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Research Topic "Closed-loop systems for next-generation neuroprostheses"; Frontiers in Neuroprosthetics
by Paolo Bonifazi Jan. 25, 2015

Jan. 25, 2015

Dear Colleagues, I would like to draw your attention to our research topic “Closed-loop systems for next-generation neuroprostheses” in Frontiers in Neuroprosthetics. http://journal.frontiersin.org/ResearchTopic/3581 Abstract deadline: 28th February 2015 Manuscript deadline: 30th September 2015 The topic description follows below. Please do not hesitate to contact us for any question. Best regards, Paolo Bonifazi - on behalf of the Topic Editors *Timothée Levi, **Michela Chiappalone and **Paolo Massobrio* *Millions of people worldwide are affected by neurological disorders which disrupt connections within the brain and between brain and body causing impairments of primary functions and paralysis. Such a number is likely to increase in the next years and current assistive technology is limited. The response to such disabilities, offered by the neuroscience community, is given by Brain-Machine Interfaces (BMIs) and Neuroprostheses. * *Such a field of research is highly multidisciplinary, since it involves very different and disperse scientific communities, making it fundamental to create connections and to join research efforts. Indeed, to design neuroprosthetic devices, six main research topics are involved: interfacing of neural systems at different levels of architectural complexity (from in vitro neuronal ensembles up to the human brain), bio-artificial interfaces for stimulation and recording, innovative signal processing tools for coding and decoding of neural activity, biomimetic artificial neural networks and neural network modeling. In order to develop functional communication with the nervous system and create a new generation of neuroprostheses, studying closed-loop systems is mandatory. The bi-directional communication between living neurons and artificial devices is the main final goal of those studies. However, closed-loop systems are still rare in the literature, mostly due to the required multidisciplinary effort. Therefore through this research topic, we intend to encourage an active discussion among neurobiologists, electrophysiologists, bioengineers, computational neuroscientists and neuromorphic engineers. * *The overall goal of this research topic is to present the results and stimulate/promote the discussion about the design of a novel generation of neuroprostheses aimed at recovering impaired/damaged neural networks. In this Research Topic, we welcome submissions highlighting the latest results in neuroprosthetics but also covering the six major topics introduced above. Review articles about closed-loop systems and neuroprostheses are strongly encouraged. Indeed, the intrinsic multidisciplinary nature of the proposed topic, from which we expect to receive contributions from different specialists, will help the scientific community to converge to new ideas and solutions to treat invalidating neuronal disabilities.* ==================== Paolo Bonifazi, PhD Italy-Israel Initiative on Integrative Network Neuroscience P.I. of the BRAINBOW project - http://www.brainbowproject.eu School of Physics and Astronomy Tel Aviv University, 69978 Tel Aviv, Israel

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New paper on Cortico-striatal plasticity in PLoS Biology
by Kevin Gurney Jan. 23, 2015

Jan. 23, 2015

This paper integrates several levels of description - from the synaptic, through systems modelling, to behaviour. Gurney, K.N., Humphries, M.D., Redgrave, P., 2015. A New Framework for Cortico-Striatal Plasticity: Behavioural Theory Meets In Vitro Data at the Reinforcement-Action Interface. PLoS biology 13, e1002034. doi:10.1371/journal.pbio.1002034 Operant learning requires that reinforcement signals interact with action representations at a suitable neural interface. Much evidence suggests that this occurs when phasic dopamine, acting as a reinforcement prediction error, gates plasticity at cortico-striatal synapses, and thereby changes the future likelihood of selecting the action(s) coded by striatal neurons. But this hypothesis faces serious challenges. First, cortico-striatal plasticity is inexplicably complex, depending on spike timing, dopamine level, and dopamine receptor type. Second, there is a credit assignment problem—action selection signals occur long before the consequent dopamine reinforcement signal. Third, the two types of striatal output neuron have apparently opposite effects on action selection. Whether these factors rule out the interface hypothesis and how they interact to produce reinforcement learning is unknown. We present a computational framework that addresses these challenges. We first predict the expected activity changes over an operant task for both types of action-coding striatal neuron, and show they co-operate to promote action selection in learning and compete to promote action suppression in extinction. Separately, we derive a complete model of dopamine and spike-timing dependent cortico-striatal plasticity from in vitro data. We then show this model produces the predicted activity changes necessary for learning and extinction in an operant task, a remarkable convergence of a bottom-up data-driven plasticity model with the top-down behavioural requirements of learning theory. Moreover, we show the complex dependencies of cortico-striatal plasticity are not only sufficient but necessary for learning and extinction. Validating the model, we show it can account for behavioural data describing extinction, renewal, and reacquisition, and replicate in vitro experimental data on cortico-striatal plasticity. By bridging the levels between the single synapse and behaviour, our model shows how striatum acts as the action-reinforcement interface. -- Kevin Gurney, PhD, FSB Professor of Computational Neuroscience Adaptive Behaviour Research Group Department of Psychology, University of Sheffield, S10 2TP, UK <http://www.shef.ac.uk/%7Eabrg/> http://abrg.group.shef.ac.uk/people/kevin/ ------------- "Email is a wonderful thing for people whose role in life is to be on top of things. But not for me; my role is to [get to] the bottom of things. What I do takes long hours of studying and uninterruptible concentration." Donald Knuth: Professor Emeritus of the Art of Computer Programming at Stanford University, and winner of the 1974 Turing Award.

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3rd Baltic-Nordic Summer School on Neuroinformatics (BNNI 2015)
by Toomas Kirt Jan. 23, 2015

Jan. 23, 2015

2nd call: 3rd Baltic-Nordic Summer School on Neuroinformatics (BNNI 2015) Multiscale computational neuroscience: Neurons, networks and systems Place: University of Tartu, Tartu, Estonia Time: June 15-18, 2015 More information and registration at http://neuro.cs.ut.ee/bnni2015/ Important dates: 21 February 2015 Application deadline 13 March 2015 Acceptance notification 15-18 June 2015 Summer School The BNNI 2015 is focused on computational multiscale modelling of brain functions at the cellular, network and systems levels. The course will also cover data sources, measurements and analysis of neural activity. Target audience Advanced master students, doctoral students and postdoctoral researchers, both theoreticians and experimentalists, who would like to get an introduction to neuroinformatics and computational neuroscience. Faculty includes Gaute Einevoll, Norwegian University of Life Sciences, Aas, Norway Bruce Graham, University of Stirling, United Kingdom Sean Hill, the École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Switzerland Henrik Lindén, University of Copenhagen, Denmark Marja-Leena Linne, Tampere University of Technology, Finland, Claudio Mirasso, Universitat de les Illes Balears, Palma de Mallorca, Spain Arnd Roth, University College London, UK Ausra Saudargiene, Vytautas Magnus University, Kaunas, Lithuania Raul Vicente, University of Tartu, Estonia Michael Wibral, Brain Imaging Center, Goethe University, Frankfurt, Germany Daniel Wójcik, Nencki Institute of Experimental Biology, Warsaw, Poland and others to be named. Venue The course will be held in the University of Tartu, Faculty of Mathematics and Computer Science - Juhan Liivi 2, Tartu 50409, Estonia. Practical arrangements There is a small tuition fee of 100 euros. The sponsor will provide teaching, meals and coffee during the course. The participants are expected to cover their travel and health insurance expenses (small financial support is available for those without funding). The course is supported by International Neuroinformatics Coordinating Facility and University of Tartu. We are looking forward to welcome you at the BNNI 2015 in Tartu, Estonia!

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MSc program in Neural Systems and Computation - University of Zurich and ETH Zurich
by Michael Pfeiffer Jan. 22, 2015

Jan. 22, 2015

We are inviting applications for the MSc program in Neural Systems and Computation, an interdisciplinary program offered as a Joint Master Program by the University of Zurich and ETH Zurich, Switzerland. The program offers a theoretical and laboratory training in neural computation and systems neuroscience. It offers hands-on knowledge of data gathering, analysis and scientific presentation. Students join an international and interdisciplinary research community with expertise in neuroinformatics, advanced experimental techniques and neuromorphic engineering. Further information can be found on our homepage http://www.nsc.uzh.ch. We offer a specialized full-time Masters program open to students with a Bachelor’s degree in the following disciplines: neurosciences, information technology, electrical engineering, biology, physics, computer sciences, chemistry, mathematics, and mechanical/chemical/control engineering. The core courses (all offered in English) provide a common foundation for students with different educational backgrounds, and cover the following: 1. Systems Neurosciences 2. Neural Computation and Theoretical Neuroscience 3. Neurotechnologies and Neuromorphic Engineering The application deadline for students starting in Fall Semester 2015 is *February 15th 2015*. Details about the application process and required documents can be found here: http://www.nsc.uzh.ch/?page_id=10 The program is affiliated with the Mathematics and Natural Sciences Faculty (MNF) at the University of Zurich (UZH) and the Information Technology and Electrical Engineering Department (D-ITET) of the ETH Zurich. All applications are handled by the University of Zurich. Application documents should be sent by email to nsc(a)ini.uzh.ch. Michael Pfeiffer -- ========================================= Dr. Michael Pfeiffer Postdoc, Program coordinator NSC Institute of Neuroinformatics University of Zurich and ETH Zurich Winterthurerstrasse 190 CH-8057 Zurich, Switzerland Tel. +41 44 635 30 45 Fax +41 44 635 30 53 pfeiffer (at) ini.phys.ethz.ch http://www.ini.uzh.ch/~pfeiffer/ =========================================

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[journals] CFP: IEEE ToH Issue on Active Touch Sensing
by yon Jan. 22, 2015

Jan. 22, 2015

The other guest editors and I are very excited to present this special issue. We hope you will consider contributing. Best, Yon Visell Call for Papers IEEE Transactions on Haptics Special Issue on Active Touch Sensing in Robots, Humans, and Other Animals Submission deadline: April 1 2015 First decision to authors: June 1 2015 Complete Details: http://re-touch-lab.com/ieee-toh-issue Guest Editors: Yon Visell, Drexel University Vincent Hayward, Université Pierre et Marie Curie Mitra Hartmann, Northwestern University Nathan Lepora, University of Bristol Topical Summary: This special issue addresses the challenges posed by actively sensing and interacting with the world through the sense of touch, whether the latter is implemented through a technological or biological system. Active touch sensing is recovering information about the world by ‘touching’ rather than ‘being touched’ – by interpreting signals from sensors whose motion is deliberately controlled to facilitate information gain. The scope of this issue includes both biological and technological systems for active touch sensing, and implications for haptics. This issue will consider electronic systems for active touch sensing that are biologically inspired systems, in addition to other inherently active approaches to touch sensing. Biological systems for active touch sensing are highly capable, and, by comparison, the field of robotic touch sensing is in its infancy. The former demonstrate many valuable concepts for active touch sensing that are being intensively investigated. They have also illustrated ways that active touch sensing is enabled through specialized sensory transduction channels, biomechanics, structural morphology, behavioral, and control strategies that are implemented by biological systems, and through other advantages that they achieve, including robustness, adaptability, and power efficiency. Similar challenges must be overcome if technological systems are to one day achieve comparable levels of sensorimotor performance to biological systems. Specific topics of interest include: - The design of electronic or biological systems for active touch sensing, their principles of operation (electronic, biological, mechanical) and performance. - Biomechanical aspects of active touch sensing. - Relations between active touch sensing and behavior, especially motor activity. - Sensory information processing and sensorimotor control strategies in humans, animals, or robots related to active touch sensing, including behavioral, physiological or neuroscience investigations, and neural control. - Learning by active touch. - Applications to the design of haptic interfaces. Authors should specifically include a discussion of how their results shed light on fundamental aspects of active touch sensing rather than assuming that this can be inferred from context. Submission process: Visit http://www.computer.org/toh to view formatting requirements, and submit your paper at https://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/th-cs. When uploading your paper please select the appropriate special issue title under the category “Manuscript Type.” _________________________________________________________ Yon Visell, PhD Assistant Professor Drexel University | Electrical and Computer Engineering Philadelphia, USA www.re-touch-lab.com Office: +1 215 571 4507 Mobile: +1 267 800 8960 _________________________________________________________

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Master program in Computational Neuroscience and Neuroinformatics@Newcastle University
by Marcus Kaiser Jan. 22, 2015

Jan. 22, 2015

Dear all, our one-year master degree program in Computational Neuroscience and Neuroinformatics at Newcastle University is now accepting student applications. The course focuses on handling brain connectivity datasets, analyzing electrophysiological recordings, and simulating neural activity and development. Neuroinformatics is one of the strategic areas of neuroscience research within Newcastle University (see overview at http://neuroinformatics.ncl.ac.uk/ ). Close interactions with experimental and clinical researchers are a key component of the course and the dissertation research project. Ongoing research areas in Newcastle include neuroimaging, psychophysics, systems neuroscience (visual, auditory, and motor system), aging, neurorehabilitation, brain rhythms, brain-machine interfaces, neurochips, and connectomics (http://www.ncl.ac.uk/ion ). Newcastle University hosts around 100 principal investigators in the neurosciences. You can find out more about the program and how to apply at http://www.ncl.ac.uk/computing/study/postgrad/taught/5199/ *COURSE OUTLINE* The MSc in Computational Neuroscience and Neuroinformatics is a full-time, one-year advanced masters course designed for students who have a good degree in the biological sciences or the physical sciences (computer science, mathematics, physics, engineering). It provides the specialist skills in core Neuroinformatics courses (such as computing and biology) with a significant focus on the development of research skills. The program aims to equip its graduates with the necessary skills to contribute to biologically realistic simulations of neural activity and development that are rapidly becoming the key focus of Neuroinformatics research. Prior experience with computers or computer programming is not required. The program is ideal for students aiming for careers in industry or academia. The course is based in the School of Computing Science and taught jointly by the Schools of Computing Science, Mathematics and Statistics, Biology, Cell and Molecular Biosciences and The Institute of Human Genetics. In addition, there are strong links with the Institute of Neuroscience and graduates of this master program might either apply for PhD studies at the School of Computing Science or for the Wellcome Trust 4-year PhD program in Systems Neuroscience (http://www.ncl.ac.uk/ion/study/wellcome/ ). *WHY STUDY AT NEWCASTLE?* The MSc in Neuroinformatics is a truly interdisciplinary degree and provides the dual skills necessary to establish a rewarding career in this research area. The Newcastle program has a research focus on data management, network analysis (e.g. Kaiser, Neuroimage, 2011), and simulation, whilst delivering sound training and an introduction to research in computation and statistics, including exciting new areas such as e-science and cloud computing. Newcastle is among the pioneers of the field in the UK and hosted the £4m EPSRC-funded CARMEN project for managing and processing electrophysiology data. It also leads the development of simulations of optogenetic stimulation effects on human brain tissue as part of the £10m EPSRC/Wellcome Trust-funded CANDO project (http://www.cando.ac.uk/) Newcastle has strong links with the International Neuroinformatics Coordinating Facility (INCF). Currently, members of the faculty lead the data-sharing special interest group and the UK special interest groups in image-based Neuroinformatics and brain connectivity as well as in neurally-inspired engineering. *COURSE CONTENT* Semester 1 contains modules to build the basic grounding in, and understanding of, Neuroinformatics theory and applications, together with necessary computational and numeric understanding to undertake more specialist modules next semester. Training in mathematics and statistics is also provided. Semester 2 introduces modules that focus heavily on introducing subject-specific research skills and includes three option slots for choosing modules. A major part of the Newcastle MSc in Computational Neuroscience and Neuroinformatics is a research project that will occupy approximately six months. This project may be associated with staff in any of the Schools mentioned above, thus providing a wide range of exciting areas in which the newly learnt Neuroinformatics skills can be deployed. *HOW TO APPLY* Applications for this program are now being accepted. You can apply online using the electronic application system with the degree identifier 5199F. Please check http://www.ncl.ac.uk/computing/study/postgrad/taught/5199/ for more information. Best, Marcus -- Marcus Kaiser, Ph.D. Associate Professor (Reader) in Neuroinformatics Interdisciplinary Computing and Complex Biosystems (ICOS) Research Group School of Computing Science Newcastle University Claremont Tower Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 7RU, UK Lab website: http://www.dynamic-connectome.org/ Neuroinformatics@Newcastle: http://neuroinformatics.ncl.ac.uk/

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[meetings] Living Machines IV: Second Call for Papers, Satellite Events and Sponsors
by Nathan F Lepora Jan. 22, 2015

Jan. 22, 2015

______________________________________________________________ Second Call for Papers, Satellite Events and Sponsors Living Machines IV: The 4th International Conference on Biomimetic and Biohybrid Systems 27th to 31st July 2015 http://csnetwork.eu/livingmachines To be hosted at the La Pedrera Barcelona, Spain In association with the Universitat Pompeu Fabra Accepted papers will be published in Springer Lecturer Notes in Artificial Intelligence Submission deadline March 16th, 2015 ______________________________________________________________ ABOUT LIVING MACHINES 2015 The development of future real-world technologies will depend strongly on our understanding and harnessing of the principles underlying living systems and the flow of communication signals between living and artificial systems. Biomimetics is the development of novel technologies through the distillation of principles from the study of biological systems. The investigation of biomimetic systems can serve two complementary goals. First, a suitably designed and configured biomimetic artefact can be used to test theories about the natural system of interest. Second, biomimetic technologies can provide useful, elegant and efficient solutions to unsolved challenges in science and engineering. Biohybrid systems are formed by combining at least one biological component—an existing living system—and at least one artificial, newly-engineered component. By passing information in one or both directions, such a system forms a new hybrid bio-artificial entity. The following are some examples: • Biomimetic robots and their component technologies (sensors, actuators, processors) that can intelligently interact with their environments. • Active biomimetic materials and structures that self-organize and self-repair. • Biomimetic computers—neuromimetic emulations of the physiological basis for intelligent behaviour. • Biohybrid brain-machine interfaces and neural implants. • Artificial organs and body-parts including sensory organ-chip hybrids and intelligent prostheses. • Organism-level biohybrids such as robot-animal or robot-human systems. ACTIVITIES The main conference will take the form of a three-day single-track oral and poster presentation programme, 29th to 31st July 2015, hosted at the La Pedrera, Barcelona, Spain. The conference programme will include five plenary lectures from leading international researchers in biomimetic and biohybrid systems, and the demonstrations of state-of-the-art living machine technologies The full conference will be preceded by up to two days of Satellite Events hosted by the Universitat Pompeu Fabra in Barcelona. SUBMITTING TO LIVING MACHINES 2015 We invite both full papers and extended abstracts in areas related to the conference themes. All contributions will be refereed and accepted papers will appear in the Living Machines 2015 proceedings which we expect to be published in the Springer-Verlag LNAI Series. Full papers (up to12 pages) are invited from researchers at any stage in their career but should present significant findings and advances in biomimetic or biohybid research; more preliminary work would be better suited to extended abstract submission (minimum 4 pages). Further details of submission formats will be circulated in an updated CfP and will be posted on the conference web-site. Full papers will be accepted for either oral presentation (single track) or poster presentation. Extended abstracts will be accepted for poster presentation only. Authors of the best full papers will be invited to submitted extended versions of their paper for publication in a special issue of Bioinspiration and Biomimetics. Satellite events Active researchers in biomimetic and biohybrid systems are invited to propose topics for 1-day or 2-day tutorials, symposia or workshops on related themes to be held 27-28th July at Universitat Pompeu Fabra. Events can be scheduled on either the 27th or the 28th or across both days. Attendance at satellite events will attract a small fee intended to cover the costs of the meeting. There is a lot of flexibility about the content, organisation, and budgeting for these events. Please contact us if you are interested in organising a satellite event! EXPECTED DEADLINES March 16th, 2015 Paper submission deadline May 1st, 2015 Notification of acceptance May 22nd, 2015 Camera ready copy July 27-31 2015 Conference SPONSORSHIP Living Machines 2015 is sponsored by the Convergent Science Network (CSN) for Biomimetics and Neurotechnology. CSN is an EU FP7 Future Emerging Technologies Co-ordination Activity that also organises two highly successful workshop series: the Barcelona Summer School on Brain, Technology and Cognition (http://bcbt.upf.edu/bcbt12/) and the Capocaccia Neuromorphic Cognitive Engineering Workshop. The 2015 Living Machines conference will also be hosted and sponsored by the Universitat Pompeu Fabra. Call for Sponsors. Other organisations wishing to sponsor the conference in any way and gain the corresponding benefits by promoting themselves and their products to through conference publications, the conference web-site, and conference publicity are encouraged to contact the conference organisers to discuss the terms of sponsorship and necessary arrangements. We offer a number of attractive and good-value packages to potential sponsors. ABOUT THE VENUE Living Machines 2015 returns to the venue of our first conference at the beautiful biomimetic building La Pedrera (Casa Mila) (https://www.lapedrera.com/en/home) designed by renown modernist architect Antoni Gaudi. Attendees at the conference will get a free ticket to visit this historic building in the centre the Barcelona. Workshops will be held at the Poblenou Campus of Universitat Pompeu Fabra, close to hotel and restaurant area of the Diagonal and Ramblas de Poblenou and a short walk from Barcelona’s famous beaches. Organising Committee: Paul Verschure, Universitat Pompeu Fabra (Co-chair) Tony Prescott, University of Sheffield (Co-chair) Stuart Wilson, University of Sheffield (Program Chair) Anna Mura, Universitat Pompeu Fabra (Communications, Local Organiser) Nathan Lepora, University of Bristol (Communications) Carme Buisan University Pompeu Fabra (Treasurer)[AM1]

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Deadline Extension: INFOCOMP 2015 and EMPIRICAL MODELING 2015 || June 21 - 26, 2015 - Brussels, Belgium
by Cristina Pascual Jan. 22, 2015

Jan. 22, 2015

INVITATION: ================= The submission deadline is extended to February 11, 2015. Please consider to contribute to and/or forward to the appropriate groups the following opportunity to submit and publish original scientific results to: - INFOCOMP 2015, The Fifth International Conference on Advanced Communications and Computation - EMPIRICAL MODELING 2015, The International Symposium on Empirical Modeling Authors of selected papers will be invited to submit extended article versions to one of the IARIA Journals: http://www.iariajournals.org ================= ============== INFOCOMP 2015 | EMPIRICAL MODELING 2015 | Call for Papers =============== CALL FOR PAPERS, TUTORIALS, PANELS INFOCOMP 2015, The Fifth International Conference on Advanced Communications and Computation General page: http://www.iaria.org/conferences2015/INFOCOMP15.html Submission page: http://www.iaria.org/conferences2015/SubmitINFOCOMP15.html EMPIRICAL MODELING 2015, The International Symposium on Empirical Modeling General page: http://www.iaria.org/conferences2015/EMPIRICALMODELING.html Submission page: http://www.iaria.org/conferences2015/EMPIRICALMODELING.html#SubmitAPaper Events schedule: June 21 - 26, 2015 - Brussels, Belgium Contributions: - regular papers [in the proceedings, digital library] - short papers (work in progress) [in the proceedings, digital library] - ideas: two pages [in the proceedings, digital library] - extended abstracts: two pages [in the proceedings, digital library] - posters: two pages [in the proceedings, digital library] - posters: slide only [slide-deck posted at www.iaria.org] - presentations: slide only [slide-deck posted at www.iaria.org] - demos: two pages [posted at www.iaria.org] - doctoral forum submissions: [in the proceedings, digital library] Proposals for: - mini-symposia: see http://www.iaria.org/symposium.html - workshops: see http://www.iaria.org/workshop.html - tutorials: [slide-deck posed on www.iaria.org] - panels: [slide-deck posed on www.iaria.org] Submission deadline: February 11, 2015 Sponsored by IARIA, www.iaria.org Extended versions of selected papers will be published in IARIA Journals: http://www.iariajournals.org Print proceedings will be available via Curran Associates, Inc.: http://www.proceedings.com/9769.html Articles will be archived in the free access ThinkMind Digital Library: http://www.thinkmind.org The topics suggested by the conference can be discussed in term of concepts, state of the art, research, standards, implementations, running experiments, applications, and industrial case studies. Authors are invited to submit complete unpublished papers, which are not under review in any other conference or journal in the following, but not limited to, topic areas. All tracks are open to both research and industry contributions, in terms of Regular papers, Posters, Work in progress, Technical/marketing/business presentations, Demos, Tutorials, and Panels. Before submission, please check and comply with the editorial rules: http://www.iaria.org/editorialrules.html INFOCOMP 2015 Topics (for topics and submission details: see CfP on the site) Call for Papers: http://www.iaria.org/conferences2015/CfPINFOCOMP15.html ============================================================ Large scale and fast computation Developments in information and computing systems; Grid computing; Cloud computing; Pervasive / ubiquitous computing; Services computing and Opportunistic computing; High Performance Computing (HPC); Fast data processing; Real-time processing; Fast switching and routing protocols; Parallelization of algorithms and applications; Energy-efficient High Performance Computing; Large scale data visualization; Tools for parallelization; Highly performance codes; Optimization; Innovative architectures; Distributed systems, dynamical systems; Future architectures, integrated systems, beyond cloud, reaching exaflop; Supercomputing architectures, operation, and management; Petascale, Exascale; Big data, dCache; HPC centers, data centers; Benchmarking; Green500, Graph500, Top500; Service provisioning; Green computing, cooling techniques Programming models Programming languages and parallel algorithms; Message Passing Interface (MPI), OpenMP; Massively Parallel Processing, Symmetric Multi-Processing; PGAS, GASPI, CAF (Co-array Fortran), UPC (Unified Parallel C); X10, Chapel, CUDA, OpenCL, OpenACC, OpenHMPP, Lime, OmpSs, OpenStream; Parallel Virtual Machine (PVM); Programming paradigms; Manycore, multicore; CPU, GPU, FPGA, accelerators; Chip design, architectures, and programming; Fault tolerance, troubleshooting, debugging; High end issues, latency, concurrency Networks/systems communications Cross-layer design and optimization; Cyber-physical systems and networks; Data centers, virtualization, and cloud networks; Delay/disruption tolerant networks; Future Internet broadband services; Software Defined Networks (SDN); Fast networks / InfiniBand architectures for future interactive multicore applications; Sensor networks and embedded systems; Ad hoc mobile networks; Access technologies; P2P networks; Optical networks; Cellular and broadband wireless networks; Mobility models and mobile networks; Multicast, broadcast and anycast; Multimedia protocols and networking; Software defined radio and cognitive radio networking; Content-based network service; Certification, public key infrastructures, data integrity; Privacy and anonymity Networks/systems measurement, control and management Networks/systems measurement, simulation and emulation; Network-, system-, and application-management; Congestion control and capacity planning; Dynamic spectrum management; Addressing and location management; Quality of Service (QoS) and Quality of Experience (QoE); Quality of Data (QoD) and Quality of Context (QoC); e-Commerce, accounting, pricing and billing; Highly parallel file systems, Lustre, GPFS; Interconnects, high speed ethernet; Use of distributed compute and storage resources; Energy-aware mechanisms for control and management; Configuration, reuse of software components; Resource allocation and management; Denial of service mitigation and prevention; System and data security; Communication visualization Advanced applications Scientific, theoretical, methodological, practical, and technical contributions; Advanced scientific computing; Simulation and modelling (scientific applications, engineering, industry); Mathematical and numerical algorithms and methods; Computer science and geoinformatics; e-Energy, geosciences, prospection, exploration, oil and gas; Mobility and logistic services; Geoscientific Information Systems (GIS); Remote sensing and satellite imaging; Cartography, hydrology; Climatology and environmental sciences; Molecular dynamics simulation; Genetic algorithms; Physics and chemistry applications; Medicine, genetics, epidemiology, medical geology; Multi-dimensional data visualization; Search engines and scientific discovery; Online social networking; Vehicular, underground and underwater networks and applications; Scientific data processing; Computation frameworks and tools; Mathematica, SAGE, Maple, Matlab, Scilab, Gromacs, ANSYS, Fluent, etc.); Database applications and develop! ment; Information and database syst ems; Education, e-Learning, and e-Science; ICT business evaluation and management; Legal informatics, Open Access, Science / Copyright, Patents; Earth and planetary sciences; Archaeology, cultural heritage; Knowledge discovery, documentation, and classification; Data intensive computing, data science; Methdodology and case studies regarding computing and communication scenarios; Small and Medium Enterprises (SME) applications; Computer Aided Engineering (CAE) applications Evaluation context Energy-aware and energy-efficient networks; Implementation and experimental testbeds; Traffic measurement and traffic patterns; Characterization of topology dynamics; Access and biometric technologies, performance, and cost prediction; Web services and performance; Performance measurement and benchmarking; Energy-aware and energy-efficient High Performance Computing; Usability studies; Social and ethic consequences with biometry and data security; Standards, benchmarks, protocols Biometry, security, access technologies, algorithms, and applications Technologies and advances in biometric algorithms and interfaces (gait, electrocardiography, iris, image, fingerprint, palm veins, multi-modality); Biometric systems; Integration of biometrics with other technologies; Challenge response; Simplified enrollment; NFC support, spoofing, and countermeasures; Single sign on (SSO); Adaptive trust; Template protection (protection of reference data); Large and scalable biometric systems using cloud services; Deployed solutions and applications; Experience reports and systems; Description in physical and logical access control; information system access, immigration and border control, law enforcement, entertainment, finance, life science, healthcare, forensics); Distributed and mobile devices; Public Key Infrastructures; Digital Forensics; Quantum cryptography theory and application for commercial usage; topology of information (braid group approach) EMPIRICAL MODELING 2015 Topics (for topics and submission details: see CfP on the site) CfP: http://www.iaria.org/conferences2015/EMPIRICALMODELING.html#CallForPapers ========================== Empirical Modeling principles Empirical Modeling applications (finance, health, online gaming, drugs design, environment, climate, buildings, urbanity, mobility, demography, oil and gas production, marketing, finance, etc.) Empirically-derived analytic Models Empirical Models for predictive analytics Empirical Modeling for optimization Empirical estimation of retention models Empirical Model design and development challenges Empirical data collection challenges Richly structured Empirical Models Verification and Validation of Empirical Models Empirical evidence and Empirical discovery Tools for Empirical Modeling Languages and notations for Empirical Modeling Programming aspects towards Empirical Modeling Quality, Clarity, and Accuracy in Empirical Modeling Empirical Modeling and statistical modeling approaches Maintenance of Empirically derived Models Cost-effectiveness of Empirical Models ------------------------ INFOCOMP 2015 Committee: http://www.iaria.org/conferences2015/ComINFOCOMP15.html EMPIRICAL MODELING 2015 Committee: http://www.iaria.org/conferences2015/EMPIRICALMODELING.html#Committees ================

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Invitation to submit an original research article or review
by Fabio M Simoes de Souza Jan. 21, 2015

Jan. 21, 2015

CALL FOR PAPERS EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF BIOPHYSICS ISSN: 2329-1745 (Print) ISSN: 2329-1737 (Online) SPECIAL ISSUE ON "RECENT ADVANCES IN MODELING CELLS, CELLULAR COMPARTMENTS AND SIGNALING NETWORKS AS A TOOL TO UNDERSTAND THE NERVOUS SYSTEM" AIMS AND SCOPE: In the last two decades, the progress in molecular biology and associated areas promoted a large accumulation of structural and molecular data about the nervous system. Almost simultaneously with that, fields such as Computational Neuroscience and Systems Biology have emerged with the aim to obtain a system-level understanding about the nervous systems through the development of computational models based on experimental data. Today, both fields are consolidated areas of research and have given valuable contributions to our knowledge of processes such as electrical integration, calcium dynamics, synaptic plasticity, sensory transduction, pathologies, among many others. In this special volume, we want to highlight some of the recent contributions of both computational neuroscience and systems biology to Neuroscience especially through the development and analysis of computational models of cells, cellular compartments and signaling networks. These types of models are powerful tools to investigate the physiological and molecular dynamics of neurons with a large range of spatial and temporal resolutions. Therefore, in this special volume, our intent is to select bleeding edge contributions focused on the gather works that will cover simulations of signaling networks and signal transduction solved deterministically or stochastically; the interaction between signaling networks and the regulation of ionic channels through covalent modifications such as phosphorylation; the impact of neuronal geometries on signaling networks and on cellular electrical integration. Thus, we have the expectation that this special volume will be of interest to both the people working in the fields on Computational Neuroscience and Systems Biology, and to experimental biophysicists that will have the opportunity to get an overall view of the main topics that have been investigated with computational models of cells and signaling networks. TOPICS OF INTEREST include (but are not limited to): • Synaptic Plasticity • Sensory Transduction • Calcium Dynamics • Electrical Integration • Stochastic Processes • Signaling pathways in 3D compartments • Pathological Processes • Software/Algorithms SUBMISSION PROCESS Enjoy a fast reviewing and publication process in an open access journal! The manuscripts are published one by one in the special issue once the manuscript has been accepted. All manuscripts should be submitted via SciencePG online system or through Lead Guest Editor that can help you to submit the manuscript. You have to create an account and login in the system at: http://www.sciencepublishinggroup.com/login.aspx Step 1) Submit to Special Issue. Choose Recent Advances in Modeling Cells, Cellular Compartments and Signaling Networks as a Tool to Understand the Nervous System. Journal Title: European Jounral of Biophysics. Step 2) Fill in Manuscript Information Step 3) Fill in Author(s) Information Step 4) Fill in Reviewer(s) Information Author guidelines can be found at: http://www.sciencepublishinggroup.com/journal/papersubmission.aspx?journali… IMPORTANT DATES 30 May, 2015: Submission of Manuscripts July, 2015: Publication time LEAD GUEST EDITOR Prof. Dr. Fabio Marques Simoes de Souza, Federal University of ABC, Sao Bernardo do Campo, SP, Brazil Email: fabio.souza(a)ufabc.edu.br GUEST EDITORS Prof. Dr. Antonio C. Roque University of Sao Paulo, Ribeirao Preto, SP, Brazil Email: antonior(a)ffclrp.usp.br Dr. Gabriela Antunes University of Sao Paulo, Ribeirao Preto, SP, Brazil Dr. Rodrigo F. Oliveira Champalimaud Neuroscience Program, Lisbon, Portugal Email: rodrigo.oliveira(a)neuro.fchampalimaud.org ----- A PDF copy of the CFP is attached with this email for forwarding to interested colleagues. The CFP is also also available at: http://www.sciencepublishinggroup.com/specialissue/117002 For more information on Eur J Biophys, please see: http://www.sciencepublishinggroup.com/journal/archive.aspx?journalid=117&is…

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.:: Cognitio 2015 : Atypical Minds @ UQAM - Call for papers / Appel à communications
by Chicoisne, Guillaume Jan. 21, 2015

Jan. 21, 2015

[version française ci-après] Cognitio 2015 - Atypical Minds: the Cognitive Science of Difference and Potentialities Montreal, Canada June 8th, 9th and 10th 2015 http://cognitio.uqam.ca/2015 cognitio(a)uqam.ca<mailto:cognitio@uqam.ca> Keynote speakers: * Berit Brogaard - University of Miami, Professor in Philosophy. -> https://sites.google.com/site/brogaardb/<https://sites.google.com/site/brogaardb/> * Ian Gold - McGill University, Canada Research Chair in Philosophy and Psychiatry. -> http://www.mcgill.ca/philosophy/people/faculty/gold<http://www.mcgill.ca/philosophy/people/faculty/gold> Deadline for submission: February 16th, 2015 Cognitio is a young researchers' conference held every other year at the Université du Québec à Montréal, under the auspices of its Cognitive Science Institute. Over the past several years at Cognitio, many facets of the human mind were explored: decision making (2005); situated minds (2006); social cognition (2007); the evolution of minds and cultures (2009); nonhuman minds, including animal, artificial and group minds (2011) and creativity in art and discovery (2013). This year's Cognitio conference will revolve around the cognitive aspects of mental states that display the differences and potentialities of the human mind. We will question the possibility of establishing limits between the functions and dysfunctions of the cognitive system. Every presentation that addresses mental troubles as atypical cognitive status from interdisciplinary interactions including psychiatry will be more than welcome, provided that there is a clear link with cognitive science. This topic can be approached from various angles. These include, but are not limited to: neuroscience, psychology, artificial intelligence, philosophy, cognitive informatics, anthropology, etc. Suggested topics include: · Is there such thing as a typical or an atypical mind? Does or should such a taxonomy address synaesthesia, trance or genius? Autism spectrum disorders? Giftedness? · Can mental illnesses be reduced to neurological problems or do they have irreducible mental elements, such as intentionality, consciousness or rationality? Is the distinction between mental disease and physical disease the last bastion of mind-body dualism? Can we eliminate dualism without reducing mental troubles to neurological disorders? What's the role of neuropsychiatry? · What is a mental disease? How have mental troubles been defined through history? Is every cognitive dysfunction a mental illness? Are the notions of handicap or mental illness useful besides working as classification systems? Do they allow us to identify natural kinds? How do different societies interpret these classifications? Do they integrate the differences or highlight the potentialities that these classification reveal? · Is psychiatry explanatory? If psychiatry is not explanatory, is it still a science? · What recent technological and scientific advances have led to a better understanding of mechanisms of mental disease? · How can we integrate the findings from different levels (molecular, cellular, networks) in computer simulations of different types of diseases (schizophrenia, Parkinson, epilepsy, etc.)? Is there a possible therapeutic role for these simulations? · What are the main philosophical arguments against psychiatry? Is it possible to build a psychiatric science that moves away from the stigmatisation and alienation of those who are different? Or is a change of paradigm needed to study mental conditions? What options do we have? Submission of proposals for the conference is done through the EasyChair system. We are asking for 600 word abstracts. https://www.easychair.org/conferences/?conf=cognitio2015<https://www.easychair.org/conferences/?conf=cognitio2015> Deadline for submission is February 16th 2015 [french version] COGNITIO 2015 Esprits atypiques: les sciences cognitives de la différence et des potentialités Montréal, Canada 8, 9, et 10 juin 2015 http://cognitio.uqam.ca/2015 cognitio(a)uqam.ca<mailto:cognitio@uqam.ca> Conférencière et conférencier invités : * Berit Brogaard - University of Miami, Professor in Philosophy. -> https://sites.google.com/site/brogaardb/<https://sites.google.com/site/brogaardb/> * Ian Gold - Université McGill, Chaire de recherche du Canada en philosophie et psychiatrie. -> http://www.mcgill.ca/philosophy/people/faculty/gold<http://www.mcgill.ca/philosophy/people/faculty/gold> Cognitio est un colloque pour jeunes chercheures, chercheurs en sciences cognitives, tenu une année sur deux à l'Université du Québec à Montréal sous les auspices de l'Institut des Sciences Cognitives. Au cours des dernières années, plusieurs facettes de l'esprit humain ont été explorées à Cognitio. Nous avons examiné la prise de décision (2005), les esprits situés (2006), la cognition sociale (2007), l'évolution des esprits et des cultures (2009), les esprits non humains, incluant les cognitions animales, artificielles et autres (2011) ainsi que l'origine et l'évolution de la créativité (2013). Pour cette édition, nous mettons l'accent sur les esprits atypiques et les aspects cognitifs des états qui témoignent des différences et des potentialités de l'esprit humain. Notre objectif est de discuter du concept de trouble mental, ainsi que de la pertinence et de la nature du domaine qui lui est consacré, la psychiatrie. Nous nous demanderons notamment s'il est possible d'établir des limites entre les fonctions et dysfonctions du système cognitif. Toute proposition de communication ayant un lien direct avec les sciences cognitives et traitant des troubles mentaux, des interactions disciplinaires concernant les états cognitifs atypiques ou encore du statut de la psychiatrie est bienvenue. Cette thématique peut être traitée à partir de plusieurs perspectives. Celles-ci incluent, entre autres: les neurosciences, la psychologie, la philosophie, l'informatique cognitive, la linguistique, l'anthropologie, etc. Les questions de la liste suivante, qui n'est pas exhaustive, pourraient bénéficier d'une combinaison de ces approches : · Peut-on vraiment parler d'esprits typiques ou atypiques? Quelle place une telle catégorisation laisse à la synesthésie, à la transe ou au génie? Au troubles du spectre autistique? À la douance? · Les troubles mentaux se réduisent-ils à des troubles neurologiques ou possèdent-ils des éléments irréductiblement mentaux, liés par exemple à l'intentionnalité, la conscience ou la rationalité? La distinction entre trouble ou maladie mentale et trouble ou maladie neurologique est-elle le dernier bastion du dualisme dans notre conception de l'esprit? Est-il envisageable de l'éliminer sans réduire les troubles mentaux à des désordres neurologiques? Quel est le rôle de la neuropsychiatrie? · Qu'est-ce qu'un trouble mental? Comment cette définition a-t-elle évolué historiquement? Les notions de trouble, de maladie mentale ou de handicap sont-elles utiles au-delà des systèmes de classification? Permettent-elles d'identifier des espèces naturelles (natural kinds)? Comment les sociétés interprètent-elles cette classification? Sont-elles à même d'intégrer les différences ou de souligner les potentialités révélées par cette classification? · La psychiatrie, est-elle explicative? Si la psychiatrie n'est pas explicative, est-elle tout de même une science? · Quelles avancées technologiques et scientifiques récentes permettent de mieux comprendre les mécanismes des troubles mentaux? · Comment intégrer les nouveaux résultats à différents niveaux (moléculaires, cellulaires et réseaux) dans des simulations informatiques de plusieurs états du cerveau (typique et atypique) de différents types de pathologies (schizophrénie, Parkinson, épilepsie, etc.)? Quelle peut être l'utilisation de ces simulations? Ont-elles un possible rôle thérapeutique? · Est-il possible de construire une science psychiatrique qui s'éloigne de la stigmatisation et l'aliénation de ceux qui sont différents? Un changement de paradigme serait-il nécessaire pour l'étude des troubles de l'esprit? Quelles sont les options? La soumission de propositions de communication se fait à l'aide du système EasyChair. Un résumé de 600 mots EN ANGLAIS doit être joint à la demande. https://www.easychair.org/conferences/?conf=cognitio2015 La date limite pour l'envoi des propositions est le 16 février 2015. http://cognitio.uqam.ca/2015 cognitio(a)uqam.ca<mailto:cognitio@uqam.ca> (apologies for cross-postings / nos excuses pour les envois multiples) -- Guillaume Chicoisne, PhD. Institut des Sciences Cognitives - www.isc.uqam.ca<http://www.isc.uqam.ca> (+1) 514-987-3000 #4374 https://www.linkedin.com/pub/guillaume-chicoisne/0/641/175

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Brain Informatics and Health (BIH'15) - Call for Papers
by Yi Zeng Jan. 21, 2015

Jan. 21, 2015

[Apologies if you receive this more than once] -------------------------------------------------------------------------- The 2015 International Conference on Brain Informatics and Health (BIH'15) August 30 - September 2, 2015, London, UK CALL FOR PAPERS Homepage: http://braininformatics.london (FULL PAPER SUBMISSION DEADLINE: April 5, 2015) *** KEYNOTE SPEAKERS (Confirmed) *** Allan Jones (Allen Institute for Brain Science, USA) Henry Markram (EPFL, Switzerland) David Van Essen (Washington University School of Medicine, USA) *** FEATURE SPEAKERS (Confirmed) *** Giorgio A. Ascoli (George Mason University, USA) Henry Kennedy (Stem-cell and Brain Research Institute, France) Barbara Sahakian (University of Cambridge, UK) Nelson Spruston (The Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI), USA) Paul Verschure (Universitat Pompeu Fabra (UPF), Spain) *** Panel Discussion Moderator *** Sarah Caddick (The Gatsby Charitable Foundation) ***************** Brain research is rapidly advancing with the application of big data technology to neuroscience as can be seen in major international initiatives in the US, Europe and Asia. BIH'15 reflects that brain informatics has emerged as a distinct field and crosses the disciplines of neuroscience, cognitive science, computer science, signal processing, and neuroimaging technologies as well as data science. Following the success of past conferences in this series, BIH'15 will take place at Imperial College London, in UK, gathers the researchers from major international brain research projects, and plans an industrial exhibition. BIH'15 draws special attention to informatics for brain science, human behavior and brain health. BIH'15 will address big data approaches to both the brain and behaviour, with a strong emphasis on emerging trends of big data analysis and management technology for BI, active media technology in behavior learning, and real-world applications for brain and mental health. BIH'15 welcomes paper submissions (full paper and abstract submissions). Both research and application papers are solicited. All submitted papers will be reviewed on the basis of technical quality, relevance, significance and clarity. Accepted full papers will be included in the proceedings by Springer LNCS/LNAI. Tutorial, Satellite symposium (workshop) and Special-Session proposals and Industry/Demo-Track papers are also welcome. IMPORTANT DATES: ================ Satellite symposium proposal submission: March 10, 2015 Notification of satellite symposium acceptance: March 30, 2015 Submission of full papers: April 5, 2015 Submission of abstracts: May 20, 2015 Submission of satellite symposium papers: May 20, 2015 Notification of full paper acceptance: May 25, 2015 Notification of abstract acceptance: June 10, 2015 Notification of satellite symposium paper acceptance: June 10, 2015 Tutorial proposal submission: May 15, 2015 Satellite symposiums: August 30, 2015 Main conference: August 31-September 2, 2015 PAPER SUBMISSIONS & PUBLICATIONS: ================================= TYPE-I (Full Paper Submissions; Submission Deadline: April 5, 2015): Papers need to have up to 10 pages in LNCS format: http://www.springer.com/computer/lncs?SGWID=0-164-6-793341-0. All full length papers accepted (and all special sessions' full length papers) will be published by Springer as a volume of the series of LNCS/LNAI. TYPE-II (Abstract Submissions; Submission Deadline: May 20, 2015): Abstracts have a word limit of 500 words. Experimental research is particularly welcome. Accepted abstract submissions will be included in the conference program, and will be published as a single, collective proceedings volume. Title: Include in the title of the abstract all words critical for a subject index. Write your title in sentence case (first letter is capitalized; remaining letters are lower case). Do not bold or italicize your full title. Author: List all authors who contributed to the work discussed in the abstract. The presenting author must be listed in the first author slot of the list. Be prepared to submit contact information as well as conflict of interest information for each author listed. Abstract: Enter the body of the abstract and attach any applicable graphic files or tables here. Do not re-enter the title, author, support, or other information that is collected in other steps of the submission form. Presentation Preference: Authors may select from three presentation formats when submitting an abstract: "poster only,, talk preferred" or "no preference." The talk preferred" selection indicates that you would like to give a talk, but will accept a poster format if necessary. Marking "poster only" indicates that you would not like to be considered for an oral-presentation session. Selecting "no preference" indicates the author's willingness to be placed in the best format for the program. Each paper or abstract requires one sponsoring attendee (i.e. someone who registered and is attending the conference). A single attendee can not sponsor more than two abstracts or papers. Oral presentations will be selected from both full length papers and abstracts. *** Post-Conference Journal Publication *** The BIH conferences have the formal ties with Brain Informatics journal (Springer, http://www.springer.com/40708) Accepted papers from the conference, including their Best Paper Award papers, will be expended and revised for possible inclusion in the Brain Informatics journal each year. It is fully sponsored and no any article-processing fee charged for BIH authors. Selected submissions will be considered for publication in special issues of international journals after their papers are extended to a full-length paper and pass a review process. More information can be found at http://www.bih-amt.com/publications/ *** Topics and Areas *** Please find the topics and areas of interest of the 2015 International Conference on Brain Informatics and Health (BIH'15) at http://www.bih-amt.com/call-for-papers/topics/ *** AMT'15 Session *** The advance of wearable sensor technology makes the monitoring of human behavior and life style becomes feasible. This development gives the active media technology a new dimension which is more closely related to the healthcare and cognitive studies. Following the success of past conferences in this series, AMT'15 will be jointly held with BIH15 as a special session. ORGANIZERS ========== General Chairs: Karl Friston, University College London, UK Yike Guo, Imperial College London, UK Program Chairs: Aldo Faisal, Imperial College London, UK Sean Hill, EPFL, Switzerland Hanchuan Peng, Allen Institute for Brain Science, US Workshop/Special-Session Chairs: Andreas Holzinger, Medical University Graz, Austria Zhisheng Huang, Vrije University of Amsterdam, Netherlands David Powers, Flinders University of South Australia, Australia Publicity Chairs: Jessica Turner, Georgia State University, US Juan D. Velasquez, University of Chile, Chile Yi Zeng, Institute of Automation, Chinese Academy of Sciences, China Local Organizing Chairs: Thomas Henis, Imperial College London, UK Kai Sun, Imperial College London, UK Chao Wu, Imperial College London, UK Exhibition/Sponsorship Chair: Caroline Li, University Kent, UK Steering Committee Co-Chairs: Ning Zhong, Maebashi Institute of Technology, Japan Jiming Liu, Hong Kong Baptist University, Hong Kong *** Contact Information *** Chao Wu, Imperial College London, UK <c.wu09(a)imperial.ac.uk> Aldo Faisal, Imperial College London, UK <a.faisal(a)imperial.ac.uk>

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Tenure Track Position in Biology Position
by Weaver, Adam L Jan. 20, 2015

Jan. 20, 2015

Dear Colleagues, I respectfully submit an advertisement below for an organismal biologist in our department of Biology. The job description and method of application are described below. Please share with suitable candidates. Specifically we are seeking an excellent educator whose research interests and training will lend themselves to serving the growing number of Biology majors interested in the health care professions. Expertise in the area of developmental neuroscience is specifically encouraged. This is a tenure-track position with a Fall 2015 start date. As I am on the search committee, I cannot answer any questions regarding the position but the website allows one to ask questions of the chair of the committee. Thank you, Adam Weaver ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Adam L. Weaver, Ph.D. Associate Professor, Dept. of Biology, Saint Michael's College Chief Advisor of the Health Professions, NEAAHP Address: One Winooski Park, Box 283, Colchester, VT 05439 Office: Cheray 313E Personal Email: AWeaver2(a)smcvt.edu<mailto:AWeaver2@smcvt.edu> Phone: (802) 654-2624 FAX: (802) 654-2236 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ This job opportunity has been sent to you through Saint Michael's College Careers. Please click here<http://smcvt.interviewexchange.com/jobofferdetails.jsp?JOBID=56106&type=7> to view the posting and to apply online. If your email system does not support links, please cut and paste the following text in a web browser: http://smcvt.interviewexchange.com/jobofferdetails.jsp?JOBID=56106&type=7 Job Posting Summary Job Title: Tenure Track Position in Biology Location: VT Job posted on: 01/13/2015 Thank you for considering a career with Saint Michael's College. -- Saint Michael's College Careers Full posting follows: Saint Michael's College - Tenure Track Position in Biology Thank you for considering Saint Michael's College in your search. About Saint Michael's College: Saint Michael's College delivers a compelling, world-class education in a beautiful Vermont setting. Our connected community allows students to form close relationships with each other and accomplished faculty members, providing an ideal learning environment where they have the space and support to challenge themselves and their peers. As a fully residential college located minutes from Burlington, one of the country's top-rated college towns, Saint Michael's offers an unparalleled mix of academic, spiritual, cultural, service and wilderness experiences. To learn more, visit smcvt.edu.<http://www.smcvt.edu> Job Description: The Department of Biology at Saint Michael's College invites applications for a full-time, tenure-track faculty position for an assistant professor of biology starting August 2015. The successful candidate will be expected to participate in the team teaching of introductory biology and to teach upper-level lecture and laboratory courses in Developmental Biology and one of the following organismal fields: Anatomy, Physiology, or Neurobiology, thus enhancing the department's offerings for students interested in post-graduate opportunities in health care. The successful candidate must maintain a productive scholarship program focusing on research providing opportunities for student involvement. Please note that the Biology Department does not have facilities to maintain live mammals or birds; the successful candidate should have a research program compatible with an undergraduate institution. Saint Michael's College is committed to the academic freedom of all members of its community. Benefits include health, dental, vision, life, disability, 401(k), employee and dependent tuition benefits, and discounted gym membership. Requirements: * Ph.D. in biology or related organismal field * College-level teaching experience * Promising record of scholarship * Willingness to participate as part of a team of colleagues with the primary focus being the learning and development of our students. An offer of employment will be contingent upon the successful completion of a background check. Additional Information: The College is committed to its Edmundite, Catholic mission, which focuses on the integration of intellectual, ethical, personal, and spiritual formation within an environment which combines academic achievement with service to others. Diversity: Saint Michael's College is committed to creating an environment that values and supports diversity, equity and inclusiveness across our campus community, and encourages applications from qualified individuals who will help us achieve this mission. Application Instructions: Please be prepared to attach the following five separate documents after clicking on Apply Now button. * Curriculum vitae * Cover Letter * Statement of teaching philosophy * Plan for implementation of a research program compatible with our institution and welcoming of our students * Names of three referees; references will be requested from short-listed candidates Interviewed candidates should expect to discuss: * how you will support and affirm appreciation for cultural, ethnic, or racial difference, and how your work will foster inclusion in a multicultural environment. * how you will support and contribute to the mission of the College. Review of applications will begin immediately and continue until the position has been filled. Saint Michael's is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We are committed to excellence through diversity, and in this spirit, particularly welcome applications from women, persons of color, and members of historically underrepresented groups.

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Postdoc position, Kreiman lab
by Kreiman, Gabriel Jan. 20, 2015

Jan. 20, 2015

Applications are invited for a postdoctoral scholar position in the Kreiman lab. We are looking for an innovative and enthusiastic researcher with a strong quantitative background (e.g. Math, Physics, Computer Science) and experience in Neuroscience research. The research efforts will involve studying high-level vision and learning using a combination of computational models, neurophysiology and behavioral experiments. For information about the Kreiman lab and recent publications, see: http://klab.tch.harvad.edu/. The postdoc will be part of an energetic and intellectually vibrant community of researchers including the new Center for Brains, Minds and Machines and the Center for Brain Science. The position is funded for 2 years, with an initial one-year appointment and expectation of extension contingent on satisfactory progress. To be considered for this position please submit your application to gabriel.kreiman(a)tch.harvard.edu, including • CV • List of publications • Names of three people that are familiar with your work Gabriel Kreiman klab.tch.harvard.edu Use "9265358979" anywhere in the message body to ensure that your message navigates through anti spam filters

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Second call for abstracts: Integrated Systems Neuroscience Workshop, March 23-24th, Manchester, UK
by Mark Humphries Jan. 20, 2015

Jan. 20, 2015

We announce a 2-day workshop on "Integrated Systems Neuroscience", at the University of Manchester (UK), March 23-24th 2015. Poster abstract submission deadline: 30th January 2015. Registration deadline: February 27th 2015 Systems neuroscience has been thrust centre-stage by the extraordinary advances in technology for recording and manipulating neural circuits at single-cell resolution. Yet with this rapid increase in data yield has come formidable challenges in analysing and understanding experimental results. Consequently, a tight integration between experimental and computational neuroscience approaches is increasingly necessary for tackling these challenges. The goal of this workshop is to present the state-of-the-art in integrated systems and computational approaches to key neural circuits, to demonstrate their power and potential. Each session of the programme will comprise a pair of talks presenting complementary experimental and computational work on the same circuit theme. A poster session with wine reception will be held on the first evening. Speakers include: Rafal Bogacz (Oxford) Matteo Carandini (UCL) Peter Dayan (Gatsby Computational Neuroscience Unit, UCL) Ken Harris (UCL) Peter Magill (MRC Brain Network Dynamics Unit, Oxford) Daniel O'Connor (John Hopkins University) Michael Orger (Champalimaud Institute, Lisbon) Srdjan Ostojic (Ecole Normale Superieure, Paris) Alex Thiele (University of Newcastle) Gasper Tkacik (IST Austria) For more information, including the current programme, please visit the website: http://www.isn2015.ls.manchester.ac.uk/ Posters: We are accepting submission of abstracts for posters. A maximum of 30 posters will be accepted; the top 20 will have their registration fee waived. For details on submission see: http://www.isn2015.ls.manchester.ac.uk/abstracts/ Abstract submission deadline: January 30th 2015 Registration: http://www.isn2015.ls.manchester.ac.uk/registration/ Registration deadline: February 27th 2015 Organisers: Mark Humphries & Rasmus Petersen (University of Manchester) Sponsors: we gratefully acknowledge the support of the Medical Research Council and Company of Biologists. Dr Mark Humphries MRC Senior non-Clinical Research Fellow AV Hill Building Faculty of Life Sciences University of Manchester http://www.systemsneurophysiologylab.ls.manchester.ac.uk/

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Feb 15 Application Deadline - 2015 Summer School on Large-Scale Brain Modelling
by Chris Eliasmith Jan. 19, 2015

Jan. 19, 2015

[All details about this school can be found online at <http://www.nengo.ca/summerschool>http://www.nengo.ca/summerschool] The Centre for Theoretical Neuroscience at the University of Waterloo is inviting applications for our 2nd annual summer school on large-scale brain modelling. This two-week school will teach participants how to use the Nengo simulation package to build state-of-the-art cognitive and neural models. Nengo has been used to build what is currently the world's largest functional brain model, Spaun <http://www.nengo.ca/build-a-brain/spaunvideos>[1], and provides users with a versatile and powerful environment for simulating cognitive and neural systems. We welcome applications from all interested graduate students, research associates, postdocs, professors, and industry professionals. No specific training in the use of modelling software is required, but we encourage applications from active researchers with a relevant background in psychology, neuroscience, cognitive science, engineering, computer science, or a related field. For a look at last year's summer school, please see this short video: http://goo.gl/BXJ3x5 [1] Eliasmith, C., Stewart T. C., Choo X., Bekolay T., DeWolf T., Tang Y., Rasmussen, D. (2012). A large-scale model of the functioning brain. Science. Vol. 338 no. 6111 pp. 1202-1205. DOI: 10.1126/science.1225266. [<http://nengo.ca/publications/spaunsciencepaper>http://nengo.ca/publications/spaunsciencepaper] ***Application Deadline: February 15, 2015*** Format Participants are encouraged to bring their own ideas for projects, which may focus on testing hypotheses, modelling neural or cognitive data, implementing specific behavioural functions with neurons, expanding past models, or provide a proof-of-concept of various neural mechanisms. More generally, participants will have the opportunity to: - build perceptual, motor, and cognitive models with spiking neurons - model anatomical, electrophysiological, cognitive, and behavioural data - use a variety of single cell models within a large-scale model - integrate machine learning methods into biologically oriented models - use Nengo with your favorite simulator, e.g. Brian, NEST, Neuron, etc. - interface Nengo with various kinds of neuromorphic hardware - interface Nengo with cameras and robotic systems - implement modern nonlinear control methods in neural models - and much more... Hands-on tutorials, work on individual or group projects, and talks from invited faculty members will make up the bulk of day-to-day activities. There will be a weekend break on June 13-14, and fun activities scheduled for evenings throughout. A project demonstration event will be held on the last day of the school, with prizes for strong projects! Date and Location: June 7th to June 19th, 2015 at the University of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. Applications: Please visit <http://www.nengo.ca/summerschool>http://www.nengo.ca/summerschool, where you can find more information regarding costs, travel, lodging, along with an application form listing required materials. If you have any questions about the school or the application process, please contact Peter Blouw (pblouw(a)uwaterloo.ca <mailto:pblouw@uwaterloo.ca>)

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PhD Student in computational neuroscience/pain research - Technische Universität München
by Markus Ploner Jan. 19, 2015

Jan. 19, 2015

PhD Student in computational neuroscience/pain research Department of Neurology, Technische Universität München, Munich, Germany Applications are invited for a PhD Student position at the Department of Neurology, Technische Universität München, to work on the cerebral representation of pain by using EEG. The project will focus on the neurophysiological correlates of pain in healthy human subjects and patients suffering from chronic pain disorders. Major experimental methods include EEG time-frequency analysis, source analysis and connectivity analysis. The candidate will join a research group dedicated to the multimodal investigation of the cerebral representation of pain (http://www.painlabmunich.de <http://www.painlabmunich.de/>) which is part of the TUM-Neuroimaging Center (TUM-NIC; http://www.tumnic.mri.tum.de <http://www.tumnic.mri.tum.de/>). TUM-NIC hosts state-of-the-art neuroimaging facilities and offers training in major neuroimaging techniques. Applicants should have a background in computer science, statistics, physics, engineering, neuroscience, medicine, psychology, or other relevant disciplines. Prior experience in MATLAB programming is mandatory. Skills for sophisticated analysis of EEG data (e.g. information theory, machine learning techniques, mediation analysis) are highly desirable. Candidates have the possibility to integrate in the PhD program Medical Life Science and Technology (http://www.phd.med.tum.de <http://www.phd.med.tum.de/>) or the Graduate School of Systemic Neurosciences (http://www.gsn.uni-muenchen.de/index.html <http://www.gsn.uni-muenchen.de/index.html>), which offer interdisciplinary high-level training for students with different backgrounds. Salary will be commensurate with the German TVöD salary scale (EG13). Applications will be considered until the position is filled. Candidates may contact Dr. Markus Ploner for more detailed information or directly e-mail their application (ploner(a)lrz.tum.de <mailto:ploner@lrz.tum.de>), including letter of motivation, CV and letters of recommendation. Markus Ploner MD Heisenberg Professor of Human Pain Research Department of Neurology Technische Universität München Munich, Germany ploner(a)lrz.tum.de

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postdoctoral position available
by Anil Seth Jan. 19, 2015

Jan. 19, 2015

POSTDOC POSITION IN COGNITIVE NEUROSCIENCE OF TIME PERCEPTION AT SUSSEX UNIVERSITY Corresponding author: Anil Seth (A.K.Seth(a)sussex.ac.uk<mailto:A.K.Seth@sussex.ac.uk>) Deadline: January 30th, 2015 Further information: http://www.sussex.ac.uk/aboutus/jobs/950 3 year full time postdoctoral position at the Sackler Centre for Consciousness Science, University of Sussex. Applications are invited from highly motivated post-doctoral research scientists to join a newly funded multi-partner European project. TIMESTORM promotes time perception as a fundamental capacity of autonomous living biological and computational systems, that plays a key role in the development of intelligence. The project aims to explore the coupling of time and mind and implement for the first time artificial systems that consider the temporal aspects of cognition. The available position, within the Sackler Centre for Consciousness Science, will involve cognitive neuroscience research on the brain basis of time perception. ------------------------------------------- Anil K. Seth, D.Phil. University of Sussex, UK Professor of Cognitive and Computational Neuroscience Co-Director, Sackler Centre for Consciousness Science Editor-in-Chief, Neuroscience of Consciousness www.anilseth.com<http://www.anilseth.com> www.neurobanter.com<http://www.neurobanter.com> http://nc.oxfordjournals.org/ www.sussex.ac.uk/sackler/<http://www.sussex.ac.uk/sackler/> a.k.seth(a)sussex.ac.uk<mailto:a.k.seth@sussex.ac.uk> @anilkseth

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MCS 2015 : Call for Papers
by Dr. Schwenker Jan. 18, 2015

Jan. 18, 2015

Apologies for multiple copies. ****** MCS 2015 Call for Papers ******** ********************************************************************** TWELFTH INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON MULTIPLE CLASSIFIER SYSTEMS Reisensburg Castle (Günzburg, Germany), Ulm University, June 29 - July 1, 2015http://mcs.diee.unica.it ********************************************************************** Paper Submission: JANUARY 30, 2015 MCS 2015 is the twelfth edition of the well-established series of meetings providing the leading international forum for the discussion of issues in multiple classifier systems and ensemble methods. The aim of the workshop is to bring together researchers from diverse communities concerned with this topic, including pattern recognition, machine learning, neural networks, data mining and statistics. MCS 2015 will be held on June 29-July 1, 2015, at Reisensburg Castle (Günzburg, Germany) research center of the Ulm University. For up-to-date conference information, please visit:http://mcs.diee.unica.it Organizing Committee ==================== Friedhelm Schwenker, Ulm University, Germany Josef Kittler, University of Surrey, UK Fabio Roli, University of Cagliari, Italy -- Dr. Friedhelm Schwenker University of Ulm Institute of Neural Information Processing D-89069 Ulm, Germany phone: +49-731-50-24159 fax: +49-731-50-24156 email: friedhelm.schwenker(a)uni-ulm.de www: http://www.uni-ulm.de/in/neuroinformatik/mitarbeiter/f-schwenker.html

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Opportunities for Ph.D. Studentships in Computational Neuroscience
by Wong-Lin, Kongfatt Jan. 18, 2015

Jan. 18, 2015

The Intelligent Systems Research Centre (ISRC) at the University of Ulster, UK, invites applications for 3-year Ph.D. studentships. A list of studentships offered for the academic year 2015-2016 and the projects’ details can be found at: http://www.compeng.ulster.ac.uk/rgs/showPhDProposals.php?ri=3. In particular, I have the available computational neuroscience projects available for 2015: 1. Computational modelling and analysis of spatiotemporal brain dynamics in decision making. 2. A neuro-inspired multisensory decision-making model with self-awareness for autonomous mobile robots. 3. Computational neuromodulation: neural circuit modelling. The computational neuroscience research at the ISRC focuses on both fundamental brain and behavioural sciences, and their applications, including clinical neuroscience and neuroengineering. The application process for the Ph.D. studentship is opened with a closing date for applications on the 27th February 2015. All studentships, which are highly competitive, are expected to start in September 2015, and include tuition fees and an annual maintenance allowance for EU and non-EU students. All applicants should hold a first or upper second class honours degree (or equivalent) in an appropriate subject, such as computer science, engineering, physics, mathematics or neuroscience. Applicants must be highly motivated and willing to pursue research and develop skills across disciplines. If you wish to apply for a studentship, please follow the instructions at: http://www.compeng.ulster.ac.uk/rgs/guideForApplicants.php. Unless indicated, successful students will be based primarily at the ISRC with opportunities to interact with other related ISRC research teams, research groups from the Biomedical Sciences Research Institute, the Centre for Stratified Medicine, and there may also be opportunities for spin-outs. A functional brain mapping facility has recently been established at the ISRC. The ISRC is situated in the city of Derry~Londonderry, which has received the City of Culture 2013 award. Please note that some studentship (DEL Awards) have restrictions on residence eligibility – see guidance notes for details. For further information, please contact me (k.wong-lin(a)ulster.ac.uk) ------------------- Dr. KongFatt Wong-Lin Computational Neuroscience Research Team Intelligent Systems Research Centre University of Ulster ________________________________ This email and any attachments are confidential and intended solely for the use of the addressee and may contain information which is covered by legal, professional or other privilege. If you have received this email in error please notify the system manager at postmaster(a)ulster.ac.uk and delete this email immediately. Any views or opinions expressed are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of Ulster University. The University's computer systems may be monitored and communications carried out on them may be recorded to secure the effective operation of the system and for other lawful purposes. Ulster University does not guarantee that this email or any attachments are free from viruses or 100% secure. Unless expressly stated in the body of a separate attachment, the text of email is not intended to form a binding contract. Correspondence to and from the University may be subject to requests for disclosure by 3rd parties under relevant legislation. The University of Ulster was founded by Royal Charter in 1984 and is registered with company number RC000726 and VAT registered number GB672390524.The primary contact address for Ulster University in Northern Ireland is Cromore Road, Coleraine, Co. Londonderry BT52 1SA

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Journal of Mathematical Neuroscience - recent articles
by Stephen Coombes Jan. 17, 2015

Jan. 17, 2015

Dear all, The Journal of Mathematical Neuroscience publishes research articles on the mathematical modeling and analysis of all areas of neuroscience. The current list of journal articles is available at http://www.mathematical-neuroscience.com/ : Uncertainty Propagation in Nerve Impulses Through the Action Potential Mechanism Torres Valderrama A, Witteveen J, Navarro M and Blom J http://www.mathematical-neuroscience.com/content/5/1/3<http://www.mathematical-neuroscience.com/content/4/1/13> Coarse-Grained Clustering Dynamics of Heterogeneously Coupled Neurons Moon SJ, Cook KA, Rajendran K, Kevrekidis IG, Cisternas J and Laing CR http://www.mathematical-neuroscience.com/content/5/1/2 Shifting Spike Times or Adding and Deleting Spikes—How Different Types of Noise Shape Signal Transmission in Neural Populations Voronenko SO, Stannat W and Lindner B http://www.mathematical-neuroscience.com/content/5/1/1 Numerical Bifurcation Theory for High-Dimensional Neural Models Laing CR http://www.mathematical-neuroscience.com/content/4/1/13 Adaptation and Fatigue Model for Neuron Networks and Large Time Asymptotics in a Nonlinear Fragmentation Equation Pakdaman K, Perthame B and Salort D http://www.mathematical-neuroscience.com/content/4/1/14 and see also the recent Special Issue on Uncertainty and the Brain http://www.mathematical-neuroscience.com/series/UB All articles are Open Access. Best regards, Steve ------------------------------------------------------- Stephen Coombes Professor of Applied Mathematics School of Mathematical Sciences Nottingham, UK Tel: 0115 846 7836 http://www.maths.nott.ac.uk/~sc/ ------------------------------------------------------- This message and any attachment are intended solely for the addressee and may contain confidential information. If you have received this message in error, please send it back to me, and immediately delete it. Please do not use, copy or disclose the information contained in this message or in any attachment. Any views or opinions expressed by the author of this email do not necessarily reflect the views of the University of Nottingham. This message has been checked for viruses but the contents of an attachment may still contain software viruses which could damage your computer system, you are advised to perform your own checks. Email communications with the University of Nottingham may be monitored as permitted by UK legislation.

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CNS 2015: Abstract Submission and Registration opens
by Tam, Nicoladie Jan. 17, 2015

Jan. 17, 2015

Organization for Computational Neurosciences (OCNS) 24th Annual Meeting Prague, Czech Republic July 18-23, 2015 The main meeting (July 19-21) will be preceded by a day of tutorials (July 18) and followed by two days of workshops (July 22-23). Invited Keynote Speakers: Jack Cowan, University of Chicago, USA Gustavo Deco, Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Spain Adrienne Fairhall, University of Washington, USA Wulfram Gerstner, EPFL, Switzerland Registration will open on January 14, 2015. Abstract submission will open on January 15, 2015 and close on February 22. Workshop proposals are now being accepted. Note that one of the authors has to register as sponsoring author for the main meeting before abstract submission is possible. In case the abstract is not accepted for presentation, the registration fee will be refunded. For up-to-date conference information, please visit http://www.cnsorg.org/cns-2015-prague ---------------------------------------- OCNS is the international member-based society for computational neuroscientists. Become a member to be eligible for travel awards and more. Visit our website for more information: http://www.cnsorg.org

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CoSMo 2015 summer school announcement
by Gunnar Blohm Jan. 16, 2015

Jan. 16, 2015

*Fifth Annual Computational Sensory-Motor Neuroscience Summer School (CoSMo 2015)* Radboud University Nijmegen, The Netherlands June 28 - July 11, 2015 We would like to invite you to join us for the fifth annual Computational Sensory-Motor Neuroscience Summer School. The course is about experimental, computational and medical aspects of sensory-motor neuroscience with a focus on active learning. Covered topics include multi-sensory integration, motor learning & control, computational methods, sensory-motor transformations and neural coding / decoding. An important focus is on doing research as opposed to just hearing about it. Each teaching module will take up two days with morning lecture sessions. Afternoon sessions involve hands-on Matlab programming, simulation and data-analysis. Newly acquired computational tools can also be applied in 2-week evening group research projects. The course is aimed at students and post-doctoral fellows from diverse backgrounds including Life Sciences, Psychology, Computer Science, Physics, Mathematics and Engineering. Basic knowledge in calculus, linear algebra and Matlab is expected. Enrollment will be limited to 40 trainees. *Application deadline: Mar 15, 2015* For more information and to apply, please go to http://www.compneurosci.com/CoSMo/ The school is co-organized by Drs Gunnar Blohm, Paul Schrater, John van Opstal, Pieter Medendorp and Konrad Körding. This year, it receives funding from the EU FP7 Marie-Curie IDP Training Network /HealthPAC/, and the Perception, Action and Control research network of the Donders Institute at Radboud University Nijmegen. -- ------------------------------------------------------- Dr. Gunnar BLOHM Associate Professor in Computational Neuroscience Association for Canadian Neuroinformatics and Computational Neuroscience (CNCN) Centre for Neuroscience Studies, Departments of Biomedical and Molecular Sciences, Mathematics & Statistics, and Psychology, School of Computing, and Canadian Action and Perception Network (CAPnet) Queen’s University 18, Stuart Street Kingston, Ontario, Canada, K7L 3N6 Tel: (613) 533-3385 Fax: (613) 533-6840 Email: Gunnar.Blohm(a)QueensU.ca Web: http://www.compneurosci.com/

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New funding opportunity: Machine Intelligence from Cortical Networks (MICrONS) Program
by R. Jacob Vogelstein Jan. 16, 2015

Jan. 16, 2015

I am pleased to announce the release of the Machine Intelligence from Cortical Networks (MICrONS) program Broad Agency Announcement (BAA). MICrONS seeks to revolutionize machine learning by reverse-engineering the algorithms of the brain. The program is expressly designed as a dialogue between data science and neuroscience, in which participants will have the unique opportunity to pose biological questions with the greatest potential to advance theories of neural computation and obtain answers through carefully planned experimentation and data analysis. Over the course of the program, participants will use their improving understanding of the representations, transformations, and learning rules employed by the brain to create ever more capable neurally-derived machine learning algorithms. Ultimate computational goals for MICrONS include the ability to perform complex information processing tasks such as one-shot learning, unsupervised clustering, and scene parsing, aiming towards human-like proficiency. The program overview is copied below; the full text of the announcement (and any future versions) is available from the BAA link at http://www.iarpa.gov/index.php/research-programs/microns/microns-baa. All questions about the program and/or BAA must be submitted to dni-iarpa-baa-14-06(a)iarpa.gov by February 9, 2015. Full proposals must be submitted through the IARPA IDEAS <https://iarpa-ideas.gov> system by March 13, 2015. *Do not *send any questions or proposal submissions to me directly. Please disseminate this information widely. Offerors need not be U.S. citizens or residents to apply or receive funding. Thank you, Jacob R. Jacob Vogelstein, Ph.D. Program Manager ODNI/IARPA http://go.usa.gov/FPPJ -------------------------------------------------------- Introduction Despite significant progress in machine learning over the past few years, today’s state of the art algorithms are brittle and do not generalize well. In contrast, the brain is able to robustly separate and categorize signals in the presence of significant noise and non-linear transformations, and can extrapolate from single examples to entire classes of stimuli. This performance gap between software and wetware persists despite some correspondence between the architecture of the leading machine learning algorithms and their biological counterparts in the brain, presumably because the two still differ significantly in the details of operation. The MICrONS program is predicated on the notion that it will be possible to achieve major breakthroughs in machine learning if we can construct synthetic systems that not only resemble the high-level blueprints of the brain, but also employ lower-level computing modules derived from the specific computations performed by cortical circuits. Background Many contemporary theories of cortical computing suggest that the brain performs common sensory information processing tasks—such as detection and recognition of visual objects, sounds, and odors—with algorithms that progressively transform data through a series of operations, or “stages.” Each stage of processing is further theorized to occur within a discrete region of cortex. Although different theories suggest different mathematical bases for computation, it is commonly believed that neural algorithms employ data representations, transformations, and learning rules that are conserved across stages. <#14ae94b7b82a2eef_14ae94551cb4b667_14ae942f2d046d85_14acb3be21100ccb__ftn1> It should therefore be possible to apprehend the neural computations underlying information processing (at least within a given sensory modality <#14ae94b7b82a2eef_14ae94551cb4b667_14ae942f2d046d85_14acb3be21100ccb__ftn2>) by interrogating a small fraction of the entire cortex, so long as that fraction is judiciously selected to contain sufficient evidence of the representations, transformations, and learning rules of the algorithm(s) to which it contributes. Neuroscience has a long history of inspiring innovation in machine learning, starting with the seminal work of McCulloch and Pitts in 1943. This influence is evident even in today’s state of the art “deep learning” systems, which are loosely modeled on hierarchical visual processing systems in the primate brain. However, the rate of effective knowledge transfer between neuroscience and machine learning has been slow because of divergent scientific priorities, funding sources, knowledge repositories, and lexicons. As a result, very few of the ideas about neural computing that have emerged over the past few decades have been incorporated into modern machine learning algorithms. Previous attempts to foster collaboration between neuroscience and machine learning have been stymied in part by gaps in our knowledge about the brain. The majority of what is known about the brain today regards its operation at the “micro” scale (one or a few neurons) and the “macro” scale (hundreds of thousands or millions of neurons), and some of this information is indeed reflected in the design of leading artificial neural networks. In contrast, much less is known about the “mesoscale” cortical circuits (hundreds to tens of thousands of neurons) that implement the specific data representations, transformations, and learning rules of cortical information processing algorithms, and these are therefore absent from (or speculative in) existing machine learning solutions. It is likely that explicit knowledge and use of these computations is required to move beyond the current generation of “neurally-inspired” machine learning algorithms. Program Synopsis The MICrONS program aims to create novel machine learning algorithms that use neurally-inspired architectures *and* mathematical abstractions of the representations, transformations, and learning rules employed by the brain to achieve brain-like performance. To guide the construction of these algorithms, performers will conduct targeted neuroscience experiments that interrogate the operation of mesoscale cortical computing circuits, taking advantage of emerging tools for high-resolution structural and functional brain mapping. The program is designed to facilitate iterative refinement of algorithms based on a combination of practical, theoretical, and experimental outcomes: performers will use their experiences with the algorithms’ design and performance to reveal gaps in their understanding of cortical computation, and will collect specific neuroscience data to inform new algorithmic implementations that address these limitations. Ultimately, as performers incorporate these insights into successive versions of the machine learning algorithms, they will devise solutions that can perform complex information processing tasks aiming towards human-like proficiency. Program Structure MICrONS is organized in three phases, totaling five years in duration. During each phase, performers conduct targeted neuroanatomical and neurophysiological studies to inform their understanding of the cortical computations underlying sensory information processing and, concurrently, create neurally-derived machine learning algorithms that perform similar functions. Performers motivate their experimental and algorithmic designs by formulating and updating a conceptual model or “theoretical framework” for neural information processing in a given sensory modality. They use computational neural models (i.e., executable mathematic or algorithmic simulations of neurons and neural circuits) to establish a correspondence between the computations performed by biological wetware and the computations employed by their machine learning software. Each phase ends with an information processing challenge that assesses how well the new algorithms perform on increasingly challenging machine learning tasks: similarity discrimination in Phase 1, generalization and classification in Phase 2, and invariant recognition in Phase 3. Performers use the results of their experiments in each phase to guide their development of improved algorithms in the subsequent phase (in Phase 1, performers base their algorithms on the existing neuroscience literature). Technical Areas The MICrONS program comprises three Technical Areas (TAs). Although IARPA anticipates receiving a number of holistic proposals responding to all three TAs, it recognizes that some prospective offerors may have capabilities in only a subset of the overall program scope, and wishes to maximize its opportunity to leverage these capabilities. Therefore, offerors may choose to propose to one, two, or all three TAs. Because achieving MICrONS program goals will require significant collaboration across all three TAs, offerors who propose to only one or two TAs should be prepared to work closely with performers in the remaining TAs. The TAs in MICrONS are defined as follows: · TA1 – experimental design, theoretical neuroscience, computational neural modeling, machine learning, neurophysiological data collection, and data analysis; · TA2 – neuroanatomical data collection; and · TA3 – reconstruction of cortical circuits from neuroanatomical data and development of information technology systems to store, align, and access neural circuit reconstructions with the associated neurophysiological and neuroanatomical data. Success in the MICrONS program will require extensive communication and cooperation between performers in all three TAs within or across teams. For example, in TA2, performers must collect neuroanatomical data about the same brain regions *in the same brain specimens* that are used in TA1 for neurophysiological studies; in TA3, performers must reconstruct neural circuits from the data collected in TA2; and in TA1, performers must analyze the neural circuits generated in TA3 and use the resulting insights in formulating their machine learning algorithms and theoretical frameworks. All offerors are therefore required to include in their proposal a detailed management plan and a detailed description of how their proposed technical approach in one or more TAs is likely to impact the other TAs.

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Bernstein Conference 2015: Call for Workshops
by Seeger, Simone Jan. 16, 2015

Jan. 16, 2015

The National Bernstein Network Computational Neuroscience invites proposals for Satellite Workshops directly preceding the Bernstein Conference 2015 in Heidelberg ********************************************************************************** Call for Workshop proposals: Workshops: September 14, 2015 (Main Bernstein Conference: September 15-17, 2015) Deadline of proposal submission: March 15, 2015 Notification of acceptance: April 20, 2015 Conference Registration starts: April 27, 2015 Early Registration Deadline: July 21, 2015 ********************************************************************************** The Bernstein Conference started out as the annual meeting of the National Bernstein Network Computational Neuroscience and has become the largest single-track Computational Neuroscience conference in Europe in recent years. Since 2013, the Bernstein Conference hosts pre-conference workshops, which have developed swiftly into a well-attended event. They supply a stage to debate topical research questions and challenges in Computational Neuroscience and related fields, different points of view and scientific approaches in an informal setting. Workshops addressing controversial issues, open problems, and comparisons of competing approaches are encouraged. SCHEDULE: September 14, 2015, 9:00 - 18:30. You may apply for either half-day or full-day workshops. Workshop costs: The Bernstein Conference does not provide financial support, but workshop organizers and speakers are offered free workshop registration and reduced fees for the main conference. For further information about the conference, please visit the conference website<http://www.bernstein-conference.de>. DETAILS FOR WORKSHOP PROPOSALS: The Workshop Proposal form can be downloaded here<http://www.nncn.de/de/bernstein-conference/2015/satellite-workshops/worksho…>. Deadline for submission of Workshop Proposals: March 15, 2015 We are looking forward to meeting you in Heidelberg! THE WORKSHOP PROGRAM COMMITTEE *** Simone Seeger, M.A. Administration Bernstein Center for Computational Neuroscience Zentralinstitut für Seelische Gesundheit Postfach 12 21 20, 68072 Mannheim J5, 68159 Mannheim Telefon: 0621/1703-1326 oder 06221/54-8310 Fax: 0621/1703-2915 E-Mail: Simone.Seeger(a)zi-mannheim.de<mailto:Simone.Seeger@zi-mannheim.de> Internet: http://www.bccn-heidelberg-mannheim.de<http://www.bccn-heidelberg-mannheim.de/>

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Call for Papers - IJCAI15 Workshop on Sensitivity Analysis and Robustness in Probabilistic Graphical Models
by Alessandro Antonucci Jan. 16, 2015

Jan. 16, 2015

IJCAI15 Workshop on Sensitivity Analysis and Robustness in Probabilistic Graphical Models Buenos Aires, July 25-27, 2015 - http://ipg.idsia.ch/wijcai15/ FIRST CALL FOR PAPERS Probabilistic graphical models are important tools in machine learning and artificial intelligence for reasoning with uncertainty. They provide means to represent large multivariate domains compactly and to perform sophisticated learning and reasoning efficiently. Examples of probabilistic graphical models are Bayesian networks, Markov Random fields, chain and factor graphs, Gaussian graphical models, to name but a few. The quantification of these models usually requires sharp (i.e., precise) assessments of the model local potentials and might be subject to robustness issues. For instance, perturbations of some parameter values may lead to different decisions from those which would be achieved by the unperturbed model, suggesting that decisions are not reliable. Reliability might also be in question because of missing data and assumptions behind the process. The workshop invites submissions of papers on all aspects of sensitivity analysis and robustness in probabilistic graphical models. Contributions may have a theoretical focus and/or an applied focus. A non-exhaustive list of topics follows. - Local and/or global sensitivity analysis. - Parameter-based and/or decision-based sensitivity analysis. - Design of robust learning, inference and/or decision making approaches. - Robust analysis and design of robustness measurements. - Extensions of probabilistic graphical models. - Reliable qualitative learning and reasoning. - Robust treatment of missing data. - Imprecise probability and other theories related to sensitivity analysis. - Computational complexity, exact and approximate algorithms. Each submission will be reviewed by peers using a double-blind process (please use the third person in self citations and take all necessary care not to identify yourselves). Accepted papers will be published electronically in a volume of the JMLR Workshop and Conference Proceedings series. There will be no rebuttal phase, but contributions considered worth publishing and needing substantial revision might be subject to a second round of reviewing/evaluation. All accepted papers will be presented at the workshop. At least one of the paper's authors should register and attend the workshop to present the work. Submissions must be formatted according to style and template files available for the Journal of Machine Learning Research (JMLR) Workshop and Conference Proceedings - two-column version. The style files are available at http:/ipg.idsia.ch/wijcai15/sarpgm15.tar.gz Papers (including figures, tables, references, etc) are expected to have between 6 and 10 pages. IMPORTANT DATES Apr 27, 2015 - Deadline for submissions of contributions May 20, 2015 - Workshop paper acceptance notification May 30, 2015 - Deadline for workshop camera-ready copy (in case of minor revision; contributions needing major revision might need additional time - this will be arranged case by case) PC MEMBERS Alessandro Antonucci*, IDSIA, Switzerland. Alessio Benavoli, IDSIA, Switzerland. Cassio P. de Campos*, Queen's University Belfast, UK. Arthur Choi, University of California, Los Angeles, USA. Giorgio Corani*, IDSIA, Switzerland. Fabio Cozman, University of Sao Paulo, Brazil. Adnan Darwiche, University of California, Los Angeles, USA. Sebastien Destercke, Univ. de Technologie de Compiegne, France. Marek Druzdzel, University of Pittsburgh, USA. Johan Kwisthout, Radboud University Nijmegen, The Netherlands. Agnieszka Onisko, Bialystok University of Technology, Poland. Denis Maua, University of Sao Paulo, Brazil. Serafin Moral, Universidad de Granada, Spain. Silja Renooij, Universiteit Utrecht, The Netherlands. Matthias Troffaes, University of Durham, UK. (*: Workshop organizers.) More details about the submission procedure are available online. http://ipg.idsia.ch/wijcai15/ ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ (We apologize in case you receive multiple copies of this announcement, but yet we hope to reach the greatest possible number of people. Finding a trade-off is not an easy task.) -- _________________________________ Alessandro Antonucci IDSIA Dalle Molle Institute for Artificial Intelligence Via Cantonale (Galleria 2) CH-6928, Manno-Lugano, CH mail: alessandro(a)idsia.ch skype: alessandro.antonucci tel: +41 916108515 web: www.idsia.ch/~alessandro _________________________________

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