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Neuromodulation of Neural Microcircuits NM2 Conference 2017

by Ramaswamy Srikanth

We are delighted to announce the upcoming <https://nm2.epfl.ch> Neuromodulation of Neural Microcircuits (<https://nm2.epfl.ch>NM2) Conference 2017<https://nm2.epfl.ch>. The NM2 Conference will be held at the EPFL, Lausanne, Switzerland on the 18th and 19th of Sep. 2017 and at the Campus Biotech in Geneva, Switzerland on the 20th of Sep. 2017. Neuromodulators dynamically reconfigure neural microcircuits and shape brain states by controlling the function of neurons and glia, dendrites, and synapses. NM2 will bring together world-leading experts to: • Identify the state-of-the-art mechanisms of the neuromodulation of neural microcircuits • Illuminate various strategies enabling the measurement of neuromodulatory states in brain health and disease • Integrate knowledge to build a unifying view of the neuromodulation of different brain regions • Inform and attract new talent to drive forward neuromodulation research • Inspire future directions that will transform our understanding of the neuromodulation of brain function and dysfunction and therapeutic intervention NM2 has an exciting program<https://nm2.epfl.ch/page-145616-en.html> with a stimulating lineup of speakers<https://nm2.epfl.ch/page-145624-en.html>! Please mark your calendars to participate in shaping the future course of neuromodulatory research! Registration<https://nm2.epfl.ch/page-145625-en.html> includes coffee breaks, lunch, refreshments and poster sessions. PhD. students and postdocs are particularly encouraged to apply for several travel awards<https://nm2.epfl.ch/page-146294-en.html> by submitting poster abstracts<https://nm2.epfl.ch/page-146294-en.html>. Some abstracts will be selected for flash talks. Early bird registration is open until July 31st, 2017. Abstract submission is open until August 13th, 2017. We look forward to welcoming you at NM2 in beautiful Switzerland! Best regards from the scientific committee of NM2, Srikanth Ramaswamy Henry Markram Mriganka Sur Anita Disney Menahem Segal Michael Hasselmo Seung-Hee Lee Alexander Thiele Amy Arnsten [cid:CCBC7D9D-9041-4146-88BA-CC744BDBB811@epfl.ch]

July 20, 2017

PhD scholarship "Deep Learning in clinical neuroimaging", Charité Berlin

by Kerstin Ritter

Dear all, I am offering a PhD scholarship in "Deep Learning in clinical neuroimaging" at Charite Berlin, starting in October 2017 (initially for 2 years). See announcement below: _________________________________________ Deep Learning in clinical neuroimaging PhD scholarship (starting October 2017, initially for 2 years) At the Berlin Center for Advanced Neuroimaging and Bernstein Center for Computational Neuroscience (Charite), we are looking for a motivated and highly talented PhD student for various research questions within the interdisciplinary field of deep learning and clinical neuroimaging. In particular, we employ convolutional neural networks for finding new representations from neuroimaging data in order to predict disease conversion and future clinical disability in neurological as well as psychiatric diseases. Whereas previous disease decoding approaches mostly relied on expert-based extraction of features in combination with standard classification algorithms and thus strongly depend on the choice of data representation, convolutional networks are capable of learning hierarchical information directly from raw imaging data. By this, they have a great potential for finding unexpected and latent data characteristics and might perform as a real “second reader”. A major focus will be on visualization techniques to make the learned content of convolutional neural networks visible. Requirements for the PhD student: - Very good degree in computer science, mathematics, physics, psychology, computational neuroscience or related subject. - Very good programming skills (e.g. Python) - Experience in machine learning - Good writing and communication skills (in English) Please send your application (motivation+CV) in one pdf-file (in English or German) to: Dr. Kerstin Ritter Berlin Center for Advanced Neuroimaging, Bernstein-Zentrum für Computational Neuroscience Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin Sauerbruchweg 4, Charitéplatz 1, 10117 Berlin Tel.: + 49 30 450 539364; Email: kerstin.ritter(a)bccn-berlin.de _________________________________________________ Thank you very much! Best wishes, Kerstin Ritter _______________________________________________ Dr. rer. nat. Kerstin Ritter, nee Hackmack Bernstein Center for Computational Neuroscience Berlin Center for Advanced Neuroimaging Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin Sauerbruchweg 4, Charitéplatz 1, 10117 Berlin

July 20, 2017

Creating a list of important computational predictions

by Yiota Poirazi

Dear all, I believe you would agree that, the greatest recognition of our computational work comes with the experimental verification of our computational predictions. To highlight the most important outcomes of our theoretical work and facilitate a closer interaction with experimental labs so as to increase the chances of our predictions being experimentally tested, I would like to encourage you to nominate your favorite prediction at the following google form: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeJZ2RrXJ0nZonIuyNzN0Cl gXDKDb7xTzoJOiqZTGxm9Kh7ow/viewform?c=0&w=1&usp=mail_form_link This effort started during the CNS 2017 meeting in Antwerp with the support of the OCNS Board. The resulting list will be posted on the CNS 2017 web site and disseminated in social media, as a reference for experimentalists. Thank you very much for supporting this important effort! Best wishes, Yiota Poirazi -- Panayiota Poirazi, Ph.D. Research Director Computational Biology Laboratory Institute of Molecular Biology and Biotechnology (IMBB) Foundation of Research and Technology-Hellas (FORTH) Vassilika Vouton, P.O.Box 1385, GR 70013, Heraklion, Crete GREECE Tel: +30 2810 391139 Fax: +30 2810 391101 Εmail: poirazi(a)imbb.forth.gr Lab site: www.dendrites.gr FENS-Kavli Network of Excellence <http://www.fens.org/Outreach/FENS-Kavli-Network-of-Excellence/> -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by *E.F.A. Project* <http://www.efa-project.org>, and is believed to be clean. Click here to report this message as spam. <http://mailgate1.imbb.forth.gr/cgi-bin/learn-msg.cgi?id=4BCD7A00A1.A57D7&to…> -- Panayiota Poirazi, Ph.D. Research Director Computational Biology Laboratory Institute of Molecular Biology and Biotechnology (IMBB) Foundation of Research and Technology-Hellas (FORTH) Vassilika Vouton, P.O.Box 1385, GR 70013, Heraklion, Crete GREECE Tel: +30 2810 391139 Fax: +30 2810 391101 Εmail: poirazi(a)imbb.forth.gr Lab site: www.dendrites.gr FENS-Kavli Network of Excellence <http://www.fens.org/Outreach/FENS-Kavli-Network-of-Excellence/>

July 20, 2017

2nd Announcement: Computational Neuroscience in Africa: isiCN IMBIZO 18

by Tim Vogels

Dear all, we would like to draw your attention to the IBRO SIMONS COMPUTATIONAL NEUROSCIENCE IMBIZO #isiCNI2018 Get to know (and help to build) African Computational and Theoretical Neuroscience. from 7 - 28 January 2018, Muizenberg Beach, Cape Town, South Africa http://isicni.gatsby.ucl.ac.uk <http://isicni.gatsby.ucl.ac.uk/> Application deadline: 15th August 2017 The #isiCNI2018 is a southern hemisphere summer school aiming to promote computational neuroscience in Africa. It will bring together international and local students under the tutelage of the world's leading experts in the field. Like its international sister courses, this three-week summer school aims to teach central ideas, methods, and practices of modern computational neuroscience through a combination of lectures and hands-on project work. Mornings will be devoted to lectures on topics across the breadth of experimental and computational neuroscience. The rest of the day will be spent working on research projects under the close supervision of expert tutors and faculty. Individual research projects will focus on the modelling of neurons, neural systems, behaviour, the analysis of state-of-the-art neural data, and the development of theories to explain experimental observations. Who should apply? This course is aimed at Masters and PhD level students though Honours or Postdoctoral students may also apply. Students should sufficient quantitative skills, (e.g. a background in mathematics, physics, computer science, statistics, engineering or related field). Some knowledge of neural biology will be useful but not essential. Experimental neuroscience students are encouraged to apply, but should ensure that they have a reasonable level of quantitative proficiency (i.e. at least second-year level mathematics or statistics and have done at least one course in computer programming). Please distribute this information as widely as you can. Essential details * Fee (which covers tuition, lodging, and meals): 1100 EUR * Generous scholarships and travel stipends are available based on merit and need * Application deadline: 15th August 2017 * Notification of results: End of September 2017 Information and application http://isicni.gatsby.ucl.ac.uk <http://isicni.gatsby.ucl.ac.uk/> Application form http://tinyurl.com/yc6zbvpo <http://tinyurl.com/yc6zbvpo> Questions? isicn.imbizo(a)gmail.com <mailto:isicn.imbizo@gmail.com> What is an Imbizo? \ɪmˈbiːzɒ\ | Xhosa - Zulu A gathering of the people to share knowledge. FACULTY Larry Abbott - Columbia University Adrienne Fairhall - Washington University Surya Ganguli* - Stanford University Peter Latham - University College London Blake Richards - University of Toronto Timothy Lillicrap - Google DeepMind Mate Lengyel - University of CambridgeJoseph Raimondo - University of Cape Town Yiota Poirazi - Foundation for Research and Technology - Hellas Srikanth Ramaswamy - EPFL Lausanne Tim Vogels - University of Oxford Byron Yu - Carnegie Mellon University Alex Antrobus (Gatsby Unit, UCL) Athanasia Papoutsi (Foundation for Research and Technology - Hellas) William Podladski (University of Oxford ) Friedemann Zenke (Stanford University / University of Oxford) and others, to be announced *not confirmed DIRECTORS Peter Latham (Gatsby Unit for Computational Neuroscience, UCL, UK) Joseph Raimondo (University of Cape Town, South Africa) Tim Vogels (University of Oxford, UK) Sponsors The isiCNI is made possible by the generous support from the Simons Foundation (https://www.simonsfoundation.org <https://www.simonsfoundation.org/>) and IBRO, the International Brain Research Organisation (http://ibro.info <http://ibro.info/>) Organizational Affiliates University of Cape Town, University College London, University of Oxford, TReND in Africa <http://trendinafrica.org/>, CNCB <http://www.cncb.ox.ac.uk/>, Gatsby Foundation <http://www.gatsby.org.uk/>, IBRO African Center for Advanced Training in Neurosciences at UCT

July 19, 2017

Aspects of Neuroscience - Hackathon: Call for proposals (01.08) - Warsaw, 18-19th November

by Daniel Borek

On the weekend of 18-19th November, the first edition of Aspects of Neuroscience - Hackathon will take place. During this two-day event dedicated to students and PhD students, we will work in teams on neuroscience-related projects. The aim of the event is to meet new, enthusiastic researchers, to share the knowledge on data mining and brain research, but also to share the data and promote open science. We provide with a list of proposed open-access datasets, but we also encourage participants to share their own data during the event. At the moment, we opened the call for project proposals. The proposals can include various forms of a group activity, e.g., data analysis, app development, a discussion club on a particular topic, developing a software etc. Each proposal should indicate: [1] a title and abstract for the project; [2] a list of 1-5 key papers summarising the subject (which the participants should become familiar with before starting the project); [3] a list of requirements for taking part in the project (education level / English level / programming language required); [4] a maximum number of participants [5] a name of an author of the project, and a name of a senior researcher which will supervise the project during the Hackathon [6] what can the participant gain from the project? [7] an information on whether or not there is a plan for extending this work to a paper in case the results are promising An exemplary proposal is in link https://www.dropbox.com/s/ojui2h0wcz82mgy/EXEMPLARYPROPOSAL.pdf?dl=0 Location: University of Warsaw (Further information will be provided soon) Deadline for project proposals: 01.08.2017 Announcement of projects: 15.08.2017 Deadline for registration of participants: 01.11.2017 Please send your proposals to the conference email: neuroaspects(a)uw.edu.pl Proposals will be evaluated by members of our scientific committee before 15.08.2017 Main organizers: Michał Bola, PhD (Laboratory of Brain Imaging, Nencki Institute of Experimental Biology PAS, Warsaw, Poland) Natalia Bielczyk, MSc (Statistical Imaging Neuroscience Research Group, Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behavior, Nijmegen, The Netherlands) Daniel Borek, MSc (Faculty of Physics, University of Warsaw, Warsaw, Poland) Beata Goźlińska (Faculty of Physics, University of Warsaw, Warsaw, Poland) LIST OF EXAMPLARY OPEN ACCESS DATASETS: [1] calcium imaging datasets: Karl Svoboda https://crcns.org/data-sets/ssc [2] fMRI + DTI: Human Connectome Project http://www. humanconnectome.org/data/ [3] gene expression open-access database: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/geo/ + information on gene function: www.uniprot.org [4] EEG, MRI & behavioural data from N=644 children & adolescents: http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2017/06/13/149369 [5] EEG data: http://neurotycho.org/ [6] Research data supporting "Brain connectivity during propofol sedation https://www.repository.cam.ac.uk/handle/1810/252736

July 19, 2017

PhD positions on Translational Neurosciences and Neurotechnologies - IIT@UniFe

by Alessandro D'Ausilio

PHD PROGRAM in TRANSLATIONAL NEUROSCIENCES AND NEUROTECHNOLOGIES The Center for Translational Neurophysiology of Speech and Communication (CTNSC) at the Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia (IIT) is looking for up to 4 highly motivated, full-time PhD students to work in the core research areas of the Center. At the CTNSC we focus our efforts in two integrated directions. On one side we are studying how the brain builds communicative and linguistic representations. On the other side we are designing new brain interfaces, specifically conceived for human use, to record and computationally decode neural signals. The CTNSC is hosted by the Section of Physiology of the University of Ferrara, one of the oldest in Italy (founded in 1391). In terms of its size, facilities, quality and quantity of education and research, the university is a point of excellence within Italy. The PhD student will work in Ferrara, in an international and multidisciplinary team including biomedical engineers, biologists, computer scientists, psychologists and medical doctors. The PhD positions will cover the following core areas of CTNSC: A01 Improving performance and biocompatibility of electrode arrays for brain-computer interfaces A02 Functional investigation of innovative neural interfaces A03 Investigation of sensorimotor functions in animal models (NH primates and rats) A04 Machine learning applications to multimodal brain and speech signals A05 Human neurophysiology of speech and sensorimotor communication A06 Cortical recordings in human patients during awake Neurosurgery A07 Hardware and software development for innovative exploration of brain signals DEADLINE: 1st AUGUST 2017 CTNSC Info: https://www.iit.it/centers/ctnsc-unife PhD page [ITA]: http://www.unife.it/studenti/dottorato/corsi/riforma/neuroscienze How to participate to the selection [ITA/ENG]: http://www.unife.it/studenti/dottorato/modulistica/Guidaconcorso.pdf

July 19, 2017

Postdoc + 2 PhD students in limbo, SISSA, Trieste

by Alessandro Treves

A postdoc is sought to join a HFSP-funded project to study analog cortical computations in linguistic processes. A collaboration with Naama Friedmann (TAU) and Remi Monasson (ENS). Ideal candidates have a flair for (some) language, come from a background we have not thought of and seek to get to places where they have not been, at the crossroads between neuroscience, complex systems, and poetry. Two PhD students from outside Italy are sought to later join as ESRs the EU Training Network M-GATE, on hippocampal memory functions. A network of 7 institutes + 4 companies, coordinated by Francesco Battaglia (Nijmegen). Ideal candidates, who can be of any nationality but must not have spent much time in Italy in the last 3 years, enjoy analytical, mathematical and computational excursions when in search of fundamental network understanding. Deadline August 31st, 2017. Formal applications eventually needed, but please see first obsolete limbo information http://people.sissa.it/~ale/limbo.html and contact ale(a)sissa.it well in advance. -- Alessandro Treves http://people.sissa.it/~ale/limbo.html SISSA - Cognitive Neuroscience, via Bonomea 265, 34136 Trieste, Italy +39-040-3787623 Ambassador (BlaBlaCar) +39-349-2504602

July 18, 2017

CNS 2017 workshop:

by s.a.vangils＠utwente.nl

Please post: Dear all, We cordially invite you to attend our workshop at CNS2017, Thursday July 20: “Recent Developments in Epilepsy Modelling” Epilepsy is a chronic disease of the CNS characterized by the occurrence of seizures. It affects ~1% of the people worldwide, and ⅓ of the affected population does not respond to anticonvulsant drugs. This limited success of anticonvulsant treatment is, in part, due to our limited understanding of the underlying mechanisms that are responsible for the pathological behavior. Translational research can play an important role in the unravelling of the mechanisms that may be responsible. As more and better experimental data become available, it is important to be able to integrate these data with modeling approaches in order to test hypotheses and to improve insight and produce more individualized models. In this workshop a number of active researchers in the field come together to discuss their latest results ranging from computational models on different scales to statistical methods to evaluate the use of biomarkers. Speakers: Victor Jirsa, Fabrice Wendling, Wytse Wadman, Geertjan Huiskamp, Jurgen Hebbink, Bill Lytton, Peter Taylor, Stiliyan Kalitzin, Marc Goodfellow and Stephan van Gils. For details visit: http://wwwhome.math.utwente.nl/%7Egilssa/cns2017/?<http://wwwhome.math.utwente.nl/~gilssa/cns2017/?> With kind regards, Wim van Drongelen en Stephan van Gils Prof. Dr. S.A. (Stephan) van Gils Department of Applied Mathematics University of Twente P.O. Box 217 7500 AE Enschede Chair: Applied Analysis +31-53-4894272 (tel Secretary) +31-53-4893410 (tel Office)

July 17, 2017

Review article: Towards building a more complex view of the lateral geniculate nucleus: Recent advances in understanding its role

by Masoud Ghodrati

Dear vision scientists, We would like to draw your attention to our recent review paper entitled "Towards building a more complex view of the lateral geniculate nucleus: Recent advances in understanding its role <http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0301008215300757>" published in Progress in Neurobiology, Jun 2017. We hope that this review can link different findings about the LGN function and opens new research avenues in the field. *Recent evidence shows that lateral geniculate nucleus (LGN) has more sophisticated functions than a mere relaying hub. We provide a rather unfiltered and eclectic review of the LGN functions, with some focus on its computational role, as well as its role in higher level cognitive process (specifically higher level vision). **In particular, we argue that the LGN has a variety of complex nonlinear behaviors (perhaps the most interesting nonlinearity involves feedback from cortex). We suggest further development of feedback models of high-level vision considering the LGN function. Because of LGN’s contribution in temporal aspects of object processing, modeling LGN function particularly becomes more important when considering non-stationary stimuli (such as videos). Predictive coding and expectation coding models are in this direction.* Actual link: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0301008215300757 Here is authors’ free PDF version of the manuscript: https://goo.gl/KCmUR7 Best -- *_____________________________________________________________* Masoud Ghodrati, Department of Physiology, Monash University, Melbourne, Australia. E-mails: masoud.ghodrati(a)monash.edu Web pages (Personal) : https://sites.google.com/site/masoudghodrati1985/ *_____________________________________________________________*

July 17, 2017

Open postdoctoral position in human intracranial electrophysiology: Blanchette Rockefeller Neurosciences Institute, West Virginia University

by Shuo Wang

*** Sorry for multiple postings*** We invite applicants with strong motivation in investigating the neural mechanisms of face processing and visual attention/saliency to apply for a postdoctoral position at the Blanchette Rockefeller Neurosciences Institute (BRNI), West Virginia University. The applicant will work on intracranial single-unit recordings from human subjects, investigating questions related to face processing and/or visual attention and visual saliency. This will include experimental work with patients (electrophysiology and behavior), data processing and analysis, spike-train analysis, and experimental design. The applicant will have access to state-of-the art equipment, facilities and analytical methods and this research will be in a highly collaborative environment. The applicant will not only collaborate with investigators at the BRNI, but also be part of an established team of investigators at both Cedars-Sinai Medical Center (Dr. Ueli Rutishauser) and the California Institute of Technology (Dr. Ralph Adolphs), with ample opportunity to learn new techniques and methods. Candidates should have a recent PhD in systems, cognitive, or computational neuroscience with a track-record of first-author publications. Strong programming (Matlab or similar), data analysis, statistics and electrophysiology skills are essential. Excellent written and oral English communication skills are required, including the ability to communicate with patients and their families. Individuals with previous human intracranial EEG experience and/or macaque single neuron recordings that wish to expand into human single-unit recordings are encouraged to apply. Interested applicants should send a CV, including a list of publications, a brief description of research interests and analysis skills, and contact information for 2-3 reference letters to Shuo Wang (shuo.wang(a)mail.wvu.edu) Informal inquiries are welcome. Further information about the lab can be found at https://sites.google.com/site/shuowangsocialneuroscience/.

July 17, 2017

Methods of Information Theory workshop at CNS*2017

by Joseph Lizier

Dear all, Please note that the final schedule and speaker abstracts are available for the following workshop at CNS*2017 in Antwerp this week: Workshop on Methods of Information Theory in Computational Neuroscience 19 and 20 July 2017 Methods originally developed in Information Theory have found wide applicability in computational neuroscience. Beyond these original methods there is a need to develop novel tools and approaches that are driven by problems arising in neuroscience. A number of researchers in computational/systems neuroscience and in information/communication theory are investigating problems of information representation and processing. While the goals are often the same, these researchers bring different perspectives and points of view to a common set of neuroscience problems. Often they participate in different fora and their interaction is limited. The goal of the workshop is to bring some of these researchers together to discuss challenges posed by neuroscience and to exchange ideas and present their latest work. The workshop is targeted towards computational and systems neuroscientists with interest in methods of information theory as well as information/communication theorists with interest in neuroscience. Program: Wed 19 July (Room C.101): * 09:00 Raul Vicente, University of Tartu -- "Estimating and applying partial information decomposition to complex systems" * 09:45 Jil Meier, Delft University of Technology -- "The epidemic spreading model and the direction of information flow in brain networks" * 11:00 Karl Friston, University College London -- "Active inference and artificial curiosity" * 11:45 Taro Toyoizumi, RIKEN Brain Science Institute -- "A Local Learning Rule for Independent Component Analysis" * 14:00 Fleur Zeldenrust, Radboud Universiteit -- "Estimating the information extracted by a single spiking neuron from a continuous input time series" * 14:30 Pedro Martinez Mediano, Imperial College London -- "Integrated Information Theory Without the Hot Air" * 15:00 Mehrdad Salmasi, Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich "Information rate of a synapse during short-term depression" * 16:00 Tatjana Tchumatchenko, Max Planck Institute for Brain Research, Frankfurt -- "Information coding of mean and variance modulating signals in cortical neurons" * 16:45 Renaud Jolivet, University of Geneva -- "Energy-efficient information transfer at synapses" * 17:30 Rodrigo Cofre, University of Geneva and Universidad de Valparaíso -- "Information Entropy Production and Large deviations of Maximum Entropy Processes from Spike Trains" Thu 20 July (Room C.101): * 09:00 Lionel Barnett, University of Sussex -- "Information Transfer in Continuous and Discrete Time" * 09:45 Joseph T. Lizier, The University of Sydney "An estimator for transfer entropy between spike trains" * 11:00 Viola Priesemann, Max Planck Institute for Dynamics and Self-organization, Goettingen -- "Quantifying Information Storage and Modification in Neural Recordings" * 11:45 Demain Battaglia, Aix-Marseille University -- "Discrete information processing states in anesthetized rat recordings" * 14:00 Selin Aviyente, Michigan State University "Directed Information: Application to EEG during cognitive control" * 14:45 Adrià Tauste, Universitat Pompeu Fabra -- "Directed information flow within the thalamo-cortical network" * 16:00 Daniele Marinazzo, University of Ghent -- "Synergy and redundancy in dynamical systems: towards a practical and operative definition" * 16:45 Lubomir Kostal, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic -- "Reference frame independence as a constraint on the mutual information decomposition" * 17:30 Robin Ince, University of Glasgow -- "Quantifying representational interactions in neuroimaging and electrophysiological data using information theory" Organisers: Joseph T. Lizier -- chair, The University of Sydney Viola Priesemann, Max Planck Institute for Dynamics and Self-organisation Justin Dauwels, Nanyang Technological University Taro Toyoizumi, RIKEN Brain Science Institute Alexander G. Dimitrov, Washington State University Lubomir Kostal, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic Michael Wibral, Goethe University, Frankfurt

July 16, 2017

CNS2017 workshop on "Neuronal Oscillations: mechanisms and functionality"

by Frances Skinner

Please post: Dear all, We invite you to attend our workshop an CNS2017 tthis year. "Neurona*l Oscillations: mechanisms and functionality"* Oscillations at various frequency ranges have been observed in several brain structures (hippocampus, entorhinal cortex, olfactory bulb and others). They are believed to be important for cognitive functions such as learning, memory, navigation and attention. These rhythms have been studied at the single cell level, as the result of the interaction of a neuron’s intrinsic properties, at the network level, as the result of the interaction between the participating neurons and neuronal populations in a given brain region, and at higher levels of organization involving several of these regions. Recent advances in this field have benefited from the interaction between experiment and theory, and models with varying levels of detail. The purpose of this workshop is to bring together modelers, experimentalists and theorists with the goal of sharing and discussing their current results and ideas on the underlying mechanisms that govern the generation of these rhythms at various levels of organization, and their functional implications. An additional goal is to discuss what we mean by an explanation in the context of this workshop. To this end, speakers will be encouraged to address this issue from the perspective of Aristotle's four causes (efficient, material, formal and final causes) <http://plato.stanford.edu/archives/spr2015/entries/aristotle-causality/>. Please see 'What is computational neuroscience? (XVI) What is an explanation?' <http://romainbrette.fr/2013/06/>. Speakers: Day 1: F Skinner, J White, M Bezaire, V Cutsuridis, J Guzman, L Rubchinsky, D Levenstein, F Battaglia, M Bartos, J Mejias Day 2: C. Borgers, C Canavier, M Cunningham, J Lefebvre, A Peyrache, H Rotstein, B Pesaran, A Saudargiene For more details, please visit http://vassiliscutsuridis.com/workshop/CNS2017web.htm Thank you, Frances (on behalf of the organizers) -- Frances Skinner, PhD Krembil Research Institute/UHN and Univ Toronto www.skinnerlab.org

July 14, 2017

postdoc in Barcelona to do single cell recordings in humans

by Quian Quiroga, Rodrigo (Prof.)

*** Apologies for multiple postings*** Dear all, Please see below details of a postdoc position at the Barcelona ßeta Brain Research Center to study memory mechanisms by performing single cell recordings in humans in collaboration with Hospital del Mar. Cheers, Rodrigo Postdoc Position Barcelona ßeta Brain Research Center (BBRC) The Barcelona ßeta Brain Research Center (BBRC) offers a fully funded postdoc position at the research group headed by Professor Rodrigo Quian Quiroga. The group is part of a new Research Program on Memory, complementary to ongoing research at BBRC dealing with the Prevention of Alzheimer Disease. The group is associated to the epilepsy group headed by Dr. Gerardo Conesa at Hospital del Mar, a health center close to BBRC. Research will involve the study single cell recordings in humans. These recordings are performed in epileptic patients for curative surgery. In particular, the project will investigate concept cells (a.k.a. Jennifer Aniston neurons) – that means, neurons in the hippocampus and surrounding areas that selectively fire to specific concepts, like different pictures and the written or spoken name of a particular person (e.g. Quian Quiroga et al, Nature 2005; Quian Quiroga Nature Reviews Neuroscience 2012), which are involved in declarative memory functions. The successful candidate will contribute to performing recordings with patients at the Hospital del Mar and the analysis of the data to investigate the role of these neurons in memory formation, consolidation, long-term coding and recall. Candidates should have excellent quantitative skills (data processing, and programming, preferably in Matlab) and ideally, a strong background in neuroscience and experience with neurophysiology recordings. They should be able to work both independently and as part of a research team within the BBRC. The position is initially offered for 2 years, with the possibility to extend it for another 2 years. Salary will be competitive, depending on experience. The closing date for the applications is Monday 25th August 2017. Start date will be in October 2017. For application details and further particulars see: https://fpmaragall.org/en/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2014/07/Postdoc_Neural… Informal inquiries are welcome and should be submitted electronically to: rh(a)fpmaragall.org Rodrigo Quian Quiroga Centre for Systems Neuroscience University of Leicester www.le.ac.uk/csn

July 14, 2017

CNS meeting 2017 workshop on "Recent methods and analyses for neuronal population recordings"

by Valentina Pasquale

Dear all, I would like to remind you about the WORKSHOP "RECENT METHODS AND ANALYSES FOR LARGE-SCALE NEURONAL POPULATION RECORDINGS" | JULY 19TH-20TH IN ANTWERP @ CNS MEETING 2017 http://www.computational-neuroscience-of-sensory-systems.org/workshop-on-re… Abstract: Understanding how assemblies of neurons encode information requires recording large populations of cells in the brain. In recent years, progress in population calcium imaging and multichannel electrophysiology opened the possibility to record from hundreds or even thousands of neurons simultaneously. While these techniques offer unprecedented chances to monitor large neural circuits, they also push for the design of new algorithms to gather and process information from such high-dimensional datasets. The workshop "Recent methods and analyses for large-scale neuronal population recordings", which will be held on July 19th-20th in Antwerp at the CNS meeting 2017, will gather leading experimentalists and theoreticians to discuss latest computational methods and analyses used to process such large-scale neuronal population recordings, both in vivo and in vitro. Focusing on high-density electrophysiology and calcium imaging, it will review recent advances in neuroinformatics research, including spike sorting techniques and characterization of neural assemblies' spatio-temporal activity. Organizers: Valentina Pasquale (IIT), Michela Chiappalone (IIT), Pierre Yger (Institut de la Vision, France) Speakers: July 19th * Matthias Hennig (University of Edinburgh, Scotland) * Felix Franke (ETH Zurich, Switzerland) * Nick Steinmetz (University College London, UK) * Pierre Yger (Institut de la Vision, France) * Thomas Deneux (UNIC, CNRS, France) * Marius Pachitariu (University College London, UK) * Stephen J. Eglen (University of Cambridge, UK) * Adrien Peyrache (McGill University, Canada) July 20th * George Dimitriadis (Sainsbury Welcome Centre, UK) * Gaute Einevoll (NMBU, Norway) * Yannick Bornat (IMS Bordeaux, France) * Ulisse Ferrari (Institut de la Vision, France) * Sonja Grün (Forschungszentrum Jülich, Germany) * Valentina Pasquale (Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Italy) * Arno Onken (Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Italy) * Paolo Bonifazi (Ikerbasque, Bilbao, Spain) For further information, please visit: http://www.computational-neuroscience-of-sensory-systems.org/workshop-on-re… Best, Valentina Pasquale valentina.pasquale(a)iit.it<mailto:valentina.pasquale@iit.it> ISTITUTO ITALIANO DI TECNOLOGIA Optical Approaches to Brain Function Lab Via Morego, 30 16163 Genova t: +39 010 71781 475 f: +39 010 71781 230 www.iit.it<http://www.iit.it/>

July 14, 2017

Open PhD position computational neuroscienceB

by Claudius Gros

I would like to brink your attention our PhD-program in Computational Neurosciences / Complex Dynamical Systems at the Institute of Theoretical Physics, Goethe University Frankfurt, Germany Field(s): computational neurosciences, complex systems, theory neural networks, simulated robotics, dynamical systems. Application deadline: August 11, 2017 Contact: Prof. Claudius Gros, cgr[(a)]itp.uni-frankfurt.de We are developing new models and generative principles for the brain using a range of toolsets from dynamical systems theory and computational neurosciences. Examples are new objective functions and generating functionals for the sensori-motor loop, transient state dynamics and self-limiting Hebbian plasticity rules. Several subjects are available for the announced PhD thesis including the generation of transient state dynamics through short-term synaptic plasticity, the study of the stationarity principle for statistical learning and/or the generation of motor primitives through self-organized embodiment within the sensori-motor loop. The work will include analytic investigations and numerical simulations of neural networks and/or of simulated robots, using the toolset of dynamical systems theory. The candidate must have a Diploma/Master in physics, an excellent academic track record and good computational skills. Experience or strong interest in the fields of complex systems, computational neurosciences, dynamical systems theory and/or artificial or biological cognitive systems is expected. The degree of scientific research experience needs to be on the level of a German Diploma/Master The appointment will start summer/fall 2017, for up to three years. Interested applicants must submit a curriculum vitae, a list of publications and copies of the academic record. Name, affiliation and email of one or more potential references are to be given. Claudius Gros http://www.itp.uni-frankfurt.de/~gros General information on the University of Frankfurt and its employment policy. With its around 46000 students and 4600 employees, the Goethe University in Frankfurt is the largest university in the state of Hessen and an internationally renowned, important regional employer. Numerous quality and performance oriented internal reforms have been initiated in the recent years. The reorganized campuses for natural sciences and humanities offer an ideal environment for research and education. Since 2008, the Goethe University is a foundation under public law and enjoys full administrative autonomy. The fixed-term employment of the academic staff is subject to the provisions of the Temporary Science Employment Law (Wissenschaftszeitvertragsgesetz) and the Hessian Higher Education Act (Hessisches Hochschulgesetz). The University advocates gender equality and therefore strongly encourages women to apply. People with disabilities are given preference if equally qualified. ### ### Prof. Dr. Claudius Gros ### http://itp.uni-frankfurt.de/~gros ### ### Complex and Adaptive Dynamical Systems, A Primer ### A graduate-level textbook, Springer (2008/10/13/15) ### ### Mageia, das Buch der Farben ### http://www.buchderfarben.de ###

July 12, 2017

Vice Chancellor's 5-year Research Fellowship in Biocomputation, Mental Health and Wellbeing (University of Hertfordshire, U.K.)

by Steuber, Volker

Research Fellow: Biocomputation, Mental Health and Wellbeing University of Hertfordshire - School of Computer Science Location: Hatfield Salary: £32,004 to £38,183 Grade 7 p.a. Hours: Full Time Contract Type: Fixed-Term/Contract Placed on: 27th June 2017 Closes: 21st August 2017 Job Ref: 014834 FTE 1.0 FTE working 37 hours per week Duration of Contract: Fixed term contract 5 years from October 2017 Qualifications required: Very strong PhD degree in a quantitative research-oriented discipline, examples are computer science, mathematics, physics and neuroscience; excellent programming skills in at least one major computer language (essential), and very strong mathematical background, with particular emphasis on areas such as computer algebra, Krohn-Rhodes algebraic automata theory and language theory, discrete/continuous/constructive dynamical systems theory, group theory, algebraic topology, information theory, probability theory and statistics, and mathematical methods for computational intelligence. Background in computational neuroscience, including processing and analysis of EEG data, especially EEG microstates, is highly desirable. Experience writing high-quality research publications (essential) and grant applications (desirable), as well as excellent communication skills (essential). Successful history of working in multidisciplinary teams (highly desirable). Description of the research activity and area: Algorithms and Biocomputation are growing areas of research excellence at the University of Hertfordshire. This Fellowship targets the development and application of our novel computational and mathematical methods (e.g., automata-, language-theoretic and algebraic methods; computational mechanics and Krohn-Rhodes computational algebraic biology) to biological systems. The Research Fellow will support ongoing and future work characterizing the neurodynamical spatio-temporal structure of human mental states led by Professor Chrystopher L. Nehaniv and external collaborator Dr Elena Antonova (Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King’s College London). Our current BIAL Foundation grant focuses on using EEG microstate ‘grammars’ to distinguish different mental states in expert meditators. EEG microstates are quasi-stable maps of electric potential landscapes of short duration, typically classed in a small number of discrete types analogous to ‘letters’ of an alphabet. The tendency for simple EEG microstate transitions between certain pairs of these discrete types has already been shown to characterize clinical populations (people with schizophrenia or Alzheimer’s vs. healthy controls). Our current research targets finer understanding of richer temporal neurodynamical structure and patterns, using these novel computational methods, toward harnessing their potential eventually for applications in Health and Wellbeing as a diagnostic tool for different clinical populations. The Fellow will reinforce the established collaboration with KCL, supporting validation and development of our methods toward their eventual application in clinical diagnosis and mental illness prevention, as well as in promotion of wellbeing. The Fellow will be expected to publish in high-impact journals and present conference papers together with Professor Nehaniv and Dr Antonova, to contribute to writing grant applications to national and international funding bodies [e.g., Wellcome Trust, EPSRC/BBSRC/MRC, European Commission, and other funding agencies], and contribute to REF outputs of the School of Computer Science. In accord with the CONCORDAT for professional development of researchers, the candidate may be afforded the opportunity to undertake a limited amount of appropriate teaching (upon mutual agreement). The Royal Society / Wolfson Biocomputation Research Laboratory at the University of Hertfordshire has a long history of interdisciplinary innovation in computational methods for systems biology and neural systems, as well as applications of bioinspired-methods to other fields. It enjoys close interdisciplinary links to the Adaptive Systems and Algorithms Research Groups, whose interests include mathematical computer science, compilers, security, networks, artificial Intelligence robotics, artificial life, language acquisition, human-robot interaction, etc., and have labs equipped with humanoid and non-humanoid robots, as well as 3D printing facilities. External research connections to UK, European and international partners (e.g. University of California, Berkeley; Univ. Debrecen and Renyi Institute, Hungary; Sardex, Italy; etc) are supported through numerous research council and EC-funded collaborations and projects. Skills and experience needed: The Fellow will have established him/herself as an independent researcher, capable of establishing a programme of research activity within the scope of the project. S/he will have excellent oral and written communication skills in both spoken and written English and a track record of publications in high impact journals. The Fellow will be expected to build capacity in the area of Biocomputation and participate in attracting external funding, previous success being a desirable attribute. S/he should be able to establish good working relationships, and work closely with members of the Centre for Computer Science and Informatics Research and the School of Computer Science, at the University of Hertfordshire and with partner organisations as appropriate. The fellow should have knowledge of research methodology appropriate for the subject area and knowledge of appropriate databases for the discipline and ability to conduct literature searches in the discipline using appropriate electronic resources. Contact Details: Informal enquiries can be made to Professor Chrystopher L. Nehaniv, email: C.L.Nehaniv(a)herts.ac.uk<mailto:C.L.Nehaniv@herts.ac.uk> tel: +44 1707 284470<tel:01707%20284470> The University offers a range of benefits including a pension scheme, professional development, family friendly policies, child care vouchers, a fee waiver of 50% for all children of staff under the age of 21 at the start of the course, discounted memberships at the Hertfordshire Sports Village and generous annual leave. To make a formal application, follow links and apply on-line: http://www.jobs.ac.uk/job/BCH822/research-fellow-biocomputation-mental-heal…

July 12, 2017

Postdoc Position: Learning Dynamics in Recurrent Networks

by Shouval, Harel

A postdoc position is available in the Shouval lab. The Postdoc will work on a project funded by the BRAIN grant: “Learning spatio-temporal statistics from the environment in recurrent networks”. In this project we will model both recurrent network models, and also the learning rules that allow them to learn their dynamics from environmental cues. This project is a collaboration between the lab of Harel Shouval at the University of Texas in Houston, and the lab of Nicolas Brunel at Duke. This is a two-year position and it can start immediately. The Shouval lab is a leader in developing models of synaptic plasticity and understanding their impact on learning and memory. The models we develop span from the molecular level and up to the systems level. In our some of our recent work we study the impact of synaptic plasticity on recurrent network dynamics and on incorporating reinforcement learning into biophysical plasticity models. We use both computational and analytical techniques to study these issues. The Shouval lab is located in the department of Neurobiology and Anatomy, in the UT medical school. Houston has a thriving Neuroscience community and it is an excellent environment for Theoretical and Computational Neuroscience. There is a high concentration of Theoretical Neuroscience labs at the different Houston area Universities (Baylor, Rice, UH, UT). Our Theoretical Neuroscience community is highly collaborative and there is a joint organization to foster these collaborations; the Gulf Coast Consortium in Theoretical and Computational Neuroscience (GCC-TCN). We hold an annual conference, joint graduate courses and a journal club. The ideal candidate will have a PhD in Computational Neuroscience with strong analytical and computational skills. I will also consider candidates with a background in the Physical or Computational Sciences who would like to become a Theoretical Neuroscientists. If you want to apply please send me your CV, and a brief cover letter that includes names of possible references. I will also be happy to answer any question you might have about the project or the position. Harel Shouval Professor Department of Neurobiology and Anatomy The University of Texas Medical School, Houston Director of the Neuroscience Graduate program Email: harel.shouval(a)gmail.com<mailto:harel.shouval@gmail.com> Web: https://med.uth.edu/nba/faculty/harel-shouval/

July 11, 2017

POSTDOCTORAL FELLOWSHIP IN COMPUTATIONAL MODELING OF BRAIN NETWORKS at Stanford University

by Aarthi Padmanabhan

The Stanford Cognitive and Systems Neuroscience Laboratory invites applications for a postdoctoral fellowship in human brain network analysis and modeling. We seek candidates with strong research backgrounds in one or more of the following areas: resting-state and task-evoked fMRI connectivity, structural HARDI-based connectivity, neurophysiological modeling of brain networks, Bayesian modeling, machine learning, and deep neural networks. Candidates must have strong computational skills and a PhD in computational neuroscience, computer science, physics, biomedical engineering or related fields. This is an exciting opportunity to work on multiple NIH- and Stanford-funded projects using multimodal (fMRI, optogenetic, DTI, EEG) brain imaging techniques in multiple clinical populations and normative groups. The successful candidate will develop a vigorous research program that contributes to, and complements, ongoing research studies. The candidate will have access to state-of-the-art brain imaging and HPC/GPU facilities. Please email a CV, statement of research interests and relevant background, and names of three referees to Drs. Vinod Menon and Aarthi Padmanabhan at scsnl.stanford+postdoc(a)gmail.com<mailto:scsnl.stanford@gmail.com> Aarthi Padmanabhan, PhD Scientific Research Director Stanford Cognitive and Systems Neuroscience Laboratory Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences Stanford University School of Medicine

July 11, 2017

Neuroscience Gateway Workshop at SFN 2017 meeting

by Ted Carnevale

Using the Neuroscience Gateway Portal for Parallel Simulations Saturday, Nov. 11 from 9 AM to noon at downtown Washington DC location. This workshop combines didactic presentations and hands-on instruction on how to use the Neuroscience Gateway Portal (NSG) for computationally intensive simulations and data analysis. NSG eliminates most technical and adminstrative barriers to using high performance computing resources, and even gives away free CPU time on parallel supercomputers. Software currently installed on NSG includes BluePyOpt, Brian, CARLsim, Freesurfer, GENESIS, MATLAB, MOOSE, NEST, NEURON, PyNN, and the Virtual Personalized Multimodal Connectome Pipeline. The registration deadline for this workshop is Friday Oct. 27, but you should sign up early because space is limited. See https://www.neuron.yale.edu/neuron/static/courses/nsg2017/nsg2017.html for more information and a link to the registration form. --Ted

July 11, 2017

NEURON course at SFN 2017 meeting

by Ted Carnevale

Using NEURON to Model Cells and Networks Friday, Nov. 10 from 9 AM to 5 PM at a downtown Washington DC location. This course provides a practical introduction to building and using models of neurons and networks with NEURON. Covered topics include basic concepts, workflow for building and using models, speeding up simulations with parallel hardware from multicore personal computers to massively parallel supercomputers, using Python with NEURON, and modeling reactive diffusion with the RxD class. The registration deadline for this course is Friday Oct. 27, but you should sign up early because space is limited. See http://www.neuron.yale.edu/neuron/static/courses/dc2017/dc2017.html for more information and a link to the registration form. --Ted

July 11, 2017

Announcing the workshop on cloud-based BCIs at the BCI Conference 2017

by Vinay Jayaram

Dear all, We are happy to announce to potential attendees of the 7th BCI Conference in September 2017 that Workshop 1 (Cloud-based BCIs: challenges and opportunities of home-use systems for big data collection) is now calling for abstracts about work on BCIs for home use. This workshop is intended to bring together the various subfields of the BCI community to focus on some of the most pressing issues in the field: Robust machine learning with large datasets, low-cost and robust hardware, and applications for use without expert assistance. We are also happy to confirm Dr. Tim Mullen (Qusp Neurotechnologies) and Prof. Brian Murphy (BrainWaveBank) as keynote speakers for our workshop. More information and the workshop schedule can be found here https://webdav.tuebingen.mpg.de/graz2017/. Interested parties are invited to submit a 200-word abstract about the work they would like to present either via the website or to cloudbci(a)tuebingen.mpg.de by 4 August. Looking forwards to seeing you in Graz, Vinay Jayaram -- Vinay Jayaram PhD Student Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems Spemannstrasse 34, 72076 Tübingen, Germany

July 11, 2017

Two PI positions in Cognitive Neuroscience, University of Trento, Italy

by moritzwurm

Call for Expression of Interest for two Assistant Professor positions. More senior candidates will also be considered. *Cognitive Neuroimaging Principal Investigator, University of Trento, Neuroimaging Labs (LNiF), Center for Mind-Brain Sciences (CIMeC), Trento, Italy* The Center for Mind-Brain Sciences (CIMeC) at the University of Trento, Italy, invites expressions of interest from highly motivated scholars in view of the opening of two principal investigator positions at the level of assistant professor (3 years + potential 2 year extension). Candidates who have already a tenured position elsewhere would be considered directly for a tenure-track assistant professor/tenured associate professor. /Research Profile/ The ideal candidate should have an established track record of _research in any area of cognitive neuroimaging studies, preferably fMRI_. The successful candidates will work in the Neuroimaging Labs (LNiF: http://www.cimec.unitn.it/en/69/neuroimaging-labs-lnif) at the Center for Mind-Brain Sciences (CIMeC: http://web.unitn.it/en/cimec) They are expected to develop their own research program but also to interact actively with other CIMeC faculty using different methodologies to address various aspects of cognitive functioning. Knowledge of Italian is appreciated but not required. /Teaching/ The successful candidates are expected to contribute to the Center’s teaching mission at the PhD and MSc level. Instruction is in English. Successful candidates will negotiate the possibility of supervising PhD students who are fully funded by the University. The teaching duties at the MSc level vary depending on academic rank. Assistant professors are expected to teach 60 hrs/year, tenure-track assistant professors 90 hrs/year, tenured associate professors 120 hrs/year. UniTN and CIMeC The University of Trento consistently ranks as a top Italian university in both national Research Assessment Evaluations (RAE) and University Surveys.In the latest RAE the University of Trento as a whole ranks 1st among medium-sized universities. The CIMeC's goal is to foster cutting-edge research on cognition and its neural basis, and to support the dissemination of these findings internationally and within the local community. As an interdisciplinary research and teaching center, it draws on faculty from several departments, including Psychology and Cognitive Science, Linguistics and Philosophy, Physics, Mathematics, and Information Engineering and Computer Science. Current faculty members come from Italy, Germany, The Netherlands, Belgium, USA, Canada, Argentina, Israel, and the United Kingdom. Although a relatively small group, CIMeC faculty have won many competitive national and international grants, including 1 European Research Council (ERC) advanced grant, 1 ERC consolidator grant, 6 ERC starting grants, other European Framework grants, and highly competitive grants awarded by the local government. The Center has consistently been ranked the leading cognitive neuroscience research unit in Italy. It is part of the Erasmus Mundus European Master Program in Language and Communication Technologies. Expressions of interest in English should include a brief motivation letter and a Curriculum Vitae and should be addressed to Dr. Alfonso Caramazza (alfonso.caramazza(a)unitn.it) <mailto:alfonso.caramazza@unitn.it%29>, who chairs a committee that includes Drs. Mel Goodale and Alex Martin.

July 11, 2017

PhD studentship: "The risk of unknowingly disclosing personal information through eye tracking and webcam technology"

by Durant, Szonya

Leverhulme Magna Carta Doctoral Scholarship Department of Psychology and Department of Computer Science, Royal Holloway, University of London Project: The risk of unknowingly disclosing personal information through eye tracking and webcam technology Supervisors: Dr Szonya Durant (Dept. of Psychology), Dr Dawn Watling (Dept. of Psychology) and Dr Zhiyuan Luo (Dept. of Computer Science) Applications are invited for a funded full-time studentship for doctoral research, Awarded under the Leverhulme Magna Carta Doctoral Centre starting in September 2017 (with the possibility of extending the start date until January 2018 at the very latest). The scholarship covers UK and European Union tuition fees and an annual stipend towards living expenses. The 2017/18 value of the stipend is £16,553. The Research Project This project will assess the risk of unknowingly disclosing personal information over social media, simply through how we move our eyes when interacting with or scanning social media. We aim to examine what personal information (e.g. age, sex, aspects of personality) can be determined from eye movement patterns whilst scanning social media using machine learning. This interdisciplinary PhD project draws on the fields of sensory neuroscience, in particular, the experimental study of eye movements and the latest cutting edge computer science developments in machine learning. The novelty of the proposed interdisciplinary approach promises to yield original insights that will expand the knowledge and understanding in both fields of study and have impact for our understanding of issues around internet privacy. This project is supervised by three experts in their field, the primary PhD supervisor (Dr Szonya Durant<https://pure.royalholloway.ac.uk/portal/en/persons/szonya-durant(64105598-7…>) and two co-supervisors (Dr Dawn Watling<https://pure.royalholloway.ac.uk/portal/en/persons/dawn-watling(70194d88-af…>and Dr Zhiyuan Luo<https://pure.royalholloway.ac.uk/portal/en/persons/zhiyuan-luo(cb78d990-b10…>). Both Dr Durant and Dr Watling are based in The Department of Psychology, which has an active and expanding postgraduate research community, is well-equipped for research. It was ranked 6th out of 82 UK Psychology Departments in the 2014 Research Excellence Framework (REF), with 93% of the research classified as world-leading or internationally excellent. Research in the Department spans a breadth of topics across psychological sciences and neuroscience and is supported by excellent facilities - further information on the research environment can be found here<https://www.royalholloway.ac.uk/psychology/research/home.aspx>. Dr Luo is based in the Department of Computer Science, one of the UK's leading centres for research into Computer Science - further information on the research environment can be found here<https://www.royalholloway.ac.uk/computerscience/research/home.aspx>. In the most recent Research Excellent Framework (REF 2014), it was ranked 11th in the UK for the quality of research output, with a third of publications recognised as world leading, and a further half internationally excellent (87% in total). Both departments are situated on a beautiful campus close to London. Applicants should ideally hold, or be predicted to achieve, a first class undergraduate degree or equivalent in Cognitive or Computer Sciences or related disciplines (minimum requirement: 2.1). An MSc in a Cognitive or Computer Sciences related subject is desirable but not essential. The ideal candidate will have strong skills in computer programming and data analysis. Eye tracking and experimental design experience would be advantageous. The Scholarship The scholarship will fund a full-time PhD for three years, during which time a full academic training programme will be provided. The successful candidate will be engaged in all aspects of the research project, including engaging with and disseminating findings to external stakeholders. The successful candidate will be expected to contribute to the activities of the Magna Carta Doctoral Centre as well as the postgraduate research community in the Department of Psychology including contributing to teaching. For further details about the Leverhulme Magna Carta Doctoral Centre, please see: https://www.royalholloway.ac.uk/iquad/news/articles/leverhulmemagnacartadoc… https://www.royalholloway.ac.uk/studyhere/researchdegrees/feesandfunding/le… Informal enquiries about the project should be directed to: szonya.durant(a)rhul.ac.uk<mailto:szonya.durant@rhul.ac.uk>. Fulldetails on how to make an application are shown on our Departmental Website<https://www.royalholloway.ac.uk/psychology/prospectivestudents/postgraduate…>(select tab "3. Leverhulme Magna Carta Studentships") and in the College Webpages<https://www.royalholloway.ac.uk/studyhere/researchdegrees/applying/applicat…>. For further details on the application process please contact: Sharon Clutterbuck on psyoffice(a)rhul.ac.uk<mailto:psyoffice@rhul.ac.uk>. Closing date: 5pm on Tuesday 1st August 2017 (may be extended if not enough applications are received for the September start date) Interview dates: 7-18 August (can be flexible around existing commitments) ********************************************************************** Szonya Durant Department of Psychology Royal Holloway, University of London Egham TW20 0EX 01784 276522

July 11, 2017

2 PhD in computational cognitive neuroscience / comp linguistics, Uni Birmingham, UK

by Uta Noppeney

The Computational Cognitive Neuroimaging Group at the University of Birmingham, UK, is seeking two enthusiastic PhD candidates with strong analytical and quantitative abilities for the projects: 1. Robust audiovisual speech recognition in man and machine https://www.findaphd.com/search/ProjectDetails.aspx?PJID=87556 2. Who does what to whom - Syntactic parsing in man and machine https://www.findaphd.com/search/ProjectDetails.aspx?PJID=87595 Applicants should have a background in computer science, neuroscience, computational linguistics, psychology, physics or related areas. Prior experience in statistical analysis and/or machine learning would be an advantage. The PhD positions are open to UK and EU nationals. A full 4 year studentship award comprises of an annual stipend at £14,553 for 2017/18 (pro rota for part-time) and full payment of tuition fees at UK/EU level of £4,195 in 2017/18. Application deadline 28th July 2017. For further information, please see http://www.birmingham.ac.uk/postgraduate/pgr/epsrc-studentships/index.aspx, links above or email Prof Uta Noppeney (U.Noppeney(a)bham.ac.uk)

July 11, 2017

Job position: PhD / Post-Doc researcher: Deep-Learning and EEG/ECG

by Martijn Arns

Dear colleagues, We have a vacancy for a PhD or Post-Doc researcher with a focus on applying and developing Deep Learning on EEG and ECG data. See below application text and also: https://www.brainclinics.com/vacature Feel free to distribute with interested colleagues. Research Institute Brainclinics is specialized in applied neuroscience with a focus on mood, concentration, and sleep problems as often seen in psychiatric disorders such as depression, ADHD, OCD, and insomnia. Furthermore, Brainclinics is specialized in research into neuromodulation techniques such as rTMS, tDCS and neurofeedback, personalized medicine, Research Domain Criteria (RDoC), chronobiology, sleep and the circadian system. Within our team we are currently looking for a PhD-candidate or Post-Doc Researcher that will focus on developing and evaluating Deep-Learning techniques applied to psychophysiological data such as EEG and ECG, to extract new knowledge from large datasets to foster the RDoC and personalized medicine approaches we investigate. As PhD-candidate/Post-Doc at Brainclinics, you will work in a varied research team consisting of several PhD-candidates as well as senior researchers. You will contribute to innovation in EEG/ECG analysis techniques, support current PhD-candidates with your technical skills, and develop your own research line focusing on Deep-Learning techniques applied to EEG/ECG. To be eligible for application, you need to have demonstrable experience with the techniques listed below. Especially experience with Deep-Learning techniques is a requirement. We expect: • A Master’s degree and/or PhD in a relevant discipline, e.g., (cognitive) neuroscience, physics etc. • Scientific ambition and drive • Knowledge of python and one more higher programming language (e.g. C#) • Knowledge in matrix computation (e.g. MATLAB) • Knowledge of AI-concepts • Knowledge of time series computation • Accented knowledge of Deep learning techniques with net architectures and layer structures such as convolutional layers and LSTM layers • Experience with neuropsychiatric disorders We offer: • A professional, efficient and innovative research team • A minimum contract for 32 hrs, with possible extension to 40 hrs. • A salary in line with the University CAO Apply If you’re interested in this position and you would like to apply, please send your motivation with CV and photo to Dr. Martijn Arns: martijn(a)brainclinics.com<mailto:martijn@brainclinics.com> Only applications that meet the criteria above will be evaluated. Closing date for this application is August 21st, 2017. Kind regards, Martijn Arns, PhD Research Institute Brainclinics Utrecht University Dept. of Experimental Psychology Twitter: @Brainclinics Bijleveldsingel 34 6524 AD Nijmegen The Netherlands Tel: +31(0)24-7503505 GSM: +31 (0)6-48177919 E-mail: martijn(a)brainclinics.com<mailto:martijn@brainclinics.com> URL: www.brainclinics.com<http://www.brainclinics.com/>

July 11, 2017