- Comp-neuro - lists.cnsorg.org

🎉 Applications Now Open for Neuromatch and Climatematch Academy! 🧪

by Courtney Dean

Hello! We're thrilled to announce our lineup of immersive courses at Neuromatch & Climatematch Academy <https://neuromatch.io/courses/>! Whether you're a student eager to dive into cutting-edge topics or a seasoned researcher looking to contribute as a Teaching Assistant, we have opportunities tailored for you. *Please forward this email to folks you think would be interested!* *3-week Courses (July 7-25):* - *Computational Neuroscience <https://neuromatch.io/computational-neuroscience-course/>:* Explore the intricacies of the brain's computational processes and join an engaging community of learners. - *Deep Learning <https://neuromatch.io/deep-learning-course/>:* Delve into the world of artificial intelligence to uncover the principles and applications of deep learning. *2-week Courses (July 14-25):* - *Computational Tools for Climate Science <https://neuromatch.io/computational-tools-for-climate-science-course/>*: Uncover the tools and techniques driving climate science research in this dynamic two-week course. - *NeuroAI <https://neuromatch.io/neuroai-course/>:* Explore the intersection of neuroscience and artificial intelligence through the lens of generalization. *Application Info:* - *Close:* Sunday, March 23rd, at midnight in your local time zone - *Decisions:* Mid-April - *Requirements:* - *Students* are expected to be familiar with Python and have foundational science skills in math/science. See course specific prerequisites here <https://portal.neuromatchacademy.org/>. - *Teaching Assistants* should have strong Python skills and a background in the relevant topic. See the course pages for more information. - *Link:* Apply Here <https://portal.neuromatchacademy.org/> *Additional Information:* - All courses are synchronous but will be conducted exclusively online, providing flexibility and accessibility. - Tuition fees are lower than those of other courses to make education affordable to everybody, no matter their financial background. They are also adjusted for national economic factors. Detailed information about course fees can be found here <https://neuromatchacademy.github.io/widgets/cola.html>. - Teaching Assistants will lead small groups of students, fostering collaborative learning. *TA positions offer financial compensation*; detailed rates can be found here <https://neuromatchacademy.github.io/widgets/ta_cola.html>. Don't miss out on this incredible opportunity to expand your knowledge, connect with experts in the field, and contribute to the success of our courses. Apply today and join us on a journey of discovery! Should you have any questions or need further information, feel free to reach out to us at nma(a)neuromatch.io. We look forward to welcoming you to the Neuromatch Academy family! *You can find flyers and outreach materials here <https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1ghq9Mgt1DjdRDKOFRsgX0Q6K2BRtMjfI?us…>. Post a flyer! Share on social media! Forward this email! Support our efforts to democratize science.* Cheers, Courtney & The Academy Teams -- *Courtney Dean (she, her) * Program Director Schedule a meeting with me! <https://calendly.com/courtney-s-dean> c. 720.371.6559

Feb. 28, 2025

Final call: Spring School on Control Theory and Reinforcement Learning (March 17-21, 2025) at CWI, Amsterdam, NL

by Aditya Gilra

Dear all, Final call to register for the Spring School on Control Theory and Reinforcement Learning for starting PhD / advanced Master's students:Dates: March 17-21, 2025.Venue: CWI (Research Institute for Mathematics and Computer Science), Amsterdam, Netherlandshttps://www.cwi.nl/en/events/cwi-research-semester-programmes/spring-school-control-theory-and-reinforcement-learning/ Control theory and reinforcement learning share similar objectives, but have differed in their assumptions and approaches. This spring school emphasises connections across control theory, reinforcement learning and stochastic approximation, enabling students to access these broader themes and start to work on cross-cutting projects. The school will be at a preparatory PhD level, suitable for advanced Master's and starting PhD students in these areas. Distinguished Lecturers:Bert Kappen, Radboud Univ, Nijmegen, NetherlandsDebabrota Basu, Inria, Lille, FranceFrans Oliehoek, TU Delft, NetherlandsMaryam Kamgarpour, EPFL, Lausanne, SwitzerlandSean Meyn, Univ. of Florida, USA This school is part of a research semester programme on Control Theory and Reinforcement Learning at CWI, Amsterdam, NL, which comprises this Spring School (17-21 March), a Workshop on Themes (24-25 March), a Workshop on Modern Applications (20-21 May), and an upcoming one on Theory (19-20 June). Download and advertise the poster. Looking forward to seeing you!On behalf of the organizers.https://www.cwi.nl/en/events/cwi-research-semester-programs/control-theory-and-reinforcement/

Feb. 28, 2025

Workshop: "Collective Dynamics and Information Processing in Neural Systems" - Venice, Italy | June 30 - July 02

by Fabrizio Lombardi

Dear All, We invite applications to the workshop "Collective Dynamics and Information Processing in Neural Systems <https://liphlab.github.io/NeuroStatPhys_Satellite/>". The workshop will take place* in Venice, Italy, on 30 June - 02 July 2025* at the European Center for Living Technology (ECLT). Application deadline: *April 15, 2025*. *About the workshop* A longstanding question is how populations of neurons cooperate and coordinate to perform function and maintain an “optimal” state for information processing and computation. While electrophysiological recordings in behaving animals have provided considerable information about what the firing patterns of single neurons encode in isolation, it remains largely a mystery how populations of neurons interact to perform brain functions. How do emergent collective behaviors, such as neuronal oscillations, waves, or avalanches, support function? And what is the nature of the brain’s internal state and how that affects function? With the aim of further strengthening the connection between neuroscience and statistical physics, this satellite workshop is intended to gather neuroscientists, physicists, and mathematicians who work on collective dynamics, cognition and behavior, and provide an interdisciplinary stage to discuss recent theoretical/computational and experimental advances on the role of neural ensembles for brain function. The workshop will be carefully planned to foster discussion and interaction between attendees, and to encourage the establishment of professional relationships. Particular emphasis will be given to participation of young PI’s and scholars and to the diversity in the pool of participants, with a good balance between physicists, mathematicians, theoretical and experimental neuroscientists. *Topics that will be covered in this workshop include (but are not limited to):* - Dynamics of neuronal ensembles: theory and models - Encoding and decoding of neural ensembles - Learning and memory - Control theory and behavior - Statistical inference - Modeling of brain dynamics in health and disease - Criticality in neural systems *Confirmed invited speakers:* - Stefano Fusi (Columbia University) - Gašper Tkačik (IST Austria) - Dietmar Plenz (NIH) - Gianluigi Mongillo (Institut de la Vision) - Raffaella Burioni (University of Parma) - Henrik J. Jensen (Imperial College) - Francesca Mastrogiuseppe (Champalimaud Foundation) - Gaia Tavoni (Washington University in St Louis) - Luca Mazzucato (University of Oregon) - Carlotta Martelli (University Mainz) - Athena Akrami (University College London) - Federico Stella (Donders Institute) - Johannes Felsenberg (FMI Basel) - Ana Paula Millán Vidal (University of Granada) - Michele Allegra (University of Padova) For further information please check the workshop website https://liphlab.github.io/NeuroStatPhys_Satellite/ We hope to see you in Venice! The organizing committee, Fabrizio Lombardi, Lucilla de Arcangelis, Serena Di Santo, Samir Suweis, Ulisse Ferrari, Achille Giacometti, Guido Caldarelli, Elisa Tentori

Feb. 28, 2025

Re: Postdoctoral Researcher in Computational Neuroscience

by Fleur Zeldenrust

Dear Comp-neuro subscribers, My apologies, the link above does not appear to work, please use https://www.ru.nl/en/working-at/job-opportunities/postdoctoral-researcher-i… Best regards, Fleur Zeldenrust On Wed, Feb 26, 2025 at 5:14 PM Fleur Zeldenrust < f.zeldenrust(a)neurophysiology.nl> wrote: > *My lab is looking for a computational neuroscience postdoctoral > researcher:* > > http://ru.nl/en/working-at/job-opportunities/postdoctoral-researcher-in-com… > > > For the Vidi project ‘Top-down neuromodulation and bottom-up network > computation,’ we seek a postdoc to study neuromodulators in efficient > spike-coding networks. Using our lab’s data on dopamine, acetylcholine, and > serotonin from the mouse barrel cortex, you’ll derive models connecting > single cells, networks, and behavior. > > The aim of this project is to explain the effects of neuromodulation on > task performance in biologically realistic spiking recurrent neural > networks (SRNNs). You will use the efficient spike coding framework > <https://journals.plos.org/ploscompbiol/article?id=10.1371/journal.pcbi.1003…>, > in which a network is not trained by a learning paradigm but deduced using > mathematically rigorous rules that enforce efficient coding > <https://journals.plos.org/ploscompbiol/article?id=10.1371/journal.pcbi.1008…>(i.e. > maximally informative spikes). You will study how the network’s structural > properties such as neural heterogeneity influence decoding performance and > efficiency. You will incorporate realistic network properties of the > (barrel) cortex based on our lab’s measurements > <https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12021-022-09576-5> and > incorporate the cellular effects of dopamine, acetylcholine and serotonin > <https://eur01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https://doi.org/10.1101…>we > have measured > <https://academic.oup.com/gigascience/article/7/12/giy147/5232232> over > the past years into the network, to investigate their effects on > representations, network activity measures such as dimensionality, and > decoding performance. You will build on the single cell data, network > models and analysis methods available in our group, and your results will > be incorporated into our group’s further research to develop and validate > efficient coding models of (somatosensory) perception. Therefore, we are > looking for a team player who is willing to learn from the other group > members and to share their knowledge with them. > > *Profile* > > - You hold a PhD in computational neuroscience, mathematics, physics, > computer science, AI or a similar computational field. > - You have experience working with coding models in computational > neuroscience and can perform network simulations, analytical derivations > and advanced data analysis. > - You are a highly motivated, independent, critical and creative > researcher who wants to bridge the gap between real data and abstract > theoretical models. > - You are a team player, ready to collaborate in a diverse, > multidisciplinary research group. > - You have an excellent command of spoken and written English. > - You have coding experience (in Python and/or Matlab) > > You will be appointed at the Biophysics of Neural Computation group > <https://www.ru.nl/en/departments/donders-centre-for-neuroscience/biophysics…> > , Donders Center for Neuroscience > <https://www.ru.nl/en/donders-centre-for-neuroscience>, Donders Institute > for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour > <https://www.ru.nl/en/donders-institute>. This vibrant and > multidisciplinary institute studies the organisation and function of neural > circuits across scales and techniques, from genes and proteins to behaviour > and from in vitro and in vivo experiments to computational modelling. It is > an open and international environment, where young scientists from > different backgrounds share a fascination for the interaction between brain > structure and function. There is a lively community > <https://www.ru.nl/en/donders-institute/talent-development/postdoc-support> of > postdoctoral researchers who are provided with specialised support. > > *We offer* > > - We will give you a temporary employment contract of 26 months. > - Your salary within salary scale 10 > <https://eur01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https://www.ru.nl/en/st…>depends > on your previous education and number of years of (relevant) work > experience. The amounts in the scale are based on a 38-hour working week. > - You will receive an 8% holiday allowance and an 8,3% end-of-year > bonus. > - You will receive extra days off. With full-time employment, you can > choose between 30 or 41 days > <https://www.ru.nl/en/staff/services/employment-conditions/working-time/flex…> > of annual leave instead of the statutory 20. > > Fleur Zeldenrust > > -- > Fleur Zeldenrust > Associate Professor > Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour > Donders Centre for Neuroscience > Faculty of Science, Radboud University > Heyendaalseweg 135, room HG 00.111 > 6525 AJ Nijmegen, the Netherlands > tel +31 24 36 53195 > fleurzeldenrust.nl > > *Due to my own family/work balance, you may receive emails from me outside > of normal working hours. I do not expect a response from you outside of > your own working pattern, nor do I expect an immediate response when you > are working.* > > -- Fleur Zeldenrust Associate Professor Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour Donders Centre for Neuroscience Faculty of Science, Radboud University Heyendaalseweg 135, room HG 00.111 6525 AJ Nijmegen, the Netherlands tel +31 24 36 53195 fleurzeldenrust.nl *Due to my own family/work balance, you may receive emails from me outside of normal working hours. I do not expect a response from you outside of your own working pattern, nor do I expect an immediate response when you are working.*

Feb. 27, 2025

Launching Heidelberg Open Lab

by Mateusz Kostecki

Hello! I am very happy to announce that we are launching a German node of the Nencki Open Lab (www.nenckiopenlab.org) project. Our goal is to create a local community of neuroscientists, organize workshops on topics ranging from programming and data analysis, through electronics, 3D printing, Arduino to optics and microscopy, symposia,a and summer schools. We will be operating in Heidelberg, Mannheim and Frabkfurt. We organize a kick-off meeting on March 18th at COS, Heidelberg Uni - https://openlabhd.org/2025/02/19/heidelberg-open-lab-kick-off-meeting/. Scientists from all levels of academic career are welcome to join us! Best, Mateusz Kostecki -- --- Mateusz Kostecki PhD Student Knapska Laboratory Nencki Institute 02-093 Warsaw, Pasteura 3, Poland https://twitter.com/mtkostecki https://evolvingbehavior.blog/

Feb. 27, 2025

GEM 2025 - Abstract submission deadline 15.03.25

by Vinita Samarasinghe

*REMINDER*: Abstract submission deadline for *GEM 2025* is on *15.03.25*. Please have your submissions in by the deadline. https://www.conftool.net/gem202 <https://www.conftool.net/gem2023/>5/ <https://www.conftool.net/gem2023/>. The DFG-funded research consortium “FOR 2812 – Constructing scenarios of the past” is proud to announce a *call for abstracts* for its biennial conference “/Generative Episodic Memory: Interdisciplinary persepectives from neuroscience, psychology and philosophy/” *GEM 202**5.* It will be held *in person* at the Ruhr University Bochum, Germany from 2^nd to 4^th June, 2025. For more information please visit https://for2812.rub.de/gem2025. Episodic memories are widely regarded as memories of personally experienced events. Early concepts about episodic memory were based on the storage model, according to which experiential content is preserved in memory and later retrieved. However, overwhelming empirical evidence suggests that the content of episodic memory is – at least to a certain degree – constructed in the act of remembering. Even though very few contemporary researchers would oppose this view of episodic memory as a generative process, it has not become the standard paradigm of empirical memory research. This is particularly true for studies of the neural correlates of episodic memory. Further hindering progress are large conceptual differences regarding episodic memory across different fields, such as neuroscience, philosophy, and psychology. This interdisciplinary conference therefore aims to bring together researchers from all relevant fields to advance the state of the art in the research on generative episodic memory. *Keynote speakers: * Ali Boyle (LSE); Neil Burgess (UCL); Iris Engelhard (U. Utrecht); Johannes Mahr (York U.); Jeremy Manning (Dartmouth) *Funding for early career researchers is available *(visit our ECR page <https://for2812.rub.de/gem2025/early_career_researcher_programs> for more details). *Abstract* submission deadline: 15.03.2025 Submission guidelines: Abstracts must be submitted in English and be no longer than 500 words. Submitted work must be original and unpublished and submitted electronically at https://www.conftool.net/gem202 <https://www.conftool.net/gem2023/>5/ <https://www.conftool.net/gem2023/>. Types of submissions: * Talk * Symposium: Must comprise 3 talks and be interdisciplinary in nature, i.e., talks must cover at least two of the following disciplines: computational neuroscience, philosophy, psychology, neuroscience. * Poster /*For more information please visit https://for2812.rub.de or contact Vinita Samarasinghe at for2812(a)rub.de */ Follow us on bluesky @for2812.bsky.social/* */ <https://bsky.app/for2812.bsky.social> Kind regards, Vinita Vinita Samarasinghe M.Sc., M.A. Science Manager Arbeitsgruppe Computational Neuroscience <https://rub.de/cns> Institut für Neuroinformatik Ruhr-Universität Bochum, NB 3/73 Postfachnummer 110 Universitätstr. 150 44801 Bochum Tel: +49 (0)234 32 27996 Email: samarasinghe(a)ini.rub.de

Feb. 27, 2025

Conference Invitation GRS - inhibition in the CNS!

by Vissers, Nicole

Join Us for the 2025 GRC and GRS on Inhibition in the CNS! The 2025 Gordon Research Conference (GRC) and Gordon Research Seminar (GRS) on Inhibition in the Central Nervous System (CNS) this year is taking place July 5–6, 2025 (GRS) and July 6–11, 2025 (GRC). The GRC will explore inhibition's role in neural circuits related to behavior, focusing on interneuron subtypes, inhibitory synapse organization, sensory processing, memory, and computational approaches. It will also cover inhibition in the adult neurogenic niche, model organisms like mice and primates, and its role in neuropsychiatric disorders. The GRS, for early-career researchers, will focus on subcortical GABAergic neurons, glial and neuromodulatory inhibition, and computational analyses. It offers networking, mentorship, and presentation opportunities, promoting collaboration before the main GRC event. Both events aim to foster idea exchange and scientific collaboration. We look forward to seeing you in Maine for a week of science, collaboration, and community. Don't miss this chance to connect with global leaders in the field of inhibitory neuroscience! For more information, visit: GRS: https://www.grc.org/inhibition-in-the-cns-grs-conference/2025/ GRC: https://www.grc.org/inhibition-in-the-cns-conference/2025/ Or feel free to contact GRS Chair, Nicole Vissers: n.vissers(a)ucl.ac.uk

Feb. 27, 2025

Global Research & Entrepreneurship Summit on Open Problems for AI. Tokyo, Japan, 9-11th April 2025 at the Miraikan Museum of Emerging Science and Innovation.

by Ruairidh Battleday

Global Summit on Open Problems for AI. Miraikan Museum of Emerging Science and Innovation, Tokyo, Japan, 9-11th April 2025. What are the next set of challenges for AI algorithms? What are the open problems in regulation & application? We are most excited to announce the Algorithmic Innovation and Entrepreneurship Global Summit on Open Problems for AI <http://www.algopreneurship.ai>. Miraikan Museum of Emerging Science and Innovation, Tokyo, Japan, 9-11th April 2025. Join world-leading AI researchers, policy makers, and entrepreneurs in this global Summit over three days of keynote talks, panels, and breakout sessions. Day 1 - Algorithms We ask what the fundamental challenges for developing AI algorithms are, as well as promising avenues for overcoming them. We’ll be hearing from Dr Shane Gu (Google DeepMind), Dr Taro Toyoizumi (Riken CBS), Dr Kai Arulkumaran (Araya Inc.), Dr Emityaz Khan (Riken AIP), Professor Masanori Koyama (University of Tokyo), Dr James Whittington (Stanford & Oxford University & Zyphra), Dr Lucy Lai (Harvard University), Dr Yusuke Iwasawa (University of Tokyo) Panel on “Is this the end of Scale?” Panel on “How should we fund AI research?” Day 2 - Ethics We ask what the fundamental ethical challenges and opportunities are for AI. Keynotes: Professor Yuko Harayam (Tohoku University; GPAI), Professor Arisa Ema (University of Tokyo & RIKEN CAIP), Dr Colin Rowat (Rakuten, Cambridge), Dr Joe Ledsam (Google Health), Kenny Song (Citadel AI) Panel: Micro Ethics - What Can Individual Researchers Do for Ethical AI? Chair: Nicolay Hagen (NTNU) Panel: Meso Ethics - What Can Organizations Do for Ethical AI? Chair: Professor Skyler Wang (McGill) Panel: Macro Ethics - If AI is the answer, what is the question? Chair: Dr Collin Conwell (Johns Hopkins) Day 3 - Applications and entrepreneurship We ask what the fundamental challenges and opportunities are in applications for social good and entrepreneurship. Keynotes: Professor Yukie Nagai (University of Tokyo), Professor Dan V. Nicolau Jr (Kings College London), Dr Ruairidh McLennan Battleday (Harvard & MIT), Dr Aran Komatsuzaki (Eleuther AI), Dr Conglong Li (Google Deepmind), Takahiro Matsumoto (Cisco / Robust Intelligence), Dr Jungo Kasai (Kotoba Tech) This should be an exciting and productive event, and we expect an audience of 400 of the world’s best AI researchers and entrepreneurs at student, early-stage, and full career levels. Student tickets: $20 for all three days Scientist & Entrepreneur tickets: $20 per day Corporate tickets: $100 per day Reserve your place now! <http://www.algopreneurship.ai> Ruairidh <https://www.linkedin.com/in/ruairidh-battleday-648a2b65/>, <https://www.jcrwhittington.com/>Lucy <https://lucylai.com/>, James <https://www.jcrwhittington.com/>, and Dan <https://www.kcl.ac.uk/people/dan-nicolau> Thinking About Thinking <https://www.thinkingaboutthinking.org/>

Feb. 27, 2025

Postdoctoral Researcher in Computational Neuroscience

by Fleur Zeldenrust

*My lab is looking for a computational neuroscience postdoctoral researcher:* http://ru.nl/en/working-at/job-opportunities/postdoctoral-researcher-in-com… For the Vidi project ‘Top-down neuromodulation and bottom-up network computation,’ we seek a postdoc to study neuromodulators in efficient spike-coding networks. Using our lab’s data on dopamine, acetylcholine, and serotonin from the mouse barrel cortex, you’ll derive models connecting single cells, networks, and behavior. The aim of this project is to explain the effects of neuromodulation on task performance in biologically realistic spiking recurrent neural networks (SRNNs). You will use the efficient spike coding framework <https://journals.plos.org/ploscompbiol/article?id=10.1371/journal.pcbi.1003…>, in which a network is not trained by a learning paradigm but deduced using mathematically rigorous rules that enforce efficient coding <https://journals.plos.org/ploscompbiol/article?id=10.1371/journal.pcbi.1008…>(i.e. maximally informative spikes). You will study how the network’s structural properties such as neural heterogeneity influence decoding performance and efficiency. You will incorporate realistic network properties of the (barrel) cortex based on our lab’s measurements <https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12021-022-09576-5> and incorporate the cellular effects of dopamine, acetylcholine and serotonin <https://eur01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https://doi.org/10.1101…>we have measured <https://academic.oup.com/gigascience/article/7/12/giy147/5232232> over the past years into the network, to investigate their effects on representations, network activity measures such as dimensionality, and decoding performance. You will build on the single cell data, network models and analysis methods available in our group, and your results will be incorporated into our group’s further research to develop and validate efficient coding models of (somatosensory) perception. Therefore, we are looking for a team player who is willing to learn from the other group members and to share their knowledge with them. *Profile* - You hold a PhD in computational neuroscience, mathematics, physics, computer science, AI or a similar computational field. - You have experience working with coding models in computational neuroscience and can perform network simulations, analytical derivations and advanced data analysis. - You are a highly motivated, independent, critical and creative researcher who wants to bridge the gap between real data and abstract theoretical models. - You are a team player, ready to collaborate in a diverse, multidisciplinary research group. - You have an excellent command of spoken and written English. - You have coding experience (in Python and/or Matlab) You will be appointed at the Biophysics of Neural Computation group <https://www.ru.nl/en/departments/donders-centre-for-neuroscience/biophysics…> , Donders Center for Neuroscience <https://www.ru.nl/en/donders-centre-for-neuroscience>, Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour <https://www.ru.nl/en/donders-institute>. This vibrant and multidisciplinary institute studies the organisation and function of neural circuits across scales and techniques, from genes and proteins to behaviour and from in vitro and in vivo experiments to computational modelling. It is an open and international environment, where young scientists from different backgrounds share a fascination for the interaction between brain structure and function. There is a lively community <https://www.ru.nl/en/donders-institute/talent-development/postdoc-support> of postdoctoral researchers who are provided with specialised support. *We offer* - We will give you a temporary employment contract of 26 months. - Your salary within salary scale 10 <https://eur01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https://www.ru.nl/en/st…>depends on your previous education and number of years of (relevant) work experience. The amounts in the scale are based on a 38-hour working week. - You will receive an 8% holiday allowance and an 8,3% end-of-year bonus. - You will receive extra days off. With full-time employment, you can choose between 30 or 41 days <https://www.ru.nl/en/staff/services/employment-conditions/working-time/flex…> of annual leave instead of the statutory 20. Fleur Zeldenrust -- Fleur Zeldenrust Associate Professor Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour Donders Centre for Neuroscience Faculty of Science, Radboud University Heyendaalseweg 135, room HG 00.111 6525 AJ Nijmegen, the Netherlands tel +31 24 36 53195 fleurzeldenrust.nl *Due to my own family/work balance, you may receive emails from me outside of normal working hours. I do not expect a response from you outside of your own working pattern, nor do I expect an immediate response when you are working.*

Feb. 26, 2025

Deadline extended: Transatlantic Behavioural Neuroscience School, Argentina, Aug 11-22 2025

by Mateusz Kostecki

Hello! We are happy to announce that we have extended the deadline for application to Transatlantic Behavioral Neuroscience School till March 2nd! During our school you will learn how to deliver stimuli or modify the environment in which the animal is embedded with Arduino-based devices and Bonsai code; you will design and 3D-print cases and holders for your instruments. And then you will apply cutting-edge tools (like Deeplabcut or CEBRA) – to extract as much information as possible from your data. But that’s not everything. At TBNS you will listen to fascinating lectures and interact with speakers, who explored bold ideas and made their unique career paths. You will look at what behavior is through many lenses. Most importantly though, you will meet people with similar interests and goals. And you may become a part of our global Open Lab community, and help us to spread the knowledge further! More information and the application form can be found here - https://nenckiopenlab.org/tbns2025/. The deadline for application is Feb 25th, the fee is EUR 1500 but we have secured funding for fee waivers and travel grants if needed. With best wishes, TBNS Team -- --- Mateusz Kostecki PhD Student Knapska Laboratory Nencki Institute 02-093 Warsaw, Pasteura 3, Poland https://twitter.com/mtkostecki https://evolvingbehavior.blog/

Feb. 25, 2025

6th International Conference on Mathematics of Neuroscience and AI (Split, Croatia, 27-30 May 2025) - abstract submission extended to 16th March

by Ruairidh Battleday

We are extending abstract submissions for this year’s Conference on Mathematics of Neuroscience and AI to March 16th AOE: www.neuromonster.org In this high-profile conference we hear about new computational theories of the brain and mind, as well as data that challenges old theories. We then take findings and theory back into the creation of robust, generalizable, and scalable AI. We hear from leading researchers over four days, spanning biocomputation, neural theory, cognitive science, and machine learning & artificial intelligence (AI): Keynote Speakers Professor Wolfgang Maas (Graz), Professor Eve Marder (Brandeis), Professor Jay McClelland (Stanford), Professor Christine Constantinople (NYU), Dr Kim Stachenfeld (DeepMind), Professor Kanaka Rajan (Harvard), Dr Ida Momennejad (Microsoft Research), Professor Jacob Foerster (Oxford / Meta). Session Chairs Dr Valeria Fascianelli (Columbia; Biocomputation) Dr Francesca Mignacco (CUNY & Princeton; Biocomputation) Yasmine Ayman (Harvard; Neural theory) Dr James Whittington (Oxford & Stanford; Neural theory) Professor Bill Thompson (UC Berkeley; Cognitive science) Dr Maria Eckstein (DeepMind; Cognitive science) Mikey Lepori (Brown & DeepMind; Machine learning & AI) Professor Ilia Sucholutsky (NYU; Machine learning & AI) Invited Speakers Professor Alex Cayco-Gajic (ENS) Dr Jenelle Feather (Flatiron Institute) Dr Joao Barbosa (Institute for Neuromodulation) Tejas Ramdas (Harvard) Professor Vijay Namdoodiri (UCSF) Professor Annegret Falkner (Princeton) Dr Chen Sun (Mila) Dr Chris Hillar (New Theory AI) Professor Bonan Zhao (Edinburgh) Professor Lisa-Marie Vortmann (Groningen) Dr Felix Sosa (Harvard) Dr Lio Wong (MIT) Location The conference will be held at Croatia’s National Opera Theatre in Split, 10 minutes walk from the ancient harbour. Split is served by two nearby international airports (Split and Dubrovnik) with low-price carriers as well as several ferry lines from the wider Mediterranean. Submissions The submission format is an abstract of 250 words, and we invite submissions for each session via the following Google form: https://forms.gle/a9JDH5B4Z5otS69Y7 These will be accepted for poster, with the best 6 papers in each session category given an additional spotlight talk. Submission deadline is 16th March AOE. We have a very open acceptance policy, and are happy to hear about relevant work that has been submitted to other events. Early bird tickets A limited number of early-bird registrations have been posted on our website! Normal registration will follow after the submission deadline. Come and join the fun! Dr Ruairidh McLennan Battleday (Harvard & MIT) Dr James Whittington (Oxford & Stanford) Dr Ivana Kaljc (DeepMind) Professor Dan V. Nicolau Jr (Kings College London) The Organizing Committee. -- Dr Ruairidh McLennan Battleday BMBCh (Oxon) PhD President Thinking About Thinking (www.thinkingaboutthinking.org) Postdoctoral Research Fellow Center for Brain Science, Harvard University Center for Brains, Minds, and Machines, MIT

Feb. 25, 2025

Qualia Structure - Integrated Information Theory Summer School 2025

by Larissa Albantakis

*Deadline of application: Mar 14, 2025 * The QStr (Qualia Structure) - IIT (Integrated Information Theory) Summer School offers an exciting opportunity for students, post-doctoral fellows and junior faculty scholars from around the world to explore the intersection of qualitative aspects of consciousness (or qualia) and scientific objectivity. This event is scheduled to take place in Venice and Bertinoro, Italy from October 5 to 17, 2025. Here is the link to the overview homepage, from which one can apply for it. https://docs.google.com/document/d/1hFmabi5KJQRfocvwhXAehIkwFxrCp_Touxp9-Sn… <https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://docs.google.com/document/d/1hFmabi5KJQR…> Participating faculty Larissa Albantakis Melanie Boly Matteo Grasso Yuko Ishihara Christof Koch William Marshall Lucia Melloni Hedda Hassel Mørch Masafumi Oizumi Steve Philliips Hayato Saigo Giulio Tononi Naotsugu Tsuchiya Makiko Yamada

Feb. 24, 2025

Apply Now: FRCCS 2025 Awards for Early-Career Researchers in Complex Systems

by Hocine Cherifi

CSS France invites applications for the *Bertalanffy Doctoral Student Award* and the *Thom Young Researcher Award*, recognizing outstanding early-career researchers in *Complex Systems*. 🏆 *Bertalanffy Doctoral Student Award* (for Ph.D. candidates under 30) 🔗 Details & Application <https://iutdijon.u-bourgogne.fr/ccs-france/call-doctoral-student-award/> 🏆 *Thom Young Researcher Award* (for researchers ≤5 years post-Ph.D., under 35) 🔗 Details & Application <https://iutdijon.u-bourgogne.fr/ccs-france/call-young-resarcher-award/> 📅 *Deadline:* March 11, 2025 💰 *Prizes:* €500 (Doctoral) / €1,000 (Young Researcher) + FRCCS 2025 presentation opportunity 🚀 *Don’t miss this chance to showcase your research in Complex Systems at FRCCS 2025—apply now!* Best, HC Join us at COMPLEX NETWORKS 2025 <https://complexnetworks.org/> *-------------------------* Hocine CHERIFI University of Burgundy Franche-Comté Laboratoire* I*nterdisciplinaire *C*arnot de *B*ourgogne - ICB UMR 6303 CNRS Editor in Chief Applied Network Science <https://appliednetsci.springeropen.com/> Plos Complex Systems <https://plos.org/complex-systems-research-journal/#:~:text=PLOS%20Complex%2….> Editorial Board member PLOS One <https://journals.plos.org/plosone/>, IEEE ACCESS <https://ieeeaccess.ieee.org/?http%3A%2F%2Fieeeaccess_ieee_org%2F>, Scientific Reports <https://www.nature.com/srep/>, Journal of Imaging <https://www.mdpi.com/journal/jimaging>, Quality and Quantity <https://www.springer.com/journal/11135/>, Computational Social Networks <https://computationalsocialnetworks.springeropen.com/>, Complex Systems <https://www.complex-systems.com/>

Feb. 24, 2025

World wide VVTNS series (fifth season): Wednesday, February 26, 2025, at 11:00 am EST| Songting Li, Shanghai Jiao Tong University

by David Hansel

[image: VVTNS.png] https://www.wwtns.online <https://streaklinks.com/A9c7PbbpKY7PxB6PaAJWGD3-/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.wwtns.on…> - on twitter: wwtns@TheoreticalWide You are cordially invited to the lecture given by Songting Li Shanghai Jiao Tong University Timescale localization and signal propagation in the large-scale cortical network The lecture will be held on zoom on Wednesday, February 26, 2025, at *11:00 am EST * To receive the link: https://www.wwtns.online/register-page *Abstract: * In the brain, while early sensory areas encode and process external inputs rapidly, higher-association areas are endowed with slow dynamics to benefit information accumulation over time. This property raises the question of why diverse timescales are well localized rather than being mixed up across the cortex, despite high connection density and an abundance of feedback loops that support reliable signal propagation. In this talk, we will address this question by analyzing a large-scale network model of the primate cortex, and we identify a novel dynamical regime termed "interference-free propagation". In this regime, the mean components of the synaptic currents to each downstream area are imbalanced to ensure signals to propagate reliably, while the temporally fluctuating components of the synaptic inputs governed by upstream areas' timescales are largely canceled out, leading to the localization of its own timescale in each downstream area. Our result provides new insights into the operational regime of the cortex, leading to the coexistence of hierarchical timescale localization and reliable signal propagation. *About VVTNS : Launched as the World Wide Theoretical Neuroscience Seminar (WWTNS) in November 2020 and renamed in homage to Carl van Vreeswijk in Memoriam (April 20, 2022), Speakers have the occasion to talk about theoretical aspects of their work which cannot be discussed in a setting where the majority of the audience consists of experimentalists. The seminars, **held on Wednesdays at 11 am ET,** are 45-50 min long followed by a discussion. The talks are recorded with authorization of the speaker and are available to everybody on our YouTube channel.*

Feb. 23, 2025

Two postdoctoral research positions in Active Inference at the University of Cape Town

by Jonathan Shock

Postdoctoral Positions in Active InferenceUniversity of Cape Town, South Africa The Shocklab research group in conjunction with the Neuropsychology research group at the University of Cape Town (UCT) is seeking two postdoctoral researchers to join our dynamic team working on Active Inference in relation to affective consciousness. This position offers an exciting opportunity to work at the intersection of computational, cognitive and affective neuroscience, and artificial intelligence, in collaboration with leading researchers in the field including Dr Ryan Smith at the Laureate Institute and lr Charel Van Hoof MBA at TU Delft. About the Position - Duration: One year with possibility of one- or two-year extension - Start Date: Immediate availability - Salary: R540,000 per year, tax free (equivalent to around R740,000 per annum, taxed) - Location: University of Cape Town, South Africa Research Environment Our research group combines expertise in consciousness studies, Active Inference, and Reinforcement Learning, with leads: - Associate Professor Jonathan Shock, Director of the UCT AI Initiative, head of Shocklab and Associate Professor in the Department of Mathematics and Applied Mathematics. - Professor Mark Solms, Professor in Neuropsychology, author of "The Hidden Spring" and collaborator with Karl Friston on consciousness and Active Inference. The group currently includes two Masters students, one PhD student and one postdoc, all working on Active Inference in foraging environments in the presence of competing needs. The Shocklab group also has a large number of graduate students working on Reinforcement Learning. Graduate student supervision would be an important part of the postdoctoral role. The work is jointly located in the UCT Neuroscience Institute and the Department of Mathematics and Applied Mathematics. Project Description The research focuses on studying single and multi-agent Active Inference agents in dynamic environments in which agents must learn to satisfy competing ‘survival’ needs. This programme has a sophisticated inference/sophisticated learning/tree-search focus. The overarching aim is to gain insights into affective consciousness, attention, and need prioritization. This work is supported by donor funding from Conscium, UK. Computing Resources - Access to UCT High Performance Computing cluster - Dedicated Shocklab cluster featuring two RTX 4090 GPUs Required Qualifications - PhD, preferably obtained within the last five years - Strong research background in Active Inference - Programming expertise, particularly in JAX (preferred) Benefits - Competitive salary (R540,000 tax free per year) - Funding for at least one international conference per year, and potential extended research visit at the Laureate Institiute - Opportunity to work in one of the world's most beautiful cities About UCT and Cape Town The University of Cape Town is Africa's leading university, situated at the foot of Table Mountain. The institution has a rich research history and is currently accelerating its research initiatives in AI. Cape Town offers an exceptional quality of life with incredible natural beauty and a flourishing scientific environment. A living costs calculator can be found here: https://www.numbeo.com/cost-of-living/in/Cape-Town Application Process Please submit the following materials: - Cover letter and CV - Research history - Future research plans on Active Inference - Three letters of reference Application Deadline: March 15th, 2025 Interviews: late March/early April 2025 Contact: jonathan.shock(a)uct.ac.za with Subject: "ActInf postdoc"

Feb. 23, 2025

Postdoctoral Research Fellow: EEG Brain-computer Interface, University of Birmingham

by Howard Bowman

Postdoctoral Research Fellow: EEG Brain-computer Interface, a Brainwave-based Visual Acuity Test Centre for Human Brain Health, School of Psychology and School of Computer Science, University of Birmingham Closes: 6th March 2025 JOB-DESCRIPTION: The Fringe-P3 method (Bowman et al, 2013; Alsufyani et al, 2019) developed out of a line of theoretical work focussed on temporal attention and perception on the fringe of awareness (Bowman & Wyble, 2007; Craston et al, 2009; Avilés et al, 2020). The method provides a means to present a large number of visual stimuli very rapidly to a participant's brain and then determine with EEG, which of those stimuli the participant finds salient. The method has been proposed as a deception detector, specifically, a (countermeasures-resistant) concealed-knowledge test (Bowman et al, 2013, 2014; Alsufyani et al, 2019; Harris et al, 2021; see https://sms.cam.ac.uk/media/2077487/) Previous projects with the company Visionmetric (https://visionmetric.com/) used the Fringe-P3 method to develop a system for extracting the memory of a face. This is done by generating a facial morph that is a weighted average of the faces presented in rapid serial visual presentation, with weight determined by the strength of the P3 that face generated. The Research Fellow being advertised will be employed on a recently awarded MRC Impact Acceleration account at the University of Birmingham, with two companies: Visionmetric and Advanced Ophthalmic Systems (https://aos-hub.com/) This will take the Fringe-P3 method and develop it as an objective visual-acuity test, called the Acuity-P3. Many groups, such as young children, those with learning difficulties and dementia patients find it hard to follow the instructions required to complete a standard visual-acuity test (such as a Snellen chart). As a result, clinical decisions, such as whether to perform cataract surgery, often have to be made without a reliable assessment of vision. We will develop a system by which a brain response (the P3) can be used as an objective measure that a letter has been read. This will provide an objective visual-acuity test, not dependent upon a subjective response. We will also improve the efficiency with which P3s are detected with machine learning and will explore alternative detection modalities, such as pupil dilation. At the University of Birmingham, the work will be undertaken within the School of Psychology and Centre for Human Brain Health, with involvement from the School of Computer Science (where the PI, Bowman, also has an appointment). PERSON SPECIFICATION: Batchelors (and potentially also Masters) degree, as well as a PhD or equivalent qualification in Computer Science, STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths), Psychology, Neuroscience, or related subjects. Candidates with equivalent industrial experience would also be within scope. Strong programming skills, with experience of or the capacity to learn how to program in Python and C++. Experience of neuroimaging, including data collection, or the capacity to learn such methods. Fluency or capacity to become fluent in relevant models, techniques and methods, e.g. Fieldtrip, Statistical Parametric Mapping, EEG-lab, and ability to contribute to developing new methods. Informal enquiries can be made to Professor Howard Bowman and H.Bowman(a)bham.ac.uk. Full application details can be found here: https://edzz.fa.em3.oraclecloud.com/hcmUI/CandidateExperience/en/sites/CX_6… Alsufyani, A., Hajilou, O., Zoumpoulaki, A., Filetti, M., Alsufyani, H., Solomon, C. J., ... & Bowman, H. (2019). Breakthrough percepts of famous faces. Psychophysiology, 56(1). Avilés, A., Bowman, H., & Wyble, B. (2020). On the limits of evidence accumulation of the preconscious percept. Cognition, 195, 104080. Bowman, H., Filetti, M., Janssen, D., Su, L., Alsufyani, A., & Wyble, B. (2013). Subliminal salience search illustrated: EEG identity and deception detection on the fringe of awareness. PLoS One, 8(1). Bowman, H., Filetti, M., Alsufyani, A., Janssen, D., & Su, L. (2014). Countering countermeasures: Detecting identity lies by detecting conscious breakthrough. PloS one, 9(3), e90595. Bowman, H., & Wyble, B. (2007). The simultaneous type, serial token model of temporal attention and working memory. Psychological review, 114(1), 38. Craston, P., Wyble, B., Chennu, S. & Bowman, H. "The attentional blink reveals serial working memory encoding: Evidence from virtual & human event-related potentials." Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience, 21(3):550-566, March 2009. Harris, K., Miller, C., Jose, B., Beech, A., Woodhams, J., & Bowman, H. (2021). Breakthrough percepts of online identity: Detecting recognition of email addresses on the fringe of awareness. European Journal of Neuroscience, 53(3), 895-901. -------------------------------------------- Howard Bowman (PhD) Professor of Cognitive Neuroscience in Psychology and Computer Science at the University of Birmingham Honorary Professor of Imaging Neuroscience at Functional Imaging Lab, University College London email: H.Bowman(a)bham.ac.uk<mailto:H.Bowman@bham.ac.uk> WWW: https://www.birmingham.ac.uk/staff/profiles/psychology/bowman-howard ?Howard Bowman - ?Google Scholar<https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=pcKQix4AAAAJ&hl=en> School of Psychology, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham B15 2TT, UK Research Groups: Neuroimaging Methods and AI, Centre for Human Brain Health, University of Birmingham Perception, Language and Action, Computer Science, University of Birmingham PLORAS (Predicting Language Outcomes and Recovery After Stroke), Functional Imaging Lab, University College London

Feb. 22, 2025

Fwd: [seminar.wwtns] Summer School NeuroBridges2025 | In partnership with VVTNS series

by David Hansel

* NeuroBridges 2025* *A Mediterranean, Middle Eastern Summer School in Neuroscience* *Deadline to apply: April 15, 2025* NeuroBridges 2025 is a summer school which will take place between September 7 and September 18, 2025 in Le Centre de Conferences Internationales de Cluny, France (CCIC) <https://streaklinks.com/B3KEKFd397UPDx5n8gyfD1BJ/https%3A%2F%2Fcollegecluny…> . The school will provide an overview of theoretical and experimental frameworks used to study a variety of decision making processes. It will cover different model systems from rodents to humans and a plethora of decision making mechanisms. Another objective of NeuroBridges is to bring together Mediterranean and Middle Eastern scientists, in order to promote scientific cooperation between young researchers from these countries. The organizers of NeuroBridges are convinced that such scientific collaborations can lead to personal relations, which eventually may alleviate the political distress in the Middle East. The school is intended for graduate students and postdocs, primarily, but not only, from the Middle East and the Mediterranean region, either working in their home countries or abroad. Applicants should have some background in related fields in neuroscience or cognitive psychology. All costs of registration and accommodation will be covered by the organizers. A limited number of travel grants will also be available. *Faculty:* - Alaa Ahmed (U. Colorado) <https://www.colorado.edu/mechanical/alaa-ahmed> - Rava Azeredo da Silveira (IOB) <https://www.silveira-lab.com/rava-azeredo-da-silveira> - Ahmed El Hady (Max Planck Institute) <https://www.ab.mpg.de/person/111828> - David Hansel (CNRS) <https://incc-paris.fr/people/david-hansel/> - Mehdi Khamassi (CNRS) <https://pages.isir.upmc.fr/mkhamassi/> - Carole Levenes (CNRS) <https://incc-paris.fr/people/carole-levenes/> - Yonatan Loewenstein (Hebrew U.) <https://elsc.huji.ac.il/people-directory/faculty-members/yonatan-loewenstei…> - Zach Mainen (Champalimaud), TBC <https://mainenlab.org/> - Israel Nelken (Hebrew U.) <https://elsc.huji.ac.il/people-directory/faculty-members/israel-nelken/> - Drazen Prelec (MIT) <https://mitsloan.mit.edu/faculty/directory/drazen-prelec> - Reza Shadmehr (John Hopkins U.) <https://www.shadmehrlab.org/> NeuroBridges is co-organized by Ahmed El Hady (Max Planck Institute), David Hansel (CNRS, Paris), Yonatan Loewenstein (Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Israel), Carole Levenes (CNRS, Paris), Shir Shapira (Hebrew University of Jerusalem). NeuroBridges 2025 is supported by the Simons Foundation, the Cyril Taylor Charitable FoundationELSC, and is in partnership with VVTNS ( https://www.wwtns.online/) For more information and application, visit our website: https://neurobridges.net/

Feb. 20, 2025

Registration open for the NSF-Simons NITMB MathBio Convergence Conference 11-14 August 2025 Chicago IL

by William L. Kath

*The NSF-Simons NITMB MathBio Convergence Conference 11-14 August 2025 Chicago, IL Registration, Abstract Submission and Travel Award Applications now open!* More details at https://www.nitmb.org/nitmb-mathbio-convergence-conference We are calling for talks and posters discussing challenging problems in biology that are inspiring new mathematics, statistics, theory and computation, and mathematics that is generating important new insights into biology. If you are a mathematician working on biology or a biologist using mathematics, or just someone who would like to learn more about research at the interface between mathematics and biology, we encourage you to attend. * *Registration:* The number of attendees at the conference is finite. We are asking participants to pay a small fee ($100) to hold their place. * *Abstracts:* Register before 15 April if you would like to submit an abstract. * *Travel Awards:* We are proud to offer travel award to students and early career researchers. A brief application is required for consideration - deadline April 15. * Travel awards fund up to $650 for domestic travel and $800 for intercontinental travel, plus reimbursement for local hotel costs and for meals not provided by the conference (gsa.gov rates apply). Award recipients must lodge at The Drake Hotel (140 East Walton Place Chicago, IL 60611) to receive reimbursement. *Registration/submission steps:* 1. Register at https://www.nitmb.org/nitmb-mathbio-convergence-conference 2. Upon entering your information, you will be directed to a payment site. 3. After confirmation of payment (please note your confirmation number), you will be sent links with which to submit an abstract and/or apply for a travel award. If you have questions, please email nitmb(a)nitmb.org I_mportant Dates:_ Abstract Submission April 15, 2025 Travel Award Application April 15, 2025 Early Registration (to be considered for a presentation) ($100) February 15 - April 15, 2025 Notification of selection for an Oral Talk or a Poster Late May Regular Registration (no presentation) ($100) February 15 - July 14, 2025 Late Registration ($200) July 15 - August 4, 2025 Hotel Registration (at the Drake) Mid-April - July 15, 2025 *Confirmed plenary speakers:* *Alexander Auhlela, The European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL)* Dr. Aulehla uses dynamical systems to study how a vertebrate embryo forms the unique number of body segments that make up the vertebrae. *Carina Curto, Brown University* Dr. Curto combines mathematical tools from algebra, geometry, topology and dynamical systems to elucidate complex patterns of activity in networks of neurons. *Lorin Crawford, Microsoft Research and Brown University* Dr. Crawford uses machine learning and statistical tools to study the genotype-to-phenotype map for complex traits and diseases. *Michael Hawrylycz, The Allen Institute* Dr. Hawrylycz studies the cellular constitution and organization of the brain using single-cell transcriptomics and cutting-edge computational and statistical tools. *Anna-Liisa Laine, University of Helsinki* Dr. Laine studies complex problems in ecology across a spectrum of length and time scales. *Reidun Twarock, University of York* Dr. Twarock uses mathematics to study the symmetries of animal viruses and how they self-assemble inside host cells.

Feb. 19, 2025

First Meeting of the Society for Philosophy and Neuroscience

by James Bower

I thought some on this list might be interested in knowing about the first annual meeting for the newly formed Society for Philosophy and Neuroscience, to be held May 1-3, 2025 at Washington University in St. Lewis, Missouri, USA. https://www.philandneuro.com/?utm_campaign=e5e3edd6-f129-4005-9ca3-804ea034… HOME | SPAN philandneuro.com Just FYI, I will be part of a symposium considering: "What can we learn about current neuroscience practice from its history." I was considering giving a talk on what you can and can’t learn about the brain using AI, but decided instead to discuss: Correlation as a substitute for causality: how FMRI has reinforced correlation-based story telling in neuroscience and in the process the cerebellum has replaced 42 as the answer to everything. According to Goggle’s AI overview, the function of the cerebellum includes motor coordination, balance and posture, motor learning, attention, memory and emotional regulation. The AI bott missed: sleep, stress, thirst, hyperactivity, psychosis, schizophrenia, autism, epilepsy, urinary tract function, mutism, language acquisition, and much more. In 1996, I published an FMRI study in Science that is generally regarded as providing the first evidence that the 150 year assumption that the cerebellum was only a motor control device was incorrect. In fact, that study was designed to test whether the cerebellum was involved in motor control at all, based on predictions made by realistic computational models built from experimental evidence (i.e. non-Ptolemaic models). So what has happened since? This talk will consider how fMRI, employed as the ultimate correlation seeking technique, has distorted not only our understanding of the overall function of the cerebellum, but has also, in effect, undermined and distorted basic neuroscientific study of this remarkable structure. As such, epistemologically, the cerebellum may represent the ultimate example of what is wrong with neuroscience as well as how it can be fixed. Best to all in troubling times, Jim Dr. James M. Bower Ph.D. 541-499-7502 Simulating a 17th century landed gentry scientist. Also: Affiliate Professor of Biology Southern Oregon University Visiting Professor of Computational Neuroscience Biocomputation Research Group School of Physics, Engineering and Computer Science University of Hertfordshire, UK Linked in <https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-m-bower-130163/> Wikipedia <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_M._Bower>

Feb. 19, 2025

IRMA: Machine learning-based harmonization of 18F-FDG PET brain scans in multi-center studies

by Michael Biehl

Our paper "IRMA: Machine learning-based harmonization of 18F-FDG PET brain scans in multi-center studies" by Sofie Lövdal et al. has been published in the European Journal of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging and is available online (open access): https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00259-025-07114-4 In this work we apply interpretable machine learning systems for the analysis of 18-FDG PET brain scans from different medical centers. We show that the center origin of healthy control brain images acquired with different scanners/protocols can be identified with high confidence. Consequently, machine learning models trained with data from different scanners may be heavily impacted by this bias when applied to a clinically relevant problem, e.g. the differential diagnosis of neurodegenerative disorders. We propose IRMA (Iterated Relevance Matrix Analysis) as a recursive method to learn and disregard bias in PET feature vectors. Related code is freely available at https://github.com/SofieLovdal/IRMA-harmonization --------------------------------------------------- Prof. Dr. Michael Biehl Bernoulli Institute for Mathematics, Computer Science & Artificial Intelligence P.O. Box 407, 9700 AK Groningen, NL https://www.cs.rug.nl/~biehl m.biehl(a)rug.nl

Feb. 19, 2025

[Meeting] CRNS Talk Series - Live Talk by Dr. Yumi Iwashita - NASA JPL, USA

by Amir Aly

Dear All * *Apologies for cross-posting** The* Center for Robotics and Neural Systems* (CRNS) and *UK-Ireland IEEE RAS Chapter* are pleased to announce the talk of *Dr. Yumi Iwashita* from *NASA JPL, USA* on Wednesday, *February 26th *from *3:30 PM* to *5:00 PM* (*London time*) over *Zoom*. *Thank you for forwarding the invitation to any of your colleagues who might be interested*. >> *Events*: The CRNS talk series will cover a wide range of topics including Social and Cognitive Robotics, Computational Neuroscience, Developmental Psychology, Computational Linguistics, Cognitive Vision, AI and Machine Learning, and healthcare. More details are available here: https://www.plymouth.ac.uk/research/robotics-neural-systems/whats-on <https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.plymo…> >> *Link for the next event (**No Registration is Required**)*: Join Zoom Meeting *https://plymouth.zoom.us/j/95753314935?pwd=B9cuV9Dj6MWkhgrWEZrGsVz9brL21Q.1&from=addon <https://plymouth.zoom.us/j/95753314935?pwd=B9cuV9Dj6MWkhgrWEZrGsVz9brL21Q.1…>* >> *Title of the talk: **Exploring Moons: Preparing for Future Missions to Europa and the Moon* *Abstract*: Each planet has one or more moons, many of which hold immense potential for unlocking fundamental questions about the origins of life. Among the numerous moons in our solar system, Jupiter’s Europa, Earth’s Moon, and Saturn’s Enceladus are of particular scientific interest. NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) has undertaken several projects focused on these celestial bodies. In this talk, I will introduce two key projects related to Europa and the Moon. The first project, the Europa Lander Mission Concept, faces significant challenges, including a highly limited operational lifetime, constrained energy supply, intermittent communication with prolonged blackouts, and hazardous environmental conditions. Moreover, its extreme distance from Earth prevents reliance on real-time human control. To address these constraints, we developed an autonomous software prototype to test and validate planning and execution strategies for science-driven missions with minimal human intervention. Additionally, we demonstrated autonomous sampling techniques at Matanuska Glacier, Alaska. The second project, LuNaMaps, focuses on autonomous lunar landing. Successful planetary landings require precise localization with respect to the targeted site. However, landing on the Moon presents unique challenges, including insufficient global high-resolution data, the need to validate existing datasets, and extreme illumination conditions—especially at the poles. To address these issues, we have developed methodologies for generating high-quality Digital Elevation Maps (DEMs) and tools to evaluate their accuracy and reliability, supporting future lunar exploration missions. >> If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to contact me, Regards -------------------------------------------- *Dr. Amir Aly*, PhD, FHEA, SIEEE Lecturer in Artificial Intelligence and Robotics Programme Manager of Artificial Intelligence UK and Ireland IEEE RAS Chapter Vice Chair Director of the Centre for Robotics and Neural Systems (CRNS) School of Engineering, Computing, and Mathematics Room A307 Portland Square, Drake Circus, PL4 8AA University of Plymouth, UK

Feb. 18, 2025

Call for Local Organizers of the Annual Computational Neuroscience meeting CNS*2028

by Rubchinsky, Leonid L

Dear Colleagues, OCNS requests proposals from candidate local organizers to organize the 37th Annual Computational Neuroscience meeting CNS*2028, preferably in a non-European location. Groups or individuals interested in organizing the 2028 meeting should submit a proposal following the online instructions and using the templates at https://www.cnsorg.org/cns-2028-local-organizer. Proposals should be submitted by email to the OCNS President at president(a)cnsorg.org. We look forward to getting your proposals by July 1, 2025. An early email to the OCNS President declaring the intent to submit a proposal would be appreciated but is not required. With kind regards, Leonid Rubchinsky OCNS Vice President, on behalf of the OCNS Board of Directors *********************** Leonid Rubchinsky, PhD Professor Department of Mathematical Sciences, Indiana University Indianapolis Stark Neurosciences Research Institute, Indiana University School of Medicine 402 N. Blackford St Indianapolis, IN 46202-3216 lrubchin(a)iu.edu math.indianapolis.iu.edu/~lrubchin/ ***********************

Feb. 18, 2025

[Newsletter RTAIM] 16th RTAIM Seminar + 5th Inter. Conf. Phil. Mind (15-21 May 2025)

by steven gouveia

Dear All, We are happy to announce the Call for Abstracts for the 5th International Conference Philosophy of Mind: Natural and Artificial Intelligence, which will happen between the 15-21 May 2025 at the Faculty of Humanities of the University of Porto. The conference will be divided into two formats: 15-16 May fully online, and 19, 20 and 21 May 2025 fully in-person in Porto. Keynotes speakers are: Michael Spezio (Scripps College, USA), Anna Strasser (LMU-Munich), Gabriel Mograbi (Federal Uni. Rio Janeiro), Sara Lumbreras (Uni. Pontificia Comillas, Madrid) and Sofia Miguens (University of Porto). The best submitted talk will receive the Philosophy of Mind Award 2025 (waived fee). More information can be found here: https://ifilosofia.up.pt/activities/5-international-conference-philosophy-m… [deadline: 15 March 2025]. Following the 15th rTAIM Online Seminar (by Silvia Dadà, Uni. Pisa, cf. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2FGyQaGbJw4) we are happy to announce the 16th rTAIM Online Seminar, with the participation of Caio Portella (Uni. São Paulo, Brazil) on the 19th February 2025, 15h00-16h30 Lisbon Time Zone, via Zoom with the title “Artificial Intelligence and Traditional Medicines: Bridging Ethics, Culture, and Innovation in Global Health". You can find the relevant Zoom information here: Link: https://videoconf-colibri.zoom.us/j/91602022360?pwd=l9Rn3i0NvdTt3pKU8dVe09W… ID: 916 0202 2360 Password: 797183 We are also happy to share new outputs of the RTAIM Project: 1. Gouveia, S.S. The Ethics of Artificial Intelligence in Medicine: Preliminary Remarks. glob. Philosophy 35, 4 (2025) (cf. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10516-024-09737-y) [full paper can be provided via email upon request]. 2. Sincerely yours, RTAIM Team

Feb. 18, 2025

Birmingham-Leiden Summer School in Computational Social Cognition 2025

by Lei Zhang

(sorry for cross-posting) We are delighted to welcome applications for the second edition of the Birmingham-Leiden Summer School in Computational Social Cognition (CSC) <https://www.compsoccog.com/>. The summer school is hosted at the University of Birmingham (UK), in collaboration with Leiden University (NL), and will take place from 2nd-5th September 2025. Apply by 18th April 2025 (see information below)! Attending the Birmingham-Leiden CSC Summer School will equip a diverse cohort of early career researchers (trainees through to junior faculty members) with the ability to understand, program, and interpret the output of a range of computational models of social cognition (e.g., reinforcement learning models, evidence accumulation models, Bayesian inference models) and their potential interaction with other modalities of measurements (e.g., fMRI, EEG, eye-tracking). Attendees will receive various types of training (keynote lectures, workshops, tutorials, etc) and work on a group project, both aimed at understanding modelling as well as the theoretical and practical inferences that can be drawn from computational models under social contexts. Keynote speakers: - Matthew Rushworth, University of Oxford (UK) - Diana Tamir, Princeton University, (USA) - David Amodio, University of Amsterdam, (NL) The full list of instructors is available at https://compsoccog.com/instructors-and-speakers. <https://compsoccog.com/instructors-and-speakers> For this year’s training program and organising committee, see https://www.compsoccog.com/about. To apply, please complete this form covering your motivation and experience <https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfcAccPZFTKLSfvKhwUwH3UQ-6FrpmiPbP…>, including a short CV. The deadline is 18th April 2025. Outcomes will be communicated in early May, with registration for successful applicants then open until mid-June. This year, the CSC Summer School received financial support from the William K. & Katherine W. Estes Fund in association with the Association of Psychological Science <https://www.psychologicalscience.org/members/awards-and-honors/estes-fund> We hope to see you this summer in Birmingham! Jo (2025 co-lead), Lei (2025 co-lead), & Anna, on behalf of the CSC 2025 organising committee --- *Dr. Lei Zhang (He/Him)* Associate Professor/Principal Investigator, Centre for Human Brain Health (CHBH) & Institute for Mental Health (IMH) Psychology, College of Life & Environmental Sciences University of Birmingham, B15 2TT, Birmingham, UK *e: l.zhang.13(a)bham.ac.uk <l.zhang.13(a)bham.ac.uk> * *w: lei-zhang.net <https://lei-zhang.net/>* *t: @lei_zhang_lz <https://twitter.com/lei_zhang_lz>*

Feb. 17, 2025

Multiple PhD positions in Cognitive Neuroscience at SISSA - application deadline 20 March 2025

by Eugenio Piasini

Up to 6 PhD positions in Cognitive Neuroscience are available at SISSA, Trieste, starting October 2025. SISSA is an elite postgraduate research institution for Maths, Physics and Neuroscience, located in Trieste, Italy. SISSA operates in English, and its faculty and student community is diverse and strongly international. The Cognitive Neuroscience group (https://phdcns.sissa.it/) hosts 6 research labs that study the neuronal bases of time and magnitude processing, neuronal foundations of perceptual experience and learning in various sensory modalities, motivation and intelligence, language, and neural computation. Our research is highly interdisciplinary; our approaches include behavioral, psychophysics, and neurophysiological experiments with humans and animals, as well as computational, statistical and mathematical models. Students from a broad range of backgrounds (physics, maths, medicine, psychology, biology) are encouraged to apply. The selection procedure is now open. The application deadline for the spring admission round is 20 March 2025 at 1pm CET. Please apply here<https://pica.cineca.it/sissa/phd-cns-01-2025/>, and see the admission procedure page<https://phdcns.sissa.it/admission-procedure> for more information. Please contact the PhD Coordinator Mathew Diamond (diamond(a)sissa.it) and/or your prospective supervisor for more information and informal inquiries.

Feb. 17, 2025