- Comp-neuro - lists.cnsorg.org

EITN Fall School in Computational Neuroscience : Applications open!

by Zélie Tournoud

Dear colleagues, We are happy to let you know that applications for the *EITN Fall School in Computational Neuroscience* are currently open, until the 2nd of July 2021. This *10-days intensive course in computational neuroscience* will take place in *P**aris, France from 15 to 24 September 2021*. This is a yearly event, although previous occurrences took place in the spring. We choose to keep it relatively small-scale in order to facilitate interactions between participants and teaching staff, there are about 20 seats available. There will, therefore, be a selection made after applications are closed. We encourage you to share the word widely with your collaborators and networks so that everyone who might be interested can get the chance to apply. Applications need to be addressed by email with a *resume (CV)* and a *cover letter* at *eitn(a)neuro-psi.fr*. Please make sure to use an explicit email title such as "Application to EITN Fall School". *Why join?* * 10 days of intensive training in computational neuroscience provided by researchers from all over Europe * Small scale event: get to connect! * A complete program: o Cellular models, and models of brain signals Circuit models and networks o Mean-field models o Whole-brain models * Hands-on learning schedule based on: o Morning classes and tutorials o Group projects in the afternoon o Free time in the evenings to visit Paris *Selection criteria:* 1. Work or study in neuroscience or related 2. Experience in python programming would help 3. Priority to PhD students, although Master students and post-docs are welcome to apply *Practical information:* * Subscription fee 400€. * If selected, you will need to bring your own laptop with a few pre-installed programs. * The tuition fee includes lunch, coffee, access to conference facilities and internet connection during the 10 days of the course. You can also consult these information online <https://www.eitn.org/index.php/calendar-event/eventdetail/737/-/eitn-fall-s…> or by downloading the PDF flyer: https://www.eitn.org/images/events/EITN-FallSchool-2021_Flyer.pdf Thank you very much for applying or sharing with your relevant contacts. Kind regards, The EITN Team

June 8, 2021

Postdoc Position at Cardiff University Brain Research Imaging Centre

by Jiaxiang ZHANG

[Apologize for cross-posting] Dear all, We are seeking an enthusiastic early-career scientist for a research associate position at Cardiff University Brain Research Imaging Centre (CUBRIC). The successful candidate will join a collaborative and multidisciplinary research team to work on the neurocognitive mechanisms of human decision-making, integrating multimodal brain imaging (MEG, functional MRI and diffusion MRI) and computational modelling. The post holder will develop computational models that describe data from behavioural and brain imaging experiments, in particular to take a lead role in integrating large-scale computational simulations with imaging results from multiple modalities. The research aims to understand the computational and neurocognitive processes of human decision-making, and how decision deficits may arise due to brain injury or neurodegeneration. The research associate will also be expected to collaborate with other researchers in the team on imaging data analyses and data curation. You will have access to imaging facilities at CUBRIC and several multimodal imaging datasets. Cardiff University Brain Research Imaging Centre (CUBRIC) houses a unique combination of state-of-the-art facilities and world-leading expertise, with 4 human MRI systems (2 x Siemens Prisma, 1 x Siemens Connectom, 1 x Siemens 7T), MEG, EEG, TMS, tDCS, clinical research units and testing labs. Further details of CUBRIC can be found on our webpage (http://sites.cardiff.ac.uk/cubric) This is a full-time, fixed-term position until February 2023, available to start now. Remote working is possible if COVID-19 restrictions are in place. For informal enquiries, please contact Dr Jiaxiang Zhang ( zhangj73(a)cardiff.ac.uk) A formal application needs to be submitted via the link online ( https://www.jobs.ac.uk/job/CEQ831/research-associate) *Application deadline: June 13th, 2021.* *Essential Criteria* 1. A PhD degree in a relevant discipline (e.g., mathematics, computer science, engineering, physics or psychology) 2. Research experience or a strong interest in human decision-making 3. Strong experience in computational models of cognitive processes and/or macroscopic neural systems, including the use of neural mass models or neural field models 4. Experience of analysing brain imaging data in one or more modalities (e.g., diffusion MRI, BOLD functional MRI, MEG/EEG), using common software packages 5. Strong programming skills (e.g., Matlab, Python, C/C++ or R) 6. Experience with Unix/Linux environment for data analysis, including bash scripting and parallel computing on high-performance clusters 7. Proven ability to publish high-quality research in peer-reviewed academic journals 8. Knowledge of software development cycles and best programming practices, including coding standards, version control administration, debug and code sharing, with strong commitments to open science practices 9. Excellent written and verbal communication skills, evidenced by publications and/or conference presentations 10. Strong interpersonal skills, including proven ability to work cooperatively within a team while also being able to take the initiative *Desirable Criteria * 1. Experience of brain functional and structural connectivity analyses 2. Experience in statistical methods (e.g., GLM, mixed models, multivariate statistics, hierarchical models and Bayesian statistics) and/or machine learning methods 3. Experience in deep learning models of imaging processing --- Dr. Jiaxiang Zhang Cardiff University Brain Research Imaging Centre (CUBRIC) School of Psychology Cardiff University Maindy Road, Cardiff, CF24 4HQ https://ccbrain.org

June 8, 2021

[jobs] One-year Postdoc on “Sparse coding for bio-inspired vision models” at CentraleSupèlec, Gif-sur-Yvette, France

by PERRINET Laurent

Dear Colleagues, Applications are invited for a one-year Postdoc position, starting in September 2021 or as soon as possible thereafter, to work under the joint supervision of Dario Prandi<https://dprn.github.io/> (CNRS, Université Paris-Saclay), Luca Calatroni<https://sites.google.com/view/lucacalatroni/home> (CNRS, Université Côte d'Azur), and Laurent Perrinet<https://laurentperrinet.github.io/> (CNRS, Institut de Neurosciences de la Timone). The position is financed by the ANR Rubin-Vase (https://anr.fr/Projet-ANR-20-CE48-0003) and the research focus will be on linking the bio-inspired models studied by D. Prandi and L. Calatroni (see e.g. [1]) to the sparsity promoting neural architectures investigated by L. Perrinet (see, e.g., [2]). The successful applicant will have a strong applied mathematical background, ideally in the fields of sparse optimization and/or dynamical systems, and a good familiarity with neural architectures and the associated implementation issues. Strong skills in coding and programming using standard optimization/deep learning languages (e.g., Python, PyTorch, Julia, MATLAB…) are required. The gross salary is of 50k-59k euros (depending on the seniority of the applicant), and the position comes with no teaching duties. Although the position is officially based at CentraleSupèlec (Université Paris-Saclay), the successful applicant is expected to spend fairly long periods at the INT in Marseille and I3S in Sophia-Antipolis, to work with the co-supervisors. Candidates are asked to write directly to Dario Prandi (dario.prandi(a)centralesupelec.fr<mailto:dario.prandi@centralesupelec.fr>), attaching a CV, a short description of current research interests, and names and contact addresses of at least two reference contacts (no formal letters of recommendation are required). Applications are reviewed continuously, until positions are filled, with a first evaluation round starting on the 14th of June, 2021. Thanks for distributing this announcement to potential candidates! References [1] Bertalmío, M., Calatroni, L., Franceschi, V. et al. Cortical-Inspired Wilson–Cowan-Type Equations for Orientation-Dependent Contrast Perception Modelling. J Math Imaging Vis 63, 263–281 (2021). https://arxiv.org/abs/1910.06808 [2] Boutin V, Franciosini A, Chavane F, Ruffier F, Perrinet L (2021) Sparse deep predictive coding captures contour integration capabilities of the early visual system.<https://laurentperrinet.github.io/publication/boutin-franciosini-chavane-ru…> PLoS Comput Biol 17(1): e1008629. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1008629 -- Laurent Perrinet - INT (UMR 7289)/CNRS https://laurentperrinet.github.io/

June 7, 2021

[news] Call for Participation - The Chef's Hat Cup @ IJCAI2021

by Pablo Vinicius Alves De Barros

Deadline Extended! - The Chef's Hat Cup @ IJCAI2021 I. Aim and Scope Most of the current Reinforcement-Learning solutions, although having real-world-inspired scenarios, focus on a direct space-action-reward mapping between the agent's actions and the environment’s state. That translates to agents that can adapt to dynamic scenarios, but, when applied to competitive and/or cooperative cases, fail to assess and deal with the impact of their opponents. In most cases, when these agents choose an action, they do not take into consideration how other agents can affect the state of the scenario. In competitive scenarios, the agents have to learn decisions that a) maximize their chances of winning the game, and b) minimize their adversaries' goals, while in cooperative scenarios b) is inverted. Besides dealing with complex scenarios, such solutions would have to deal with the dynamics between the agents themselves. In this regard, social reinforcement learning is still behind the mainstream applications and demonstrations of the last years. We introduce here the Chef's Hat Cup, a competition that aims at the development of the most challenging artificial players! The competition is separated into two tracks: a competitive and a cooperative scenario. In the first track, the participants will use the already available simulation environment to develop the most effective agents to play the Chef’s Hat card game and be the winner. In the second track, they will have to develop an agent that can increase the chances of a dummy agent winning the game. More information: https://www.whisperproject.eu/chefshat#competition II. Deadlines Starting Date: April 20, 2021 Final submission: July 15, 2021 Winners Announcement: July 29, 2021 III. Team Registration Teams of up to five persons are invited to participate in the competition. You can register by sending the following information: Team name Participant Names and affiliation to this email: pablo.alvesdebarros(a)iit.it IV. Prizes The prizes will be sponsored by the Contact Unit at the Italian Institute of Technology, and will be organized as follows: Competitive Track - Winner – 300 EUR - Second – 150 EUR - Third – 50 EUR Cooperative Track - Winner – 300 EUR - Second – 150 EUR - Third – 50 EUR V. Organizers Pablo Barros, Italian Institute of Technology (IIT), Italy Leandro Honorato, University of Pernambuco, Brazil Marco Matarese, Italian Institute of Technology (IIT), Italy Alessandra Sciutti, Italian Institute of Technology (IIT), Italy ---------------------------------------- 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

June 3, 2021

PostDoc in Machine Hearing

by Sarah Verhulst

Dear list, We have a 3-yr post-doc vacancy in my Hearing Technology lab in Ghent, Belgium. We do research on the interface between computational neuroscience and audio signal processing to develop human-inspired machine-hearing applications. More info on the position and application info can be found here (closing date 5th of July): https://tinyurl.com/4h9m497b Feel welcome to distribute, With best regards, Sarah —— Sarah Verhulst Associate Professor Hearing Technology @ WAVES Department of Information Technology Technologiepark 126, 9052 Zwijnaarde T +32 9 331 48 44 T admin +32 09 264 33 21 www.waves.intec.ugent.be/hearing-technology<http://www.waves.intec.ugent.be/hearing-technology> www.gasp.ugent.be<http://www.gasp.ugent.be> @HearingTechLab @GentAuditorySci GitHub: HearingTechnology

June 2, 2021

Research fellowships at the Univ. of Birmingham/UK

by Michael Biehl

*Two research fellowships at the * *Centre for Systems Modelling and Quantitative Biomedicine, College of Medical and Dental SciencesUniversity of Birmingham /UK **Full time, fixed term for 3.5 years* *Closing Date *27th June 2021. Online interviews will take place on 20th July 2021 For further details and information about how to apply visit *https://www.jobs.ac.uk/job/CGC736/research-fellows <https://www.jobs.ac.uk/job/CGC736/research-fellows> * (do not reply to this message, do not contact M. Biehl directly) The successful candidates will be educated to PhD level and have experience in one or more of the following areas: Position 1: mathematical models; complex networks, (nonautonomous) dynamical systems, bifurcation theory or numerical continuation. Having relevant experience in biology or medicine will be advantageous. Position 2: computational methods; machine learning, neural networks, data visualisation and analytics, artificial intelligence, Bayesian inference, or algorithm development. Having relevant aligned experience in biology, medicine, or wearable technologies will be advantageous. -- ---------------------------------------------------------- Prof. Dr. Michael Biehl Bernoulli Institute for Mathematics, Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence P.O. Box 407, 9700 AK Groningen The Netherlands Tel. +31 50 363 3997 https://www.cs.rug.nl/~biehl m.biehl(a)rug.nl

June 2, 2021

EITN workshop on "Computational Neuroscience in EBRAINS", 10 june 2021

by Zélie Tournoud

Dear colleagues, We are happy to invite you to attend to the EITN (European Institute for Theorethical Neuroscience) workshop on "Computational Neuroscience in EBRAINS" taking place online on *June 10th, 2021, starting from 13:00 CEST*. Attendance is free and open to everyone upon registration, feel free to share the event to your collaborator who might be interested in the topic. To automatically receive your access link by email before the event, *register online* on this page: Register to the Zoom meeting <https://zoom.us/meeting/register/tJ0vd-CoqzkoHNTvv9UhOQ0Qbnex9MikG2F1>. The detailled program is available on this page <https://www.eitn.org/index.php/calendar-event/eventdetail/744/-/workshop-on…> that will be kept updated. * *Description of the workshop:* Organized by Andrew Davison (CNRS), Viktor Jirsa (AMU) and Alain Destexhe (CNRS). EBRAINS is a open-access platform built by the Human Brain Project and which provides tools for various applications in neuroscience. The aim of this workshop is to introduce some of the EBRAINS tools that are of particular interest for applications in computational neuroscience. These tools provide help to simulate models, from the cellular to the whole-brain level. Each tool will be introduced, then a "live demo" will be provided to demonstrate its use. As a companion to this workshop, we plan to provide recordings of each session on a YouTube channel, as well as scripts that were used in for the live demos. * *List of speakers:* Egidio d'Angelo (Pavia) Claudia Casellato (Pavia) Florent Bonnier (CNRS) Petrut Bogdan (U Manchester) Andrew Davison (CNRS) Alain Destexhe (CNRS) Timo Dickscheid (Jülich) Jan Fousek (AMU) Alice Geminiani (Pavia) Jennifer Goldman (CNRS) Brent Huisman (Jülich) Viktor Jirsa (AMU) Carmen Lupascu (CNR) Armando Romani (BBP/EPFL) Michael Schirner (Charité) Sam Yates (CSCS) We look forwards on seeing you on the 10th of June! Thank you and have a great day, /The EITN Team/

June 2, 2021

[Journals] 2nd CFP: Special Issue on "Theory of Mind in Humans and in Machines"

by Bogdan Ionut Cirstea

Dear colleagues, Apologies for cross-posting. Together with Prof. Fabio Cuzzolin (Oxford Brookes University, UK), Prof. Barbara Jacquelyn Sahakian (University of Cambridge, UK) and Dr. Christelle Langley (University of Cambridge, UK), we are organizing a special issue (Frontiers Research Topic) on the emerging topic of "Theory of Mind in Humans and in Machines" under the "Frontiers in Artificial Intelligence" and "Frontiers in Computational Neuroscience" journals. We would like to invite you to contribute articles to the Research Topic. For more information on this special issue, please visit the website at https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/16802/theory-of-mind-in-humans-… Papers may be submitted until the 30th of July 2021 (manuscript submission extended deadline). Submitted papers should not be under consideration for publication elsewhere. We also encourage authors to send a short abstract (via the platform) to ensure compliance with the topic and scope of the Frontiers journals as early as possible. Topics of interest include, but are not limited to, theoretical proposals, computational experiments, and case studies of: • Computational Theory of Mind • Learning from Demonstrations • Cognitive Models for Learning from Demonstration and Planning • Neuroscience-inspired models of Theory of Mind • Human-Robot Interaction • Cooperative Inverse Reinforcement Learning (assistance games) • Learning from Preferences If you intend to send an article to the special issue, please do let us know by hitting the "Participate" button in the web interface. If you have any questions or need any kind of assistance from us, please do not hesitate to let us know. On behalf of the topic editors, -- Bogdan-Ionut Cirstea Topic Editors: Prof. Fabio Cuzzolin, Oxford Brookes University, UK < fabio.cuzzolin(a)brookes.ac.uk> Prof. Barbara Jacquelyn Sahakian, University of Cambridge, UK < bjs1001(a)cam.ac.uk> Dr. Bogdan-Ionut Cirstea, Oxford Brookes University, UK < bcirstea(a)brookes.ac.uk> Dr. Christelle Langley, University of Cambridge, UK <cl798(a)medschl.cam.ac.uk >

June 1, 2021

Evolving Neural Networks workshop

by manuel molano

Dear all, We are glad to announce the 1st Evolving Neural Networks Workshop (June 17, 2021). The goal of the workshop is to bring together experts from Systems and Computational Neuroscience, Machine Learning and the Evo-Devo field to discuss if and how knowing the evolutionary history of neural circuits can help us understand the way the brain works, as well as the relative importance of learned VS innate neural mechanisms. We have a great list of speakers from the fields of Systems and Computational Neuroscience, Machine Learning and Evolutionary Developmental (Evo-Devo) biology. If you are interested REGISTER HERE<https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfO69TaE5Tk4eUysh4eCnJ7tlJYRTCcE_m…>, it is free! For more information visit our webpage<https://sites.google.com/view/evolving-nns/home> or contact evolvingneuralnetworks(a)gmail.com<mailto:evolvingneuralnetworks@gmail.com> We hope to see you soon! SCHEDULE (Eastern Time) 8-8.10 Intro 8.10-8.35 Pamela Lyon What basal cognition can do for you (neuroscientists) 8.35-9.00 Luis Puelles Brain evolution crosses an ontogenetic 'ant's country' that escapes analysis 9.00-9.25 Paul Cisek The evolution of the human brain, long before humans 9.25-9.50 Robert Yang Evolving the Olfactory System with Machine Learning 09.50-10.20 Discussion 10.20-10.40 Break 10.40-10.50 Intro 10.50-11.15 Linda Wilbrecht Considering contextual factors at acute and evolutionary timescales in the study of learning and decision making 11.15-11.40 Ida Momennejad TBA 11.40-12.05 Dayu Lin Neural mechanisms of aggression 12.05-12.30 Tony Zador Learning through the Genomic Bottleneck 12.30-13.00 Discussion

June 1, 2021

Job: Engineer in MEG-EEG signal processing and open-source software development

by Franco Pestilli

The Paris Brain Institute is recruiting a motivated individual to join the *MEEGbrainlife* project, introducing MEG and EEG data processing pipelines on the open-access brainlife.io cloud computing platform. This is a 18-24 months contract funded jointly by the French ANR and the American NIH under the international program call « Collaborative Research in Computational Neuroscience » (CR‐CNS). The successful candidate will be responsible for planning, developing, and maintaining *MEG‐EEG data processing Apps into brainlife.io <http://brainlife.io/>* and *contribute to innovative research projects* on the platform. In close collaboration with the expert members of the MEEGbrainlife consortium, he/she will define data specifications, code architecture, data and code output quality check procedures to set the groundwork for the rapid development of a full data processing pipeline for MEG‐EEG data into brainlife.io. *More information and contact* for the application available here: https://owncloud.icm-institute.org/index.php/s/MBrIpIFcH3F9lV5 *FRANCO PESTILLI*, *Ph.D.* | *Associate Professor* Department of Psychology <https://liberalarts.utexas.edu/psychology/index.php> | College of Liberal Arts <https://liberalarts.utexas.edu/> | The University of Texas at Austin <https://www.utexas.edu/> he/him | pestilli(a)utexas.edu | web <https://liberalarts.utexas.edu/psychology/faculty/fp4834> | GitHub <https://github.com/francopestilli> | brainlife.io CONFIDENTIALITY NOTICE: This e-mail message, including any attachments, is for the sole use of the intended recipient(s) and may contain confidential and privileged information. Any unauthorized review, use, disclosure or distribution is prohibited. If you are not the intended recipient, please contact the sender by reply e-mail and destroy all copies of the original message.

May 31, 2021

pre- and post-doc neuromorphic fellowships at the Sevilla Microelectronics Institute

by bernabe

Dear all, The Neuromorphic group at IMSE (Sevilla Microelectronics Institute, Spain) wellcomes candidates to apply for pre- and post-docs fellowships on neuromorphic engineering. Please visit our web-site at www.imse-cnm.csic.es/neuromorphs to find out about our running projects, activities, and publications. More details on the fellowships (duration/salary/contact) is given at: http://www2.imse-cnm.csic.es/neuromorphs/index.php/News-and-position-openin… cheers, -- Bernabe Linares-Barranco, Director Instituto de Microelectrónica de Sevilla (IMSE-CNM), CSIC, Sevilla, Spain

May 31, 2021

Job opening: Research Scientist - Computational Neuroscience and Machine Learning/AI

by Michiel Remme

Dear Colleagues, Our startup INAIT, based in Lausanne, Switzerland, is seeking a permanent and full-time Research Scientist at the intersection of computational neuroscience and machine learning/AI. Are you interested in developing new machine learning/AI methods based on neuroscientific insights, and apply them to business problems? Then come join us! Major duties and responsibilities: * Contribute to the research and development of the next generation of neuroscience-inspired machine learning/AI methods * Contribute to the development of computational models of detailed and/or simplified neuronal networks * Work closely with a team of computational neuroscientists, machine learning engineers and software developers towards business solutions Essential skills and experience required: * PhD in computational neuroscience or related field (or equal experience: Masters and 4+ years of research experience) * Research involving learning and/or dynamics in rate-based and/or spiking neural networks * Experience in machine learning using frameworks such as scikit-learn, PyTorch or TensorFlow * Successful publication record * Experience in Python code development * Experience using UNIX/Linux operating systems * Excellent team player * Fluent spoken and written English Preferred: * Experience with a computational neuroscience simulation framework such as NEST, NEURON or Brian * Experience in scientific computing on shared and/or distributed parallel machines * Experience in the software development life-cycle including unit testing, continuous integration, version control, debugging and documentation * Successful track record in designing, developing and maintaining software projects Where: Lausanne, Switzerland Start date: As soon as possible Activity rate: 100% Duration of contract: CDI Competitive salary & benefits Cutting edge research, Positive work environment, Hybrid work model (combination of WFH and work from the office) For applications visit apply.workable.com/inait<http://apply.workable.com/inait/> INAIT SA https://www.inait.ai<https://www.inait.ai/> Avenue du Tribunal Fédéral 34 1005 Lausanne Switzerland

May 30, 2021

Call for papers for MLCN2021 workshop at MICCAI 2021

by MLCN Workshop

*Please find below the call for papers for the International Workshop of Machine Learning in Clinical Neuroimaging (MLCN) which is held virtually on the 27th of September 2021 at MICCAI 2021 in Strasbourg, France. We welcome contributions to novel machine learning methods and their applications to clinical neuroimaging data.* The submission deadline is *25 June 2021*, and all MLCN accepted papers will be eligible for the best paper award of 500 USD. For more information, please visit https://mlcnws.com/call-for-papers/*.* Best wishes, The MLCN 2021 steering and organizing committees Christos Davatzikos, Andre Marquand, Jonas Richiardi, Emma Robinson Ahmed Abdulkadir, Mohamad Habes, Seyed Mostafa Kia, Vinod Kumar, Jane Maryam Rondina, Chantal Tax, Thomas Wolfers ================================================================================================ Call for Papers The International Workshop of Machine Learning in Clinical Neuroimaging ( https://mlcnws.com/) a satellite event of MICCAI (https://miccai202 <https://miccai2021.org/>1 <https://miccai2020.org/>.org <https://miccai2021.org/>), calls for original papers in the field of clinical neuroimaging data analysis with machine learning. The two tracks of the workshop include methodological innovations as well as clinical applications. This highly interdisciplinary topic provides an excellent platform to connect researchers of varying disciplines and to collectively advance the field in multiple directions. In the machine learning track, we seek novel contributions that address current methodological gaps in analyzing high-dimensional, longitudinal, and heterogeneous clinical neuroscientific data using stable, scalable, and interpretable machine learning models. Topics of interest include but are not limited to: - Big data - Spatio-temporal brain data analysis - Structural data analysis - Graph theory and complex network analysis - Longitudinal data analysis - Model stability and interpretability - Model scalability in large neuroimaging datasets - Multi-source data integration and multi-view learning - Multi-site data analysis, from preprocessing to modeling - Domain adaptation, data harmonization, and transfer learning in neuroimaging - Unsupervised methods for stratifying brain disorders - Deep learning in clinical neuroimaging - Model uncertainty in clinical predictions - … In the *clinical neuroimaging *track*,* the applications of existing machine learning algorithms are evaluated to move towards precision medicine for complex brain disorders. The discovery of biological markers in medicine is an important challenge across different fields and various experimental procedures and designs are used to detect biological signatures that can be utilized for improvement in diagnostic, treatment, or for other beneficial ends. However, for most complex brain disorders, we do not have reliable biomarkers today. The application of advanced machine learning methods may help to reach this goal. Therefore, we invite the community to submit conference contributions on machine learning approaches with the goal to improve our understanding of complex brain disorders, moving the field closer towards precision medicine. Topics of interest include but are not limited to: - Biomarker discovery - Refinement of nosology and diagnostics - Biological validation of clinical syndromes - Treatment outcome prediction - Course prediction - Analysis of wearable sensors - Neurogenetics and brain imaging genetics - Mechanistic modeling - Brain aging - The presentation of clinical neuroimaging databases to stimulate developments in machine learning - … ------------------------------ Submission Process: The workshop seeks high-quality, original, and unpublished work that addresses one or more challenges described above. Papers should be submitted electronically in Springer Lecture Notes in Computer Science (LCNS) style (see https://miccai2021.org/en/PAPER-SUBMISSION-GUIDELINES.html for detailed author guidelines) using the CMT system at https://cmt3.research.microsoft.com/MLCN2021. The page limit is 8-pages (text, figures, and tables) plus up to 2-pages of references. We review the submissions in a double-blind process. Please make sure that your submission is anonymous. Accepted papers will be published in a joint proceeding with the MICCAI 2021 conference. ------------------------------ MLCN Special Issue at the MELBA journal: This year, we will invite the top accepted papers to submit an extended version of their contribution to the MLCN special issue at the Journal of Machine Learning for Biomedical Imaging (MELBA) <https://www.melba-journal.org/about>. The invited papers will go through an independent review process by the journal. ------------------------------ Best Paper Award: All MLCN accepted papers will be eligible for the best paper award. The recipient of the award will be chosen by the MLCN scientific committee based on the scientific quality, novelty, and clarity of contributions. The winner will be announced at the end of the workshop and will receive a 500 USD honorarium. ------------------------------ Important Dates: - Paper submission deadline: June 25, 2021, 11:59 PM Pacific Time - Notification of Acceptance: July 16, 2021 - Camera-ready Submission: July 30, 2021 - Workshop Date: September 27, 2021

May 30, 2021

Postdoc in Cognitive and Systems Neuroscience

by Theresa Desrochers

Applications for Postdoctoral Research Associate are being sought for a unique opportunity to study sequential control in the laboratory of Dr. Theresa Desrochers in the Department of Neuroscience at Brown University. Successful candidates will have interest in human behavior, fMRI, TMS, computational psychiatry, and OCD. The Desrochers Lab provides a unique cross-level and cross-species training environment situated within a highly collaborative research environment fostered by Brown University and the Carney Institute for Brain Science. Prior experience in human neuroimaging and strong quantitative skills are preferred. All interested candidates regardless of level of experience with these methods are encouraged to apply. Applicants must hold a Ph.D. in Neuroscience, Cognitive Science, Psychology, or a related discipline or must show evidence that the Ph.D. will be completed before the start of the position. Brown University is an EEO/AA employer and encourages applications from minorities and women. Review of applications will begin immediately and will continue until the position is filled or the search is closed. For more information, please contact theresa_desrochers(a)brown.edu. Please apply via Interfolio at https://apply.interfolio.com/87606 <https://apply.interfolio.com/87606>. ~Theresa — Theresa M. Desrochers, Ph.D. Rosenberg Assistant Professor of Brain Science Departments of Neuroscience; Psychiatry and Human Behavior (courtesy) Carney Institute for Brain Science, Brown University http://neuroscience.brown.edu/desrochers

May 28, 2021

PhD positions at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam

by Avitabile, D.

Dear colleagues, The Department of Mathematics at the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam invites applications for 2 PhD positions, in computational and analytical methods form neuroscience applications. One project concerns uncertainty quantification methods for spatially-extended models in neuroscience. The ideal candidate for this project has a passion for numerical methods (numerical analysis, scientific computing) and is keen to make an impact in a novel application for the neurosciences. Previous knowledge of neuroscience concepts is not a prerequisite, but a firm interest in learning about neuroscience models and applications is essential. The project will be co-supervised by Svetlana Dubinkina (VU), Gabriel Lord (Radboud University), and myself. The second PhD project is about multiple timescale analysis for neural fields, and it aims to develop slow-fast dynamical system methods for spatially-extended systems. The ideal candidate has a passion for dynamical system theory and is interested in applying bifurcation analysis to PDEs and integral equations. Previous knowledge of neuroscience concepts is not a prerequisite. The project will be cosujervised by Jan Bouwe van den Berg (VU) and myself. It will also involve a network of scientific collaborators: Mathieu Desroches (INRIA, Sophia Antipolis, France), Grégory Faye (University Paul Sabatier, Toulouse, France) and Martin Wechselberger (University of Sydney, Australia). More information can be found at the link below https://werkenbij.vu.nl/ad/phd-positions-in-mathematical-neuroscience/ngla4… The deadline for applications is the 13th of June 2021. Informal enquiries can be sent to d.avitabile(a)vu.nl Daniele Avitabile Associate Professor in Applied Mathematics Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam www.danieleavitabile.com

May 28, 2021

Bernstein Conference 2021 - call for abstracts

by Anja Dorrn

Each year the Bernstein Network invites the international computational neuroscience community to the annual Bernstein Conference for intensive scientific exchange. It has established itself as one of the most renown conferences worldwide in this field, attracting students, postdocs and PIs from around the world to meet and discuss new scientific discoveries. Due to the ongoing pandemic the Bernstein Conference will be held online. www.bernstein-conference.de ____ IMPORTANT DATES * Bernstein Conference: September 21-23, 2021 * Abstract submission open: June 1, 2021 * Deadline for submission of abstracts to be considered for Contributed Talks: July 1, 2021 * Deadline for abstract submission: August 3, 2021 ____ ABSTRACTS We invite the computational neuroscience community to submit their abstracts: Submitted abstracts can either be considered as contributed talks or posters. All accepted abstracts will be published online and will be citable via Digital Object Identifiers (DOI). Abstract submission will open on June 1. Further information can be found here: https://bit.ly/BC21_abstracts ____ INVITED SPEAKERS Keynote Timothy Behrens (University of Oxford, UK) Invited Talks Athena Akrami (University College London, UK) Nadine Gogolla (Max Planck Institute for Neurobiology, Martinsried, Germany) Guillaume Hennequin (University of Cambridge, UK) Jennifer Li & Drew Robson (Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics, Tübingen, Germany) Scott Lindermann (Stanford University, USA) Ashok Litwin-Kumar (Columbia University, New York City, USA) Ida Momennejad (Microsoft Research, New York City, USA) Cristina Savin (New York University, USA) Marion Silies (Johannes Gutenberg University, Mainz, Germany) Daniela Vallentin (Max Planck Institute for Ornithology, Seewiesen, Germany) ____ CONFERENCE COMMITTEE Christian Leibold (Conference Chair) Julijana Gjiorgjieva (Program Chair) Christian Machens (Program Vice Chair) Marion Silies (Workshop Chair) Moritz Helias (Workshop Vice Chair) & Matthew Botvinick, Megan Carey, Peter Dayan, Brent Doiron, Rainer Friedrich, Ann Hermundstad, Srdjan Ostojic, Nathalie Rochefort, Nicole Rust, Gasper Tkacik ____ For any further questions, please contact: bernstein.conference(a)fz-juelich.de -- Dr. Anja Dorrn Scientific Coordinator Bernstein Network Computational Neuroscience | Bernstein Coordination Site (BCOS) Branch Office of the Forschungszentrum Jülich at the University of Freiburg Hansastr. 9A | 79104 Freiburg, Germany phone: (+49) 0761 203 9589 web: www.bernstein-network.de<http://www.bernstein-network.de> ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Forschungszentrum Juelich GmbH 52425 Juelich Sitz der Gesellschaft: Juelich Eingetragen im Handelsregister des Amtsgerichts Dueren Nr. HR B 3498 Vorsitzender des Aufsichtsrats: MinDir Volker Rieke Geschaeftsfuehrung: Prof. Dr.-Ing. Wolfgang Marquardt (Vorsitzender), Karsten Beneke (stellv. Vorsitzender), Prof. Dr.-Ing. Harald Bolt, Prof. Dr. Frauke Melchior ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

May 27, 2021

MOVING FORWARD FROM COVID-19 VIRTUAL STUDENT FORUM

by James Bower

Dr. James M. Bower Ph.D. Executive Director Pacific Division AAAS Affiliate Professor of Biology Southern Oregon University 541-499-7502 Hello everyone. I thought (and hope) that there might be some interest among Computational Neuroscience students in this somewhat unusual, but I hope interesting on-line event I am organizing for AAAS. Any student anywhere in the world can participate. Happy to answer questions, but here is the announcement. Happy to answer questions and please pass the word on to others who might be interested. And look forward to seeing you all at CNS*2021, 30 years - hard to imagine. :-) Jim Bower Applications are now being accepted for our VIRTUAL MOVING FORWARD FROM COVID-19 FORUM. Moving on The virtual forum includes two events: A STUDENT RESEARCH FORUM in which students will present their scientific goals and plans for the future and also interact with scientists as well are representatives of colleges and universities. 2021 Student Research Conference All students are eligible to participate from high school to post-graduate, including citizen scientists. (Application deadline June 22, but best to apply as soon as you can) Additional information on the forum as well as how to apply can be found here: 2021 forum abstract instructions And a TEACHER WORKSHOP on lessons learned from K-12 hybrid and on-line learning over the last year: 2021 educator workshop Participation is open to all K-12 teachers as well as informal educators (best to apply early). IF YOU KNOW A STUDENT OR TEACHER WHO MIGHT LIKE TO ATTEND THIS FORUM, PLEASE FORWARD THIS EMAIL. Registration is also now open for those who would like to attend, even if not presenting: 2021 paid participant form COME JOIN US AS WE MOVE FORWARD FROM COVID-19 This email was sent to bowerj(a)sou.edu by admin(a)aaaspd.org American Association for the Advancement of Science Pacific Division • AAAS Pacific Division / Biology Department, 1250 Siskiyou Blvd, Ashland, Oregon 97520, United States • 541-552-8457 Remove My Email or Manage Preferences • Privacy Policy

May 26, 2021

[CFP] Call for abstracts: Computational Cognition workshop (COMCO 2021)

by Juliane Schwab

We are pleased to announce the 2nd "Computational Cognition" workshop, hosted by the DFG-funded Research Training Group by the same name at the Institute of Cognitive, Osnabrück University (Germany). The workshop will be held remotely on September 23 – 24, 2021. In this workshop, we pursue to (re-)integrate research from areas concerned with low- and high-level cognition. Much is understood regarding the neural signals underlying basic sensorimotor processes, as well as the cognitive processes involved in reasoning, problem solving, and language. However, understanding how high-level cognition can arise from low-level mechanisms is a long-standing open problem in cognitive science. Artificial intelligence has recently made great progress on many cognitive tasks using (deep) neural networks. At the same time, cognitive scientists have explored similar ideas, such as predictive coding for unified neural theories of learning. Thus, by bringing together ideas from cognitive science and Al we hope to generate new insights into human and machine intelligence alike. ***Confirmed invited speakers*** Jacob Andreas (MIT), Richard Baraniuk (Rice University), Tom Griffiths (Princeton University), Andrea E. Martin (Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics), Claire Sergent (Université de Paris), Agnieszka Wykowska (Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia) *****Call for abstracts***** We invite abstracts for papers from all areas of cognitive science. Submissions should have a strong computational focus, and may concern research questions in low- or high-level cognition. Topics include but are not limited to… -Computational neuroscience -Artificial intelligence -Mathematical and computational models of higher-order cognition (e.g., language, decision making, inference) -Mathematical and computational models of low-level cognition (e.g., signal processing, semantic classification) -Natural language processing and computational models of language -Machine learning and Deep Learning -Empirical studies conducted in relation to either of the above Abstracts should be submitted anonymously. The main text should not exceed one A4 page (12pt font, 2.54 cm/1 inch margins), with an optional second page for additional materials such as tables, figures, and references. Abstracts can be considered for a 30-minute talk or poster. Please indicate when submitting whether you would like the abstract to be considered for a talk, poster, or both. To do so, add the labels "talk", "poster", or "talk/poster" to the title in the submission form (e.g., title: "My first submission (talk/poster)"). The deadline for submission is June 30, 2021 (11:59 pm CEST). We expect to notify authors of the decision by early August 2021. You may submit your abstracts here: https://easychair.org/conferences/?conf=comco2021 Further information is available on the conference website: https://comco2021.uni-osnabrueck.de/ For any inquiries please contact: comco(a)uni-osnabrueck.de Kind regards The COMCO 2021 organizing committee Michael Marino, Xenia Ohmer, Gabriela Pipa, and Juliane Schwab -- -- Juliane Schwab, M.Sc. RTG Computational Cognition Research Group Psycho- and Neurolinguistics Osnabrück University Institute of Cognitive Science Wachsbleiche 27 49090 Osnabrück Germany office: 50/104 email: jschwab(a)uos.de phone: +49-541-969-2247

May 26, 2021

Last Call: Postdoctoral Fellowship / Fellowship for Junior Researchers, Prague, Czech Republic

by pokornam

The Institute of Computer Science (ICS) of the Czech Academy of Sciences (CAS) offers FELLOWSHIPS FOR OUTSTANDING AND ENTHUSIASTIC JUNIOR RESEARCHERS, PhD holders, open to cooperation with some of the researchers of the Institute (www.cs.cas.cz) For more information on the position please see https://www.cs.cas.cz/job-offer/ics-postdoctoral-fellowship-2021/en _THE CLOSING DATE FOR APPLICATION IS 31ST MAY 2021._ The Czech Academy of Sciences is the biggest institution conducting basic research in the Czech Republic. It covers 54 research institutes, the Institute fo Computer Science being one of them.

May 25, 2021

LAST CALL: Tenure Track Research Position - Computer Science, Prague, Czech Republic

by pokornam

THE CZECH ACADEMY OF SCIENCES IS THE BIGGEST INSTITUTION CONDUCTING BASIC RESEARCH IN THE CZECH REPUBLIC. IT COVERS 54 RESEARCH INSTITUTES, THE INSTITUTE OF COMPUTER SCIENCE BEING ONE OF THEM. LAST CALL: The Institute of Computer Sciences of the Czech Academy of Sciences (ICS CAS), Prague, Czech Republic, invites applications for one TENURE‐TRACK POSITION IN COMPUTER SCIENCE and related areas fitting and/or expanding its current research focus, consisting mainly of: artificial intelligence, combinatorics, complex dynamic systems, computational complexity, data-mining, mathematical logic, statistics. _THE CLOSING DATE FOR APPLICATION IS 31ST MAY 2021._ For more information on the position please see https://www.cs.cas.cz/job-offer/Tenure-Track-Position-Computer-Science-2021… [1], or contact us at posinfo(a)cs.cas.cz Institute of Computer Science Czech Academy of Sciences Pod Vodarenskou vezi 2 Prague 8, 182 07, Czech Republic http://www.cs.cas.cz [2] Links: ------ [1] https://www.cs.cas.cz/job-offer/Tenure-Track-Position-Computer-Science-2021… [2] http://www.cs.cas.cz/

May 25, 2021

13+ PhD positions in BioRobotics at the BioRobotics Institute, Scuola Superiore Sant'Anna, Pisa, Italy

by Calogero Maria Oddo

************************************************************************************** 13+ PhD positions in BIOROBOTICS at Sant'Anna School of Advanced Studies, Pisa, Italy https://www.santannapisa.it/sites/default/files/flyer_phd_biorobotics_2021_… ************************************************************************************** The PhD Program in BioRobotics is a three-year course managed by the BioRobotics Institute (https://www.santannapisa.it/en/institute/biorobotics/biorobotics-institute) linked to the Department of Excellence in Robotics & AI, at Sant'Anna School of Advanced Studies, in Pisa (Italy). The PhD in BioRobotics is one of the largest doctoral schools worldwide in biomedical engineering and robotics, with 100+ PhD students enrolled. In the last release of the Times Higher Education (THE) ranking, Sant'Anna School of Advanced Studies is listed 4th worldwide among young universities (https://www.santannapisa.it/en/university/rankings) All PhD positions are fully funded by Sant'Anna School of Advanced Studies and research projects of The BioRobotics Institute. The number of positions awarded is expected to be expanded with additional fellowships that may be available before the start of the PhD course in October 2021. The students are educated in a stimulating and multidisciplinary environment, both through high-level courses and through demanding, creative and original research work. PhD projects are carried out in very well equipped, state-of-the-art laboratories (in such fields as micro-engineering, biomedical engineering, biomimetic and soft robotics, rehabilitation technologies, surgical robotics and neural engineering, robot companions) and through individual and teamwork performed under the supervision of a full-time faculty. The PhD programme in BioRobotics guarantees a wide and multidisciplinary educational offer, organized both on horizontal clusters, which contain the fundamental teachings on the scientific issues characterizing the cultural approach of BioRobotics, and on vertical clusters, which contain the courses proposed by the scientific themes of The BioRobotics Institute, namely: wearable and collaborative technologies, artificial organs and prostheses, medical robotics and regenerative medicine, mathematical and computational modeling, bioinspired and soft robotics, bioelectronics and neuroscience robotics (https://www.santannapisa.it/en/institute/biorobotics/research-themes) ADMISSION: Students are admitted to the PhD Program following a successful entrance examination. Eligible applicants must hold a Master of Science (M.Sc.) degree or equivalent. Undergraduate students may also apply if they graduate within Oct. 31, 2021. START: Oct. 1, 2021 CALL details: https://www.santannapisa.it/en/admissions/call-admission-phd-biorobotics-4 APPLY at: www.santannapisa.it/en/education/phd-biorobotics<http://www.santannapisa.it/en/education/phd-biorobotics> DEADLINE: June 3, 2021 CONTACT: PhDBiorobotics(a)santannapisa.it<mailto:PhDBiorobotics@santannapisa.it> Best regards, Arianna Menciassi and Calogero M. Oddo, on behalf of the PhD Board -- Calogero M. Oddo, Associate Professor of Bioengineering PhD BioRobotics, MSc and BSc Electronic Engineering https://www.santannapisa.it/en/calogero-maria-oddo https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=y1rffgkAAAAJ&hl=en Vice-Coordinator of the PhD programme in BioRobotics, Sant'Anna School of Advanced Studies, Pisa, Italy https://www.santannapisa.it/en/education/phd-biorobotics Head of the Neuro-Robotic Touch Laboratory Neuro-robotics Area, The BioRobotics Institute, Sant'Anna School of Advanced Studies, Pisa, Italy Viale Rinaldo Piaggio 34, 56025, Pontedera (PI), Italy http://www.santannapisa.it/en/neuro-robotic-touch-laboratory Department of Excellence in Robotics & AI, Sant'Anna School of Advanced Studies, Pisa, Italy Piazza Martiri della Libertà, 33 - 56127 Pisa, Italy https://www.santannapisa.it/en/robotics-ai IEEE Senior Member, Founding Vice-Chair of the Italian Chapter of the IEEE Sensors Council (2018-20) http://sites.ieee.org/italy-sensors/about-ieee Office: +39050883067; Mobile: +393316992273; email: calogero.oddo(a)santannapisa.it<mailto:calogero.oddo@santannapisa.it>

May 22, 2021

Registration for the Virtual Workshop on Functional Logic of Neural Circuits: Diamonds in the Rough

by Aurel A. Lazar

Registration for the Virtual Workshop on Functional Logic of Neural Circuits: Diamonds in the Rough, June 10-11, is now open at https://sites.google.com/njit.edu/diamonds <https://sites.google.com/njit.edu/diamonds>. Aurel http://www.bionet.ee.columbia.edu

May 21, 2021

23 positions available to study The Adaptive Mind

by Constantin Rothkopf

The Universities of Giessen, Marburg, and Darmstadt together with the University of Frankfurt and the Frankfurt Institute for Advanced Studies (FIAS) aim strategically to further strengthen research in the field of Mind, Brain, and Behavior by establishing a cluster project The Adaptive Mind. Supported by the Hessen State Ministry for Higher Education, Research and the Arts, applications for 11 Doctoral researcher positions (65%, 75% or 100%) and 12 PostDoc positions (100%) are invited. The positions are available immediately and are fixed maximally up to 31.03.2025. If the requirements are met, the position will be paid according to pay group 13. The place of employment will be Giessen, Marburg, Darmstadt or Frankfurt. In The Adaptive Mind, we combine rigorous behavioral and neurophysiological research methods and theories from experimental psychology, with the unique patient-oriented insights of psychiatry and clinical psychology and the power of quantitative analysis and computational modeling by artificial intelligence. Our goal is to observe empirically, describe quantitatively, and model computationally how the human mind continually adapts in an ever-changing and often unpredictable world. Further details about the cluster project, the Key Research Areas, the Principle Investigators and conditions of application can be found at www.theadaptivemind.de. For the doctoral researcher positions, we invite the application of highly qualified applicants with a Masters degree from life-, biomedical- and natural sciences including psychology, or computer science. The successful PostDoc applicants will have a doctorate in any of the following areas: experimental psychology, cognitive sciences, neuroscience, artificial intelligence, robotics, sensorimotor control, computational psychiatry, or other allied fields. Experience in motion tracking, virtual reality, machine learning or other computational approaches are beneficial. The successful applicants will join a thriving research community with strong regional, national and international connections as documented among others by numerous high-profile individual (e. g., 8 ERC grants) and group grants (e.g., the Collaborative Research Center (SFB/TRR 135) on Cardinal Mechanisms of Perception, the IRTG 1901 The Brain in Action, the Research Unit RU 2107 Neurobiology of Psychiatric Disorders, the Centre for Cognitive Science and the Hessian Center for Artificial Intelligence - hessian.AI, as well as other collaborative research endeavors). All participating institutions are committed to increasing the proportion of women in science, and female candidates are strongly encouraged to apply for the positions. All participating institutions are family-friendly institutions, applicants with children are warmly welcomed. Applicants with severe disabilities will be given preference over other candidates with equal suitability for the position. Application and interview costs cannot be refunded. For further information, please contact Dr. Filipp Schmidt (filipp.schmidt(a)psychol.uni-giessen.de) Please send your application (incl. CV, Research statement, 2 Reference letters, Scans of degree certificates) mentioning reference number 293/06 as a single PDF file to Dr. Filipp Schmidt, Research Coordinator Mechanisms of Perception and Adaption (filipp.schmidt(a)psychol.uni-giessen.de) before June 11, 2021. Application procedure: All applications are received centrally by the research coordinator of the priority research area "Perception and Adaptation", Dr. Filipp Schmidt at Justus-Liebig University Giessen. The application documents will be made available to the selection committee, consisting of the cluster PIs and of representatives of the partner universities, following the highest standards for data protection. Please specify in your application to which of the research fields specified below you are applying. Staff representatives of all partner universities will be invited to the job interviews. Employment is at the partner university the position is assigned to, following the salary scales applicable locally. Research areas: All research in our Cluster tries to combine Experimental Psychology and Movement Sciences, Artificial Intelligence and Computational Cognitive Science, as well as Clinical Psychology and Psychiatry. The focus for each position will be as follows:. At Justus-Liebig-Universität Giessen (JLU) Experimental Psychology and Movement Sciences (4 PostDoc and 4 Doctoral researcher positions 75%). At Philipps-Universität Marburg (UMR) Experimental Psychology (2 Doctoral researcher positions 75%), Computational Cognitive Science (1 PostDoc position), Clinical Psychology (1 PostDoc position), Psychiatry (2 PostDoc und 1 Doctoral researcher positions 75%). At Technische Universität Darmstadt (TUDa) Artificial Intelligence and Computational Cognitive Science (4 PostDoc and 2 Doctoral researcher positions 100%). At Goethe-Universität Frankfurt am Main (GU) Experimental Psychology (1 Doctoral researcher position 65%). At FIAS Computational Cognitive Science (1 Doctoral researcher position 65%). -- Prof. Constantin A. Rothkopf, PhD phone: +49 6151 16-23367 Director, Centre for Cognitive Science http://www.cogsci.tu-darmstadt.de/ Head, Psychology of Information Processing Group, http://www.pip.tu-darmstadt.de/ Institute of Psychology, Technical University of Darmstadt https://hessian.ai/ Adjunct Fellow, Frankfurt Institute for Advanced Studies. https://fias.uni-frankfurt.de/~rothkopf/

May 21, 2021

5 year postdoctoral position in Insect Robotics Group, Edinburgh

by Barbara Webb

A research associate position is available to investigate insect-inspired grasping mechanisms on the EPSRC funded project GRASP, under the direction of Professor Barbara Webb, in the School of Informatics, University of Edinburgh. The position is available from September 1, 2021, for 5 years. The primary role of the candidate will be to undertake biological experiments, behavioural analysis and modelling aimed at establishing how ants solve the 'grasp of unknown object in clutter' problem. This will include the development of new tracking and behavioural analysis methods, and the development and implementation of functional hypotheses as computational models of the antʼs behaviour. In collaboration with a second research associate, the key principles will be replicated on a mobile robot platform capable of both navigation and manipulation under natural conditions. Candidates are expected to have a PhD (or be near completion) in experimental or computational biology or neuroscience, including substantial experience in computational methods for behavioural analysis and modelling. A track record of good journal publications in this area should be demonstrated. The candidate is also expected to have good programming and system engineering skills, and ideally, practical skills in the design and utilisation of novel experimental methods. Candidates with direct experience and knowledge of insect research will be preferred. For informal enquiries please contact Professor Barbara Webb (B.Webb(a)ed.ac.uk) Full details and applications (deadline June 10) via: https://elxw.fa.em3.oraclecloud.com/hcmUI/CandidateExperience/en/sites/CX_1… The University of Edinburgh is a charitable body, registered in Scotland, with registration number SC005336. Is e buidheann carthannais a th’ ann an Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann, clàraichte an Alba, àireamh clàraidh SC005336.

May 20, 2021

Excellence ASTROTECH PhD Project in Modeling the Neuron-Glial-Vascular Unit

by Maurizio De Pittà

Dear colleagues, Please disseminate it. I am happy to announce that the Basque Center for Applied Mathematics (BCAM) in Bilbao (Spain) is opening one Excellence Ph.D. Fellowship as part of the H2020 ASTROTECH Consortium. The Fellowship is for a 3-year project to be carried out at the University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU) under the supervision of Drs. Maurizio DE PITTA (BCAM) and Christophe BERNARD (Aix-Marseille University). The project aims to “Computational Glioscience approaches to volume signalling transmission in the Neuron-Glial-Vascular Unit (NGVU)” to develop a mathematical model of neuron-glial-vascular interactions based on biophysical principles of volume transmission in the brain parenchyma. The candidate will collaborate tightly with industry representatives and will implement the model in an open-source simulation platform adopted in the clinical practice. The candidate, in conjunction with biologists and medical doctors, will test the NGVU model built by this project by brain-wide simulations of epileptic seizures, with emphasis on new venues for their diagnosis and treatment. We are seeking excellent candidates with multi-disciplinary interests in Applied Mathematics, Computer Science, Physics, Engineering, Biology and Medicine. An essential requirement is capacity for mobility. The candidate’s reference residence will be in Spain at BCAM, with an enrolment in the University of Basque Country (UPV/EHU) to obtain a doctoral degree. She/He will spend extensive periods of time out of Spain, including mandatory training of 1 to 3 months, respectively at Aix-Marseille University (Marseille, France), at University of Bari Aldo Moro (Bari, Italy), at Italian Research Council in Rome (Italy), and at CODEMART (Romania). Furthemore, the candidate will be required to participate in mandatory training schools and technical workshops (2-3 per year) organized by the ASTROTECH Consortium at different locations in Europe, for the entire duration of the project. The ASTROTECH Consortium (http://www.astrotechproject.eu) is a European high-level training-by-research consortium federating world-leading European groups working to develop new technologies to explore astrocyte functions in the brain. Becoming Ph.D. candidate of the network offers unique training and interaction opportunities with other ASTROTECH members, in addition to the specific research conducted at the host labs. The fellowship comes with a competitive salary within the prestigious Marie Sklodowska-Curie Actions scheme, including funds to participate to training and conferences. Selection process. The top-ranked candidates will be interviewed orally, and the successful candidate will be chosen based on a competitive, equal-opportunities procedure. Interested candidates are encouraged to make a parallel inquiry, writing to me directly (Email object: “ASTROTECH PhD Position”), including a CV along with the name of two references and any other information that they may wish to share. Contact: Maurizio DE PITTA, mdepitta(a)bcamath.org Requirements for application. -- MSc degree, preferably in Physics, Mathematics, Engineering or Computer Sciences. -- High proficiency in spoken and written English. Skills. -- Proven record of excellence in the Master’s training. -- Excellent communication and interpersonal skills, with ability to effectively communicate ideas to an heterogeneous audience of biologists, medical doctors, and physicists. -- Ability to work in a fast-changing, international environment. -- Ability to meet deadlines. -- Openness towards inclusive science, racial and LGBTQ+ minorities. -- Excellent capacity for planning, independence, and creativity. -- Programming proficiency in at least one of the following languages: Python/C++/Julia. -- Familiarity with HPC and GPU/CUDA programming is a plus. -- The preferred candidate will have a strong interest in neurobiology and aims to pursue a career in multidisciplinary research in neurosciences, quantitative medicine or computational psychiatry. Application deadline is June 30, 2021, 2pm CET (UTC+1) Starting Date is November 2021. Open ASTROTECH Info day: May 26, 9.45am -- 1pm CET (UTC+1) https://global.gotomeeting.com/join/653571365 Application is submitted online through the BCAM portal: http://www.bcamath.org/en/research/job/phd-position-for-h2020-project-astro… For more information: https://sites.google.com/site/mauriziodepitta/jobs?authuser=0 ----- Maurizio De Pitta' https://sites.google.com/site/mauriziodepitta/home

May 19, 2021