states, treatment adherence) and environmental factors (e.g. smoking, diet, alcohol habits, drug-drug interactions) that produce interindividual differences in terms of pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics (de Leon et al., 2009). Currently, only fluid biomarkers are available to optimize exposure to antipsychotics (Therapeutic drug monitoring, TDM and Pharmacogenetics, PGx), but no biomarker is available to optimize the next steps, i.e, the interaction with the receptors, the signal transduction and finally the translation to clinical effect. To fill this void, neuroimaging is a strong candidate and a number of plausible neuroimaging biomarkers have been identified (Kraguljac et al. 2021). Indeed, a modulation of brain connectivity related to response to antipsychotic medication has been described (Mehta et al. 2021). Understanding this modulation thanks to modeling will allow an early stratification of patients before treatment and then an optimization of the treatment for each individual patient (allowing more reliable as well as earlier optimized management). Available data: 100 schizophrenic patients, pharmaco-clinical data, neuroimaging (T1, T2, DTI, rs-fMRI) We are looking for a young researcher (engineer, PhD) from Neurosciences to contribute to this project by performing/participating in the following tasks: * Management, preprocessing and analysis of the clinical database to identify sub-groups of patients at high risk of inadequate antipsychotic drug exposure * Preprocessing and analysis of the neuroimaging data: extraction of biomarkers and comparison between groups * Personalized brain modeling using The Virtual Brain (Sanz-Leon et al. 2015) The ideal candidate should be: * Proficient in Python programming * Familiar with neuro-imaging data * Familiar with computational neurosciences concepts and/or machine learning * Curious about schizophrenia and pharmacology * Have some prior experience in research (internship, publication…) The candidate would work in the Theoretical Neuroscience Group at the Institut de Neurosciences des Systèmes (INS, UMR1106, Marseille) under a research engineer contract or similar for 20 months. They will be supervised by a team of pharmacologists and computational neuroscientists. Depending on the quality of the collaboration, and on the advancement of the project, there will be possibilities to extend the collaboration and work on other related projects at INS. References: Kraguljac, Nina V., William M. McDonald, Alik S. Widge, Carolyn I. Rodriguez, Mauricio Tohen, et Charles B. Nemeroff. 2021. « Neuroimaging Biomarkers in Schizophrenia ». The American Journal of Psychiatry 178 (6): 509‑21. https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.ajp.2020.20030340. Leon, Jose de. 2009. « The Future (or Lack of Future) of Personalized Prescription in Psychiatry ». Pharmacological Research 59 (2): 81‑89. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.phrs.2008.10.002. Mehta, Urvakhsh Meherwan, Ferose Azeez Ibrahim, Manu S. Sharma, Ganesan Venkatasubramanian, Jagadisha Thirthalli, Rose Dawn Bharath, Nicolas R. Bolo, Bangalore N. Gangadhar, et Matcheri S. Keshavan. 2021. « Resting-State Functional Connectivity Predictors of Treatment Response in Schizophrenia – A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis ». Schizophrenia Research 237 (novembre): 153‑65. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.schres.2021.09.004. Sanz-Leon, Paula, Stuart A. Knock, Andreas Spiegler, et Viktor K. Jirsa. 2015. « Mathematical framework for large-scale brain network modeling in The Virtual Brain ». NeuroImage 111 (mai): 385‑430. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuroimage.2015.01.002.

Dec. 23, 2023

Postdoctoral positions in computational neuroscience

by Richard Naud

Centre for Neural Dynamics and Artificial Intelligence, University of Ottawa We are recruiting two postdoctoral fellows. One for a project on large scale spiking neural networks, another for a project involving analysis of high-throughput neural data. The successful candidate will become an integral part of the Neural Coding lab and participate in a collaborative research environment. Ottawa is a vibrant city, capital of Canada. For more information, see https://neurodynamic.uottawa.ca/ottawa.html. For past publications related to this research, see Richard Naud’s google scholar page: https://scholar.google.ca/citations?user=2HXsblgAAAAJ&hl=en And website: https://neurodynamic.uottawa.ca/neuralcoding/index.html Qualifications: Ph. D. in theoretical neuroscience, computer science, or engineering. Start date: As soon as a suitable candidate is found. Submit: CV, statement of research interest and contact for 3 references. Duration: 2 years. Deadline: We will start reviewing applications January 15, 2024. Contact: rnaud(a)uottawa.ca<mailto:rnaud@uottawa.ca> (Richard Naud)

Dec. 22, 2023

Postdoctoral Researcher in Computational Neuroscience: Effects of Neuromodulation on Learning in SRNNs

by Fleur Zeldenrust

*The 'Biophysics of Neural Computation' group in Nijmegen (PI: dr. Fleur Zeldenrust) is looking for a postdoctoral researcher (26 months) to study the effects of neuromodulators in biologically realistic networks and learning tasks in the Vidi project 'Top-down neuromodulation and bottom-up network computation, a computational study'. You will use cellular and behavioural data gathered by our department over the previous five years on dopamine, acetylcholine and serotonin in mouse barrel cortex, to bridge the gap between single cell, network and behavioural effects.* The aim of this project is to explain the effects of neuromodulation on task performance in biologically realistic spiking recurrent neural networks (SRNNs). You will use biologically realistic learning frameworks, such as force learning, to study how network structure influences task performance. You will use existing open source data to train a SRNN on a pole detection task <https://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S0896627315002512> (for rodents using their whiskers) and incorporate realistic network properties of the (barrel) cortex based on our *lab's measurements <https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12021-022-09576-5>*. Next, you will incorporate the cellular effects of dopamine, acetylcholine and serotonin that we have measured (see *this paper <https://doi.org/10.1093/gigascience/giy147>* and *this preprint <https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2022.01.12.476007v1>*) into the network, and investigate their effects on task performance. In particular, you will research the effects of biologically realistic network properties (balance between excitation and inhibition and the resulting chaotic activity, non-linear neuronal input-output relations, patterns in connectivity, Dale's law) and incorporate known neuron and network effects. You will build on the single cell data, network models and analysis methods available in our group, and your results will be incorporated into our group's further research to develop and validate efficient coding models of (somatosensory) perception. We are therefore looking for a team player who can collaborate well with the other group members, and is willing to both learn from them and share their knowledge. *Your profile:* Profile - You hold a PhD in computational neuroscience, mathematics, physics, computer science, AI or a similar computational field. - You have experience in working with machine learning models in (computational) neuroscience and are able to perform network simulations, analytical derivations and advanced data analysis. - You are a highly motivated, independent, critical and creative researcher who wants to bridge the gap between real data and abstract theoretical models. - You are a team player, ready to collaborate in a diverse multidisciplinary research group. - You have an excellent command of spoken and written English. - You have experience in coding (Python and/or Matlab). We are *Our profile:* You will be appointed at the *Biophysics of Neural Computation <https://www.ru.nl/donders/research/theme-4-neural-computation-neurotechnolo…>* group, *Donders Centre for Neuroscience <https://www.ru.nl/science/dcn/>*, *Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour <https://www.ru.nl/donders/>*. <https://www.ru.nl/donders/> This vibrant and multidisciplinary institute studies the organisation and function of neural circuits across scales and techniques, from genes and proteins to behaviour and from in vitro and in vivo experiments to computational modelling. It is an open and international environment, where young scientists from different backgrounds share a fascination for the interaction between brain structure and function. Postdoctoral researchers enjoy a *lively community <https://www.ru.nl/donders/talent-education/postdoctoral-researchers/>* and specialised support. *We offer:* We offer - It concerns an employment for 0.8 - 1.0 FTE. - The gross monthly salary amounts to a minimum of €3,226 and a maximum of €5,090 based on a 38-hour working week, depending on previous education and number of years of relevant work experience (*salary scale 10 <https://www.ru.nl/en/staff/services/salary-and-selection-model/salary/amoun…>* ). - You will receive 8% holiday allowance and 8.3% end-of-year bonus. - You will be employed on the basis of a temporary contract for 26 months. - You will be able to use our *Dual Career and Family Care Services <https://www.ru.nl/en/staff/services/living-working-and-studying-netherlands…>*. Our Dual Career and Family Care Officer can assist you with family-related support, help your partner or spouse prepare for the local labour market, provide customized support in their search for employment and help your family settle in Nijmegen. - Working for us means getting extra days off. In case of full-time employment, you can choose *between 30 or 41 <https://www.ru.nl/en/staff/services/employment-conditions/working-time/flex…>* <https://www.ru.nl/en/staff/services/employment-conditions/working-time/flex…>days of annual leave instead of the legally allotted 20. *Please, apply via the website before February 11th: * https://www.ru.nl/en/working-at/job-opportunities/postdoctoral-researcher-i… Profil -- Fleur Zeldenrust Associate Professor Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour Donders Centre for Neuroscience Faculty of Science, Radboud University Heyendaalseweg 135, room HG 00.111 6525 AJ Nijmegen, the Netherlands tel +31 24 36 53195 fleurzeldenrust.nl *Due to my own family/work balance, you may receive emails from me outside of normal working hours. I do not expect a response from you outside of your own working pattern, nor do I expect an immediate response when you are working.*

Dec. 22, 2023