- Comp-neuro - lists.cnsorg.org

APPLY TO THE THOM YOUNG RESARCHER AWARD

by hocine Cherifi

*YOUNG RESARCHER AWARD* <https://iutdijon.u-bourgogne.fr/ccs-france/young-resarcher-award/> *@ **FRCCS 2024* <https://iutdijon.u-bourgogne.fr/ccs-france/> The Young Researcher Award is part of CSS FRANCE's <https://www.cssfrance.org/> global initiative to support early career researchers in their quest to advance the frontiers of science across a broad range of disciplines. It is in place to recognize early career contributions and leadership in research in Complex Systems related fields. It is awarded to young researchers up to *five years* after the Ph.D. completion (date of Ph.D. defense) and the deadline of the call for nomination. *Eligibility* - Applications for this award are welcomed by academia, business, and government scientists. - Eligible candidates should not be older than 35 years. - There should be no more than five years between the date of the Ph.D. defense and the deadline of the call for nomination. - Self-nominations are accepted and encouraged. - Any young researcher can be nominated in whatever discipline Complex Systems covers. - Candidates must commit to presenting their work at FRCCS if awarded. *Important dates* · Application deadline: *March 04, 2024* · Notification to applicants: *April 02, 2024* *Application Instruction* *For self-nomination* The application package must contain: - A CV of the candidate (maximum two pages) - Research achievement: a letter describing the context and relevance of the achievement, its scientific impact, and why it deserves an award (maximum two pages). - A long-term research project (maximum two pages) *For supporter nomination* - A CV of the candidate (maximum two pages) - Research achievement: a letter describing the context and relevance of the achievement, its scientific impact, and why it deserves an award (maximum two pages). - A statement from the candidate (maximum two pages) reflects their understanding of how the original scientific research moved science forward. *Application Process* Applications are made via a google form: Fill out the self-nomination form <https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSc7JjwOEPF0YYBRHWomS3o-fZ3YXu0a5QU…> or the Supporter nomination form <https://forms.gle/bkVFg9pUvt2f4K1p9> *Note that Google Forms requires you to be signed in to a Google account to upload files and submit your responses. * *Selection Process* FRCCS Award Committee will evaluate all qualified candidates and propose the winner to the Advisory Board of CSS FRANCE, which will make the final decision. *Award Procedure* A prize of 1000 euros is awarded to the winner. The award also covers the registration fee of FRCCS <https://iutdijon.u-bourgogne.fr/ccs-france/> 2024 to facilitate attendance at the conference. The awardee will be recognized and present his (her) work at FRCCS <https://iutdijon.u-bourgogne.fr/ccs-france/> 2024. For more information contact: hocine.cherifi(a)gmail.com

Dec. 5, 2023

PhD position at Universitat de les Illes Balears

by Catalina Vich Llompart

The Dynamical Systems group at Universitat de les Illes Balears (UIB) is seeking applications for a PhD student. This Collaborative Research in Computational Neuroscience (CRCNS) funded position will focus on decision making, linking computational models and mathematical analysis to human and rodent data. The successful candidate will be mentored, supervised and trained directly by C.Vich, but they will also work and interact with Prof. Timothy Verstynen (CMU, Psychology) and Prof. Jonathan Rubin (University of Pittsburgh, Mathematics) so they will have to occasionally visit the USA team. The project specifically focuses on how dynamics of cortico-basal ganglia-thalamic pathways map to cognitive models of adaptive decision-making, and how these circuits regulate information flow in the mammalian brain. This position will be renewed annually for up to 3 years. Preferred skills from the PhD student: We are looking for highly motivated and self-driven candidate with strong interest in computational neuroscience and significant computational expertise. To be accepted in the PhD program, a MSc degree is required, preferably in mathematical biology, computational biology, dynamical systems or related disciplines. Students who do not hold a MSc degree but hold an undergraduate degree of 300ECTS are also encouraged to apply. A high level of written and spoken English and good programming skills (preferably python) are prioritized. Environment The Universitat de les Illes Balears (https://www.uib.eu <https://www.uib.eu/>) is located in Mallorca, the highest island of the Balearic Islands, at the foot of the Tramuntana mountains, an area declared a World Heritage Site by the UNESCO, as well as being just a few kilometres from Mallorca’s finest beaches. It is also ranked among the top 5 Spanish universities in education and in research quality. The university is well connected with the main city, Palma, and other villages. In fact, it has a bus and underground service with good timetables and frequencies. The accepted student will be a member of the group of Dynamical Systems (SSDD, http://www.ssdd.uib.es <http://www.ssdd.uib.es/>) and the institute of Applied Computing and Community Code (IAC3, http://iac3.uib.es <http://iac3.uib.es/>), with ample opportunities to interact with other young researchers in the fields of physics and mathematics in a highly interactive, dynamic, and multi-cultural environment. To apply For details on how to apply, please contact Catalina Vich by email at catalina.vich(a)uib.es <mailto:catalina.vich@uib.es> showing your interest on applying for this position. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, religion, sexual orientation, nationality, disability, etc. Demographic and cultural diversity will be considered in the selection of the trainee.

Dec. 5, 2023

Apply to the Bertalanffy Doctoral Student Award

by hocine Cherifi

*DOCTORAL STUDENT AWARD* <https://iutdijon.u-bourgogne.fr/ccs-france/doctoral-student-award/> *@ **FRCCS 2024* <https://iutdijon.u-bourgogne.fr/ccs-france/> The Bertalanffy Doctoral Student Award is part of CSS FRANCE's <https://www.cssfrance.org/> global initiative to support early career researchers in their quest to advance the frontiers of science across a broad range of disciplines. It is in place to recognize early career contributions and leadership in research in Complex Systems related fields. It is awarded to young researchers enrolled in a Ph.D. program. This competition consists in presenting your research in simple terms in a five minutes video to a lay audience. Your presentation should be clear, concise, and convincing. *Eligibility* - Eligible candidates must: - Be under 30. - Be enrolled in a Ph.D. program in whatever discipline Complex Systems covers. - Commit to presenting their work at the French Regional Conference on Complex Systems <https://iutdijon.u-bourgogne.fr/ccs-france/> FRCCS <https://iutdijon.u-bourgogne.fr/ccs-france/> if awarded - Accept and authorize the use and distribution of videos and photos related to the competition, including on social networks - Have informed their thesis supervisor of their participation in the competition - Present a sufficiently advanced state of the doctoral research project *Important dates* · Application deadline: *March 04, 2024* · Notification to applicants: *April 02, 2024* *Application Instruction* The application package must contain the following: - A CV of the candidate (maximum two pages) - A summary (maximum two pages) presenting the research work, its context, main contribution, and scientific impact. - A 5 minutes video presentation. *Application Process* Applications are made via a google form on the online portal. <https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSe49vdpumpzjVJJ7_mWgC5zKSLS1AqelD_…> *Note that Google Forms requires you to be signed in to a Google account to upload files and submit your responses. * *Selection Process* FRCCS Award Committee will evaluate all qualified candidates and propose the winner to the Advisory Board of CSS FRANCE, which will make the final decision. *Award Procedure* A prize of 500 euros is awarded to the winner. The award also covers the registration fee of FRCCS <https://iutdijon.u-bourgogne.fr/ccs-france/> 2024 to facilitate attendance at the conference. The awardee will be recognized and present his (her) work at FRCCS <https://iutdijon.u-bourgogne.fr/ccs-france/> 2024. For more information contact: hocine.cherifi(a)gmail.com

Dec. 5, 2023

4 year fully-funded PhD studentship in ML and Parkinson’s disease at Nottingham

by Mark Humphries

A 4-year fully-funded PhD studentship with Prof Mark Humphries and Dr JeYoung Yung at the University Of Nottingham is available to start September 2024. “Optimising patient selection for Deep Brain Stimulation in Parkinson’s disease using multimodal machine learning” Parkinson’s disease has debilitating motor symptoms of tremor in the limbs, slowness of movement, and freezing, unable to move. A highly effective treatment is electrical stimulation deep in the motor regions of the midbrain. But surgery for this deep brain stimulation is only offered to around 2% of all patients, and about a quarter of those who receive it have poor outcomes. Optimising the selection of patients for deep brain stimulation will widen access to treatment, improve treatment outcomes, and prevent harm. The goal of this project is to test how fusing clinical data, neuroimaging, and video assessments could optimise the selection of patients. The project will be in collaboration with MachineMedicine (London), a MedTech company specialising in Parkinson’s disease, and the movement disorders clinical team at St George’s Hospital, London. In joining this collaboration, the PhD student will be trained in data-science and machine learning tools, including how to extract and analyse MRI and fMRI data, in fusing data across modalities, and in developing a machine-learning pipeline for predicting patient outcomes. These predictions will be tested against the 12-month follow-up data from the St George’s trial patients. The student’s further training will include a 3-month placement at MachineMedicine, and visits to St George’s clinic. Closing date:12 noon (GMT) Friday 12th January 2024. For full studentship details and how to apply see here: https://more.bham.ac.uk/mrc-aim/phd-opportunities/ Send all enquires to mark.humphries(a)nottingham.ac.uk<mailto:mark.humphries@nottingham.ac.uk> 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 contact the sender and delete the email and attachment. Any views or opinions expressed by the author of this email do not necessarily reflect the views of the University of Nottingham. Email communications with the University of Nottingham may be monitored where permitted by law.

Dec. 4, 2023

Announcing Okinawa/OIST Computational Neuroscience Course 2024 (OCNC 2024)

by Erik De Schutter

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

Dec. 4, 2023

Fully-funded PhD in mathematical neuroscience (Sheffield, UK)

by Hazem Toutounji

A fully-funded PhD in mathematical neuroscience is available with Dr Hazem Toutounji and Professor Eleni Vasilaki (University of Sheffield, UK). *Project title: *What can self-connected neurons do? A unifying theory of autaptic neural function in invertebrates and mammals The neuron is the fundamental building block in the nervous systems of all animal species, from C. elegans with its 302 neurons, to humans with their highly evolved cortex alone containing more than 10 billion neurons. The action potential, or spike, is the basic unit of neural signalling. Most neurons communicate through chemical synapses, which project from the axon of one neuron to the cell body or dendrites of another. An autapse is a synapse connecting the neuron to itself. In this project, we will use mathematical modelling to achieve two objectives: 1. Investigate the different roles of autapses in neural processing as observed experimentally. 2. Explore autapses as a potential route to chaos and its role in healthy and pathological neural function. The position is open to UK and overseas applicants. The ideal candidate will have a strong command of mathematical analysis and programming skills. Prior knowledge of dynamical systems theory is desirable. Application deadline: 5pm GMT 24 January 2024 For full details and how to apply see: https://www.findaphd.com/phds/project/what-can-self-connected-neurons-do-a-… *Please note: *Interested candidates are strongly encouraged to contact me ( h.toutounji(a)sheffield.ac.uk) to discuss your interest in and suitability for the project prior to submitting your application. -- *Dr. rer. nat. Hazem Toutounji (they / them)* *Lecturer in Computational Neuroscience and ECR Champion* *The Neural Dynamics and Computation Lab* Department of Psychology The Neuroscience Institute Insigneo Institute for in silico Medicine University of Sheffield ICOSS Building, 4th floor, desk 5 219 Portobello, Broomhall Sheffield S1 4DP, UK

Dec. 3, 2023

AREADNE 2024 Call for Abstracts

by John Pezaris

AREADNE 2024 Research in Encoding and Decoding of Neural Ensembles Eliopoulos Conference Center, Milos, Greece 25-29 June 2024 http://areadne.org info(a)areadne.org Dear Colleague, We are pleased to announce solicitation of abstracts for poster presentation at AREADNE 2024, 25-29 June 2024, our tenth meeting, to be held at the Eliopoulos Conference Center in Milos, Greece. Note that this is a change in location from previous meetings. Continuing with the same highly successful format, AREADNE 2024 will bring scientific leaders from around the world to present their theoretical and experimental work on the functioning of neuronal ensembles. The meeting will provide an informal and beautiful setting in which attendees can discuss their recent ideas and discoveries, with a relaxed pace that emphasizes interaction. Please see the Call for Abstracts for additional details, including links for templates, at http://areadne.org/call-for-abstracts Submissions of abstracts for poster presentations are due by 26 Jan 2024; notifications will be provided by late February 2024. We strongly encourage potential attendees to submit an abstract as presenters have registration priority. For information about the conference, please refer to the main web page http://areadne.org or send email to us at info(a)areadne.org . We hope to see you at AREADNE 2024! Best, - J. --- John S. Pezaris, Ph.D. AREADNE 2024 Co-Chair Harvard Medical School Massachusetts General Hospital 55 Fruit Street Boston, MA 02114, USA info(a)areadne.org

Dec. 1, 2023

MSc Internship - Evolving Reservoir Meta-RL - Inria, Bordeaux, France

by Xavier Hinaut

Please find below an offer for an intership from February/March to July/August 2024 in Mnemosyne team at Inria, Bordeaux, France # Title Title: Evolving Reservoirs for Meta Reinforcement Learning # Supervision Xavier Hinaut, Mnemosyne team, Inria Bordeaux Potential collaboration with Clément Moulin-Frier (Flowers Team) & Pierrick Legrand (Astral Team) # Duration: 6 months, spring/summer 2024. Level: Master 2 research internship # Keywords: meta reinforcement learning, reservoir computing, evolutionary computation, neuroevolution, simulation environments, scientific programming with Python. # Research team & internship location Mnémosyne Team: Inria Bordeaux Sud-Ouest, LABRI & Institut des Maladies Neurodégénératives (Centre Broca Aquitaine, Carreire campus) https://team.inria.fr/mnemosyne # Project How can a reinforcement learning (RL) agent autonomously learn a diversity of skills with minimal external supervision? Recent works have shown that a single goal-conditioned policy can be trained to solve multiple tasks in parallel (see e.g. Colas et al., 2021 for a recent review). Other works in Meta Reinforcement Learning (Meta-RL) have shown that artificial agents can “learn how to learn” (hence the term meta-learning) multiple skills without having access to goal-related information (see e.g. Weng, 2019 for an introduction). Meta-RL aims at equipping agents with the ability to generalize to tasks or environments that have not been encountered during training. Two nested processes of adaptation are traditionally considered: an outer adaptation loop optimizing the hyperparameters of an inner adaptation loop. The inner adaptation loop can be a standard RL algorithm operating on a given environment. The outer loop is tuning the hyperparameters of the inner loop such that it performs well on a wide distribution of environments. The end result of this nested training process is an algorithm that learns how to learn, i.e. learns how to adapt to tasks that have never been encountered during training. Works differ in the optimization technique and adaptation mechanism they consider in the two loops. The outer loop often optimizes higher-level structures such as the architecture of a neural network (Baker et al., 2017), the morphology (Gupta et al., 2021), a curiosity module providing intrinsic rewards (Alet et al., 2020) or plasticity rules (Najarro & Risi, 2021), employing either evolutionary or gradient-based optimization. In parallel, Reservoir Computing (RC, (Jaeger 2001+)) is particularly well suited for extracting information from data stream with complex temporal dynamics (e.g. weather forecast or language). It is a machine learning paradigm on sequential data where a recurrent neural network is only partially trained (e.g. only training a linear readout). One of the major interests of these recurrent neural networks is their reduced computational cost and the possibility to learn both in on-line and off-line fashion. They have been successfully applied on a wide variety of tasks, from prediction/generation of chaotic timeseries to discrimination of audio sequences, such as bird song recognition. They offer de facto a fast, simple yet efficient way to train RNNs. This "reservoir of computations" works thanks to random projections in large dimensions, and is thus similar to temporal Support Vector Machines (SVM). In this internship, we will explore how Reservoir Computing can be leveraged in the context of Meta-RL. In this context, we will consider evolving the architecture of a reservoir for performing well on a wide range of RL tasks (see Seoane, 2019 for theoretical arguments on this evolutionary perspective). For this aim, we will use the ReservoirPy Python library developed in the Mnemosyne team (Trouvain & Hinaut, 2022) that we will interface with evolutionary computation algorithms (e.g. Tang et al., 2022). The project will involve: ● Designing of a wide range of RL tasks in an existing simulation environment (ex MuJoCo) ● Learning how to learn multiple tasks without access to the goal information (i.e. meta-RL with a reservoir). ● Evolve reservoir architectures for meta-RL with evolutionary methods # How to apply Contact xavier.hinaut(a)inria.fr with a CV and letter of motivation. We also recommend sending documents or reports describing previous projects you have been working on (even if they are not directly related to the topic), as well as your grades and links to some of your code repositories. # Requirements We are looking for highly motivated MSc students (Master II). Programming skills and prior experience with Python and deep learning frameworks (Pytorch, Tensorflow) are expected. # Other internship offers https://github.com/neuronalX/internships/ # References Alet, F., Schneider, M. F., Lozano-Perez, T., & Kaelbling, L. P. (2020). Meta-learning curiosity algorithms. International Conference on Learning Representations (ICLR 2020). https://openreview.net/forum?id=BygdyxHFDS Baker, B., Gupta, O., Naik, N., & Raskar, R. (2017). Designing neural network architectures using reinforcement learning. ArXiv:1611.02167 [Cs]. http://arxiv.org/abs/1611.02167 Botvinick, M., Ritter, S., Wang, J. X., Kurth-Nelson, Z., Blundell, C., & Hassabis, D. (2019). Reinforcement Learning, Fast and Slow. Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 23(5), 408–422. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tics.2019.02.006 Colas, C., Karch, T., Sigaud, O., & Oudeyer, P.-Y. (2021). Intrinsically Motivated Goal-Conditioned Reinforcement Learning: A Short Survey. ArXiv:2012.09830 [Cs]. http://arxiv.org/abs/2012.09830 Gupta, A., Savarese, S., Ganguli, S., & Fei-Fei, L. (2021). Embodied intelligence via learning and evolution. Nature Communications, 12(1), 5721. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-021-25874-z Jaeger, H. (2007). Echo state network. Scholarpedia, 2(9), 2330. https://doi.org/10.4249/scholarpedia.2330 Najarro, E., & Risi, S. (2021). Meta-Learning through Hebbian Plasticity in Random Networks. ArXiv:2007.02686 [Cs]. http://arxiv.org/abs/2007.02686 Sakemi, Y., Morino, K., Leleu, T., & Aihara, K. (2020). Model-size reduction for reservoir computing by concatenating internal states through time. Scientific Reports, 10(1), Article 1. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-020-78725-0 Seoane, L. F. (2019). Evolutionary aspects of reservoir computing. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 374(1774), 20180377. https://doi.org/10.1098/rstb.2018.0377 Tang, Y., Tian, Y., & Ha, D. (2022). EvoJAX: Hardware-Accelerated Neuroevolution. Proceedings of the Genetic and Evolutionary Computation Conference Companion, 308–311. https://doi.org/10.1145/3520304.3528770 Trouvain, N., & Hinaut, X. (2022). reservoirpy: A Simple and Flexible Reservoir Computing Tool in Python. https://hal.inria.fr/hal-03699931 https://github.com/reservoirpy/reservoirpy Weng, L. (2019, June 23). Meta Reinforcement Learning. https://lilianweng.github.io/posts/2019-06-23-meta-rl/ Xavier Hinaut Inria Research Scientist www.xavierhinaut.com -- +33 5 33 51 48 01 Mnemosyne team, Inria, Bordeaux, France -- https://team.inria.fr/mnemosyne & LaBRI, Bordeaux University -- https://www4.labri.fr/en/formal-methods-and-models & IMN (Neurodegeneratives Diseases Institute) -- http://www.imn-bordeaux.org/en --- Our Reservoir Computing library: https://github.com/reservoirpy/reservoirpy

Dec. 1, 2023

Postdoc Position in Computational/Theoretical Neuroscience (Western University)

by Lyle Muller

The lab of Lyle Muller (http://mullerlab.ca) at Western University (London, Ontario) has a postdoctoral position available in computational and theoretical neuroscience. This position will involve collaboration between our laboratory and researchers with expertise in advanced methods of brain imaging (Mark Schnitzer, Stanford), neuroengineering (Duygu Kuzum, UCSD), theoretical neuroscience (Todd Coleman, Stanford), and neurophysiology of visual perception (John Reynolds, Salk Institute for Biological Studies). In collaboration with this multi-disciplinary team, this researcher will apply new signal processing techniques for multisite spatiotemporal data to understand cortical dynamics during visual perception. This project will also involve development of spiking network models to understand the mechanisms underlying observed activity patterns. The project may include intermittent travel between labs to present results and facilitate collaborative work. This research will involve in-depth analyses of neural recordings and computational modeling. Prior experience with scientific computing languages (MATLAB, Julia, or Python) and signal processing is preferred. Western University offers an excellent research environment and support. Candidates can write to lmuller2(a)uwo.ca<mailto:lmuller2@uwo.ca> with a CV. Selected applicants will be interviewed on a rolling basis starting immediately. Both the involved labs and the University are deeply committed to fostering diversity and scientific outreach. Applications from underrepresented groups are strongly encouraged, and any interested applicants are welcomed to write the PI directly with questions about the research environment. -- Lyle Muller http://mullerlab.ca

Dec. 1, 2023

Postdoc Fellow Position in EEG at UCL

by Fabrizi, Lorenzo

🔬🧠👶 Exciting opportunity! Postdoc research fellow wanted to join a new collaborative research project at UCL's Medawar Pain and Somatosensory Labs, UCLH and Birkbeck BabyLab/ToddlerLab<https://cbcd.bbk.ac.uk/toddlerlab>, led by Dr. Lorenzo Fabrizi<https://profiles.ucl.ac.uk/1290>, Dr. Judith Meek<https://www.uclh.nhs.uk/our-services/find-consultant/dr-judith-meek> and Prof. Emily Jones<https://cbcd.bbk.ac.uk/people/scientificstaff/emily-jones>. Investigate the connection between early sensory experiences and long-term sensory processing in preterm-born neonates and children. Use EEG and novel sensory testing to identify individuals at risk of sensory challenges. Collaborate with experts in preterm brain imaging and neurodevelopment. Requires a background in Medical Physics, Bioengineering, Computational Neuroscience, or related fields, proficiency in brain imaging and programming, and strong communication skills. Apply here<https://www.ucl.ac.uk/work-at-ucl/search-ucl-jobs/details?jobId=17017&jobTi…>. Deadline 2nd of January 2024. Lorenzo Fabrizi, PhD Associate Professor Medical Research Foundation Fellow Neuroscience, Physiology and Pharmacology Department Room G17A, Medawar Building Bloomsbury Campus University College London Gower St, London WC1E 6BT office tel. 02031081888 (int. 51888)

Nov. 30, 2023

Postdoctoral Position in modelling the impact of interoceptive signals on neural dynamics and human cognition. ENS Paris

by Boris

Postdoctoral Position in modelling the impact of interoceptive signals on neural dynamics and human cognition. Group for Neural Theory and LNC2, Ecole Normale Superieure, Paris. A post-doctoral position in theoretical neuroscience is open to explore the impact of cardiac inputs on cortical dynamics. Understanding the role of internal states in human cognition has become a hot topic, with a wealth of experimental results but limited attempts at analyzing the computations that underlie the link between bodily organs and brain. Our particular focus is on elucidating how the different mechanisms for heart-to-cortex coupling (e.g., phase-resetting, gating, phasic arousal,..) can account for human behavioral and neural data, from somatosensory detection to more high-level concepts such as self-relevance, using data-based dynamical models. The ideal candidate should have a doctoral degree in a quantitative discipline and previous experience with computational approaches to neural functions, excellent programming skills coupled with an interest for, and a willingness to learn about, interoception and its influences on neural dynamics and cognition. The candidate will have a unique opportunity to join the project at its very inception and take a key role in the technical and conceptual development. The position is available for 3 years. The postdoctoral fellow will be based at the Group for Neural Theory <https://gnt.dec.ens.fr/en> and LNC2 <https://lnc2.dec.ens.fr/en> , in Boris Gutkin’s team <https://lnc2.dec.ens.fr/en/teams/mathematics-neural-circuits> with strong interactions with Catherine Tallon-Baudry’s team. LNC2 is located in the center of Paris within the Cognitive Science Department <https://cognition.ens.fr/en> at Ecole Normale Supérieure <https://www.ens.psl.eu/en>, with numerous opportunities to interact with the Paris scientific community at large, in a stimulating and supportive work environment. Group for Neural Theory provides a rich environment and local community for theoretical neuroscience. Lab life is in English, speaking French is not a requirement. Salary according to experience and French regulations with health and social benefits. Informal enquiries and applications (CV, motivation letter and contacts for reference) should be sent boris.gutkin(a)gmail.com <mailto:boris.gutkin@gmail.com> and catherine.tallon-baudry(a)ens.psl.eu <mailto:catherine.tallon-baudry@ens.psl.eu>. Applications will be evaluated on the fly, the position remaining open until filled.

Nov. 30, 2023

Fully-funded PhD in machine learning for medical imaging (Indiana University, US)

by chigurupatisreekar＠gmail.com

The Garyfallidis Research Group (grg.luddy.indiana.edu) at the Luddy School of Informatics, Computing, and Engineering has open PhD positions on the topic of artificial general intelligence for medical applications. The appointment starts Fall 2024. The PhD student will join a dynamic and interdisciplinary team that includes engineers, neuroscientists, and cognitive scientists. The PhD applicants will work with Prof. Eleftherios Garyfallidis on various areas of research, including machine learning, medical imaging and/or scientific visualization. Prof. Garyfallidis' team collaborates with more than 300 research labs across the US. His research group is also the headquarters for the DIPY and FURY organizations deploying research software in thousands of labs across the globe. Minimum Qualifications: A BSc (or equivalent) is required in engineering, computer science, statistics, physics, mathematics or neuroscience or related fields; and solid programming skills necessary to handle big data and develop large scale simulations. Knowledge of Python and C is a plus. Knowledge of graphic shaders is a bonus. Previous experience in open-source development is not required but good to have. Questions and CV should be sent to elef(a)indiana.edu. Interviews will take place after officially applying here https://graduate.indiana.edu/admissions/apply.html#/login The specific track is Neuroengineering. Note that the deadline for Fall 2024 is December 15 2023. Indiana University is an R01 (research level 1) university with multiple campuses. We are situated on the Bloomington campus that has over 50K students. The GRG is part of a new engineering department that focuses entirely on building intelligent systems. Students receive a fellowship (working as research assistants or teaching assistants) for the first 4 years of the PhD program. The students are encouraged to get internships in industry during the summer months (optional). This fellowship package guarantees recipients a full stipend, fee remission, and student health insurance during a 4 year period as you work towards the Ph.D. degree. Lab: https://grg.luddy.indiana.edu Twitter: https://twitter.com/dipymri

Nov. 28, 2023

Two postdoc openings on computational analysis and modelling of dynamic functional connectivity in Alzheimer's Disease (Strasbourg, FunSy team, France)

by Demian Battaglia

We are happy to announce two postdoc openings in the group of Dr. Demian Battaglia, within the newly created Functional System Dynamics team at University of Strasbourg. The recruited postdocs will work as well in close collaboration with Dr. Romain Goutagny in Strasbourg and Dr. Viktor Jirsa at the Institute for Systems Neuroscience in Marseille. Both positions will focus on investigating the link between dynamics of large-scale functional connectivity and cognition: first, by assessing that the maintenance of a structured and fluid dynamics of Functional Connectivity is a predictor of cognitive performance and of its resilience despite progressing neurodegeneration; second by showing that interventions aiming at restoring "healthy" brain dynamics can rescue cognitive performance. POSITION START: as early as possible (ideally, before April 2024) POSTDOC DURATION: 24 months - TWO POSITIONS AVAILABLE Specifically the first position will delve with the study of dynamic Functional Connectivity variations and their correlation with variations of cognitive performance in longitudinal studies of aging and Alzheimer's disease cohorts (human resting state fMRI, physiological markers, cognitive profiling...). The second position will delve with the characterization of the effects of non-invasive visual gamma flickering stimulation (vGENUS) on electrophysiological activity in AD mutant mice and the modelling of the mechanisms behind these effects via virtual mouse mean-field whole-brain simulations. We are seeking for candidates, with previous experience in computational neuroscience or computer science, physics or mathematics training with strong motivation to transit toward neuroscience. Previous experience with whole-brain modelling or dynamic functional connectivity analyses would be a plus, although not strictly required. Interested candidates could have hybrid data analysis/computational modelling projects. We expect fluent programming skills (e.g., Python, C/C++, Matlab), good communication skills in English (oral and written), the ability to work well in an international team, curiosity and open-mindedness (more than applying existing methods, we tend to forge original ones, shaped by the specific scientific questions we work on). The candidate will integrate the Functional System Dynamics team (FunSy, https://funsyteam.org) at University of Strasbourg, which is a mixed theoretical and experimental group focusing on the functional roles of multi-scale system's level dynamics. FunSy research aims at linking dynamics to information processing, behavior and cognition in the healthy and pathological brain, exploring projects in rodent, non-human primate or human neuroscience as well as pure theory. The present postdoc openings are funded by the Foundation "Vaincre Alzheimer" and the French National Priority Research Investment Program "PEPR Digital Health". Strict interactions are to be expected with other partners in this initiative ("Brain Health Trajectories"), with frequent visits at Viktor Jirsa's lab at Aix-Marseille University, or other researchers at Neurospin in Saclay (Paris South) or Grenoble. Strasbourg University is home of an emergent and active community in neuroscience, from molecules and cells to whole brain imaging and behavior, in relation with clinics. The proximity with Germany and Switzerland is an asset allowing interactions with transnational computational neuroscience centers. Strasbourg, one of European Union's capitals, is a fascinating city with a rich student and cultural life, well connected via high-speed train to important European cities (e.g. less than two hours from Paris) DEADLINE FOR APPLICATION: December 24th 2023 Please send your application, including CV, motivation letter and representative publications (preprints accepted) electronically to Dr. Demian Battaglia. In addition, contacts of at least two academic references must be communicated (contact email or recommendation letter attachments). Pre-selected candidates will be interviewed over Zoom or invited to give a talk if possible. We wish to promote the recruitment of strong candidates from minority groups in STEM research. Feel free to inquire for additional requests of information. CONTACT: Demian Battaglia (dbattaglia(a)unistra.fr or demian.battaglia(a)univ-amu.fr)

Nov. 27, 2023

PhD student at Instituto de Neurociencias Alicante

by Encarni Marcos Sanmartin

*A fully funded PhD (4 years) is available at Instituto de Neurociencias Alicante. * The student will be part of a project called BODIES that aims at understanding the neuronal mechanisms underlying the integration of action and perception during decision making. To achieve the goal of BODIES, experiments will be performed in mice. Neuronal activity will be recorded from a prefrontal network while animals perform a navigational task in virtual reality. Further, the activity of neurons of specific populations within this network will be manipulated through optogenetics, to investigate their causal contribution to behavior. During the project, a computational model will be developed to understand and describe the observed dynamics and to make further predictions for future experiments. Technical support is provided throughout the duration of the project. The PhD student will be enrolled in the PhD program in Neuroscience of the Universidad Miguel Hernández de Elche, under the supervision of Dr. Encarni Marcos. *The call will open this week and close shortly after:* https://otri.umh.es/2023/11/15/ayudas-para-la-formacion-de-personal-investi… The selected candidate will join the PhD program and the lab by the beginning of next year. If you are interested in this position, please, write to emarcos(a)umh.es Candidates must - Have a master’s degree in Neuroscience, physics, computer science, mathematics, psychology or related areas. - Be able to work independently. - Have programming skills. - Have excellent communication skills in English. - Work well in team. The Instituto de Neurociencias Alicante is a center of excellence that regularly organizes training courses for PhD students that are free of charge, weekly scientific lectures with well-known international speakers and internal seminars to promote collaboration within the Institute and offers financial support to assist national and international conferences for PhD students. The Institute is located in Sant Joan d'Alacant, a nice town near the beach and close to Alicante. Please feel free to get in touch with me if you have any questions. Dr Encarni Marcos Instituto de Neurociencias Alicante Sant Joan d’Alacant, Spain E-mail: emarcos(a)umh.es

Nov. 27, 2023

Three Faculty Positions in AI in Biology at VIB and KU Leuven

by pedro goncalves

Dear all, The VIB Center for AI & Computational Biology (VIB.AI) and KU Leuven are searching for three Principal Investigators to join their faculty (Group Leader at VIB, Professor at KU Leuven). We are particularly interested in recruiting faculty members who use and develop artificial intelligence methods and mechanistic mathematical models to address fundamental questions in biology. We welcome applications across all domains of machine learning, artificial intelligence, and associated fields. Examples of research topics include but are not limited to: development of new AI architectures for biology and hybrid models that combine deep learning with mechanistic models; foundation models of genome regulation using single-cell and spatial multi-omics data; AI-based modeling of protein structure and protein interaction networks; AI-based modeling of cell morphology and tissue function using imaging and computer vision; AI models of disease and digital twin applications. Biological applications are broad: microorganisms, plant biology, biodiversity and ecology, neuroscience, cancer, and immunology. We also welcome applicants with applied projects, including synthetic biology, AI-driven experiments (experiment-in-the-loop), and bio-engineering. This position comes with full salary and core funding (internationally competitive package) that is renewable for multiple additional 5-year periods, and access to state-of-the-art research and top-notch support core facilities, as well as support to attract talented PhD students and postdocs from across the world. More details about the positions at https://vibai.sites.vib.be/en/opportunities#/job-description/66534 Best wishes, Pedro --------------- Pedro Gonçalves Principal Investigator at NERF, a joint research initiative by imec, VIB, and KU Leuven Co-affiliated PI at VIB Center for AI & Computational Biology https://goncalveslab.sites.vib.be/en

Nov. 27, 2023

Call for Papers - From Animals to Animats: 17th International Conference on the Simulation of Adaptive Behavior (SAB 2024)

by Jeffrey L Krichmar

Dear Comp-Neuro colleagues, CALL FOR PAPERS - SAB 2024 ------------------------------------------- The Simulation of Adaptive Behavior (SAB) interdisciplinary conference brings together researchers in artificial intelligence, artificial life, computer science, cybernetics, ethology, evolutionary biology, neuroscience, robotics, and many other fields, to further our understanding of the behaviors and underlying mechanisms that allow natural animals and artificial agents to adapt and survive in complex, dynamic and uncertain environments. Animats denote the connection between animals and synthetic agents. The conference focuses on models and experiments designed to help characterize and compare various organizational principles and architectures underlying adaptive behavior in real animals and in animats. SAB 2024 solicits contributions dealing with any aspect of adaptive behavior. We especially invite submissions from researchers who connect biology and natural behavior to synthetic agents. Conference papers are peer-reviewed and accepted papers will be published in “From Animals to Animats 17. SAB 2024.” Lecture Notes in Artificial Intelligence, Springer Nature. Venue -------- CalIT2 Auditorium University of California, Irvine Irvine, CA 92697 USA Important Dates ---------------------- April 1, 2024: Deadline for paper submission April 15, 2024: Deadline for Workshop and tutorial proposals June15, 2024: Notice of acceptance June 30, 2024: Camera-ready papers September 9-12: Conference dates More details can be found at: https://sab2024.socsci.uci.edu/call-for-papers Best regards, Jeff Krichmar Department of Cognitive Sciences 2328 Social & Behavioral Sciences Gateway University of California, Irvine Irvine, CA 92697-5100 jkrichma(a)uci.edu http://www.socsci.uci.edu/~jkrichma

Nov. 26, 2023

looking for a postdoc on modeling / optimization of brain stimulation

by Dana Brooks

Postdoctoral Research Fellow at UMass Boston A postdoctoral fellow position is available in the Brain Stimulation & Simulation Lab <https://www1.coe.neu.edu/%7Erampersad/index.html>, directed by Dr. Sumientra Rampersad, in the Department of Physics at the University of Massachusetts Boston. Our lab focuses on investigating electromagnetic brain stimulation through computational methods and experiments with healthy volunteers. This position is funded by a newly awarded 5-year NIH R01 <https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10719222> grant with the goal to investigate a novel form of brain stimulation called transcranial temporal interference stimulation (TIS) and to optimize and translate it into an effective and efficient neuromodulation method for academic research and clinical practice. The fellow will develop novel optimization methods for high-density TIS and supervise a PhD student who will conduct simulations and optimizations using finite element modeling. The goal is to provide noninvasive and spatially specific treatment options to patients with brain disorders resistant to existing approaches. You will join a multidisciplinary team with expertise in computational modeling and optimization, human and primate electrophysiology, cellular and systems neuroscience, and biomedical engineering. You will also have the opportunity to work on other cutting-edge projects involving several brain stimulation methods including tCS, TMS, ECoG, sEEG and TTF (see lab website <https://www1.coe.neu.edu/%7Erampersad/index.html> for examples). Our collaborators at Northeastern University, the University of Utah, Harvard University, MGH, and the University of Washington, provide us access to specialized software and unique clinical data. The fellow will be mentored by Dr. Rampersad (UMass Boston) and Dr. Dana Brooks (Northeastern). This is an outstanding career development opportunity to work with leaders in the field of brain stimulation with an exceptional record of collaboration and mentoring. Required qualifications include a PhD in physics, math, electrical, biomedical engineering, or equivalent, expertise in either brain stimulation modeling or computational optimization methods (preferred both), a track record of conference presentations and peer-reviewed publications, strong verbal and written communication skills, and proficiency in Matlab or Python. This is a one-year appointment with the possibility of extension provided satisfactory progress is made. To apply, send a cover letter and CV to Dr. Rampersad (sumientra.rampersad(a)umb.edu) with the subject “TIS postdoc”. Please describe in detail your experience with optimization, brain stimulation, FEM, coding, project management, and mentoring students.

Nov. 26, 2023

Postdoc position to model the sensorimotor system controlling forelimbs in mice

by Alexander Mathis

The Mathis^2 and Arber labs seek applicants for a postdoctoral fellow in computational neuroscience The Arber Laboratory at the University of Basel (Research Group Silvia Arber - Biozentrum<https://www.biozentrum.unibas.ch/research/research-groups/research-groups-a…>), Mathis Group of Computational Neuroscience & AI (https://mathisgroup.org<https://mathisgroup.org/>) and Mathis Laboratory of Adaptive Motor Control (https://mackenziemathislab.org<https://mackenziemathislab.org/>) at EPFL (Geneva, Switzerland) offer a postdoc position with the goal to model the sensorimotor system controlling forelimb movements in mice. We aim to build hierarchical models of the sensorimotor system controlling mouse forelimbs based on a variety of datasets including anatomy, connectivity, high content neuronal recordings, biomechanics, behavior tracking, functional interventions, genetic/molecular and cell type information based on spatial transcriptomics. EPFL<https://www.epfl.ch/de/> is one of the leading Institutes of Technology in Europe, and Biozentrum<https://www.biozentrum.unibas.ch/> the home of Molecular Life Science embedded in the Basel Circuits Neuroscience community<https://www.basel-neurocircuits.ch/>. Both offer competitive salaries and research infrastructure, together allowing to approach this challenging research project. Requirements: Candidates should have a Ph.D. with a strong publication record in computational neuroscience or related fields, and be eager to interact with experimentalists. An ideal candidate would have prior experience in: ● Machine learning ● Modeling neural data ● Handling of large and diverse datasets ● Biomechanics ● Fluency in oral and written English is required. Deadline and starting date: Applications are requested starting from December 1st 2023 and will then be processed as they arrive until the position is filled. The ideal starting date is spring 2024. How to apply: Postdoctoral applications should consist of a motivation letter, a CV, two relevant publications, and the email addresses of two or more referees. Please submit your application to the EPFL hiring platform: https://recruiting.epfl.ch/Vacancies/3178/Description/2 Related Work: A functional map for diverse forelimb actions within brainstem circuitry.<https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-020-03080-z> Ludwig Ruder, Riccardo Schina, Hash Kanodia, Sara Valencia-Garcia, Chiara Pivetta and Silvia Arber, Nature, 2021 Structural and functional map for forelimb movement phases between cortex and medulla <https://www.cell.com/cell/pdf/S0092-8674(22)01522-7.pdf>Wuzhou Yang, Harsh Kanodia and Silvia Arber, Cell, 2023 Learnable latent embeddings for joint behavioural and neural analysis<https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-023-06031-6> Steffen Schneider*, Jin Hwa Lee*, and Mackenzie Weygandt Mathis, Nature, 2023 DMAP: a Distributed Morphological Attention Policy for Learning to Locomote with a Changing Body<https://arxiv.org/abs/2209.14218> Alberto Silvio Chiappa, Alessandro Marin Vargas, Alexander Mathis. NeurIPS, 2022. Contrasting action and posture coding with hierarchical deep neural network models of proprioception <https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2020.05.06.081372v3> Kai J. Sandbrink*, Pranav Mamidanna*, Claudio Michaelis, Matthias Bethge, Mackenzie Weygandt Mathis**, Alexander Mathis**, eLife, 2023 Please do not hesitate to reach out, if you have any questions! If you want to do a PhD on this topic, also feel free to reach out. Best wishes, Alexander Mathis P.S.: We also have an open software engineer position. We started interviewing, but are inviting further top candidates to apply: https://recruiting.epfl.ch/Vacancies/3124/Description/2 [cid:clip_image001.png] Alexander Mathis Tenure Track Assistant Professor people/alexander.mathis mathislab.org<http://mathislab.org>

Nov. 25, 2023

Full time Lecturer in Computational/Cognitive Neuroscience (Manchester, UK)

by Caroline Lea-Carnall

The University of Manchester wishes to appoint a full-time Lecturer in Computational Neuroscience / Experimental Psychology / Cognitive Neuroscience (Teaching and Research) to join the Division of Psychology, Communication and Human Neuroscience at the University of Manchester. The successful applicant will have a research profile that has a strong fit to key research themes in the Division. Candidates with demonstrable skills and interests in applying computational approaches to central research questions in experimental psychology and/or cognitive neuroscience are particularly encouraged to apply. The successful applicant will contribute to undergraduate and masters level teaching with a particular focus on contemporary technical research skills (e.g. Python, GitHub, advanced statistical analysis in R). Application deadline: 11th December 2023 Full details and how to apply here: https://www.jobs.manchester.ac.uk/Job/JobDetail?isPreview=Yes&jobid=27033&a… Caroline Lea-Carnall, PhD | Lecturer in Neuroscience | School of Health Sciences | Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health The University of Manchester | Room 3.07d, Zochonis Building | Oxford Road | Manchester M13 9PG

Nov. 23, 2023

Save the Dates: ACAIN 2024 - 4th Int. Advanced Course & Symposium on Artificial Intelligence & Neuroscience, September 22-25 2024, Riva del Sole Resort & SPA, Castiglione della Pescaia (Grosseto) Tuscany, Italy -> Submission Deadline: March 23

by Giuseppe Nicosia

Call for Participation & Call for Papers (apologies for multiple copies) _______________________________________________________________ The 4th International Advanced Course & Symposium on Artificial Intelligence & Neuroscience, September 22-25, 2024, Riva del Sole Resort & SPA, Castiglione della Pescaia (Grosseto) Tuscany, Italy W: https://acain2024.icas.events E: acain(a)icas.cc FB: https://www.facebook.com/ACAIN.LakeDistrict/ Symposium Deadlines Paper Submission (Symposium): by Saturday March 23, 2024 (AoE). https://acain2024.icas.events/symposium-call-for-papers/ https://easychair.org/conferences/?conf=acain2024 Notification of Decision for Papers (Symposium): by Wednesday July 10, 2024. Camera Ready Submission (Symposium): by Monday July 20, 2024. Author Registration (Symposium): by July 20, 2024. Regular Registration (Symposium): by Saturday March 23, 2024. Late Registration (Symposium): from Sunday March 24, 2024. Course Deadlines Regular Registration (Course): by Saturday March 23, 2024. Late Registration (Course): from Sunday March 24, 2024. Oral Presentation Submission (Course): by Saturday March 23, 2024. Notification of Decision for Oral Presentation (Course): by August 31, 2024. SCOPE & MOTIVATION: ACAIN 2024: AI meets Computational Neuroscience and Cognitive Science The ACAIN 2024 symposium and course is an interdisciplinary event featuring leading scientists from AI and Neuroscience, providing a special opportunity to learn about cutting-edge research in the fields of AI, Neuroscience, Neuroscience-Inspired AI, Human-Level AI, and Cognitive Science. The 4th Advanced Course and Symposium on Artificial Intelligence & Neuroscience (ACAIN) is a full-immersion four-day Course and Symposium in Tuscany on cutting-edge advances in Artificial Intelligence and Neuroscience with lectures delivered by world-renowned experts. The Course provides a stimulating environment for academics, early career researchers, Post-Docs, PhD students and industry leaders. Participants will also have the chance to present their results with oral talks or posters, and to interact with their colleagues, in a convivial and productive environment. Two days of keynote talks and oral presentations, the ACAIN Symposium, (September 24-25), will be preceded by lectures of leading scientists, the ACAIN Course, (September 22-23). Bringing together AI and neuroscience promises to yield benefits for both fields. The future impact and progress in both AI and Neuroscience will strongly depend on continuous synergy, exchange, collaboration and efficient cooperation between the two research communities. These are the goals of the International Course and Symposium - ACAIN 2024, which is aimed both at AI experts with interests in Neuroscience and at neuroscientists with an interest in AI. ACAIN 2024 accepts rigorous research that promotes and fosters multidisciplinary interactions between artificial intelligence and neuroscience. The Advanced Course is suited for scholars, academics, early career researchers, Post-Docs, PhD students and industry leaders. The Event (Course and Symposium) will involve a total of 36-40 hours of lectures. Academically, this will be equivalent to 8 ECTS points for the PhD Students and the Master Students attending the Event. COURSE DESCRIPTION: https://acain2024.icas.events/course-description/ SYMPOSIUM CALL FOR PAPERS: https://acain2024.icas.events/symposium-call-for-papers/ SYMPOSIUM PROGRAM COMMITTEE (partial list, confirmed members): https://acain2024.icas.events/program-committee/ ORGANIZING COMMITTEE: https://acain2024.icas.events/symposium-committee/ VENUE & ACCOMMODATION: https://acain2024.icas.events/venue/ ACAIN 2024 is a *Residential Conference*, all participants (invited speakers, authors, organizers, chairs, participants) must book and stay at the Riva del Sole Resort and Spa. No exceptions are allowed. https://lod2024.icas.events/lod-2024-a-residential-conference/ Riva del Sole Resort & SPA a: Località Riva del Sole - Castiglione della Pescaia (Grosseto) CAP 58043, Tuscany - Italy p: +39-0564-928111 f: +39-0564-935607 e: booking.events(a)rivadelsole.it w: www.rivadelsole.it/en ACTIVITIES: https://acain2024.icas.events/activities/ REGISTRATION: https://acain2024.icas.events/registration/ See you in Tuscany in September! ACAIN 2024 Organizing Committee. E: acain(a)icas.cc W: https://acain2024.icas.events FB: https://www.facebook.com/ACAIN.LakeDistrict --

Nov. 23, 2023

Computational neuroscient INRIA position, Lyon

by Francoise Lecaignard

CALL FOR EXPRESSIONS OF INTEREST We are seeking for a computational neuroscientist, to apply for an INRIA position to join our COPHY team, in the Lyon Neuroscience Research Center (CRNL). Host team The COPHY<https://www.crnl.fr/en/equipe/cophy?language=en> team (Computation, Cognition and Neurophysiology) is led by Mathilde Bonnefond and Jérémie Mattout. It is composed of 5 researchers, 2 research engineers, 1 clinician and 11 national and international docs and postdocs. It is also regularly hosting internships of mostly engineers, Master 1 and Master 2 students with different backgrounds. Host institution The CRNL<https://www.crnl.fr/en/news-home?language=en> is a large INSERM/CNRS/University Lyon 1 research center, gathering more than 450 people spread across 20 teams and 10 platforms. It is located in the Lyon East Hospital Pole, a unique site combining medical care (4 hospitals respectively dedicated to neurology, psychiatry, cardiology and pediatrics), basic and clinical research (from genes and cells to cognition and behaviour; from bench to patient), as well as high-tech technological platforms (incl. Neuroimaging, MEG, SEEG, virtual reality). Scientific context In various sensory modalities, in health and disease, we mainly study human perception in the aim of unravelling its underlying cognitive, computational and neurophysiological mechanisms. Our team aims at innovating at the theoretical, methodological, experimental and clinical levels. In particular, we study neuronal encoding and communication (e.g., the emergence and functional role of oscillations; the computation behind the contextual modulations of cortical responses) in relation to brain disorders. This also guides the design of neurotechnologies (brain-computer interfaces) for research and clinical applications: namely ADHD, motor deficits and disorders of consciousness. Therefore, and beside behavioural and classical neuroimaging approaches (electrophysiology, fMRI), we use multimodal high-resolution neuroimaging (e.g., laminar MEG and fMRI) and computational modelling (e.g., Bayesian inference, Dynamic Causal Models of neuronal and cognitive processes; Spiking/Deep Neural Networks). Methods and models lie at the heart of our research. With this call, we aim at strengthening this core axis that is key to translating our theoretical hypothesis into testable quantitative predictions. Our team has recently evolved so that our hypothesis driven approach now spans several spatial and temporal scales (e.g., from neurotransmitters to behaviour; from trial-by-trial dynamics to neurodevelopment). Instantiating these hypotheses requires to build on most recent advances in computational neurosciences, for developing biologically plausible models of cognitive processes and their underlying physiological mechanisms. We thus develop models to be confronted with actual data. We actually use models to strongly guide the design of our experiments and provide new tools for data analysis (new algorithms that can be implemented in open software and shared with the whole team and beyond). We attach particular importance to the valorisation of computational models and methods, be it through their publication and diffusion, or by virtue of their impact on translating our research into societal and clinical applications. Finally, we also value methodological developments that support the emergence of new functional techniques (e.g. for the analysis of data from the new generation of MEG systems: optically pumped magnetometers (OPMs)). Desired candidate profile We seek for a young researcher whose profile will strongly complement our team. We expect the candidate to lead her/his own research program in computational neuroscience, but in strong interaction with the topics and experimental projects in the team. The important skills and topics we would like to further develop in the team include but are not limited to: – Spiking neural networks – Bayesian models (e.g. Active Inference) – Dynamical systems – Brain-Computer Interfaces – Machine Learning A previous experience in software development, teaching and human electrophysiology is not mandatory but will be a plus. INRIA position This call is to select a candidate for our team to apply for an INRIA position. In a single application, the candidate will have the possibility to apply to both a permanent research position (CRCN<https://www.inria.fr/en/researchers-normal-class-crcn>) and an INRIA starting faculty position (ISFP<https://www.inria.fr/en/inria-starting-faculty-position-isfp>). This process is organized once a year. A first stage requires the submission of a written application (around the end of winter 2024 for the next session). If preselected,the candidate will then defend her/his project orally in front of a jury (second and last recruitment stage). Application Application should contain a full resume (CV), a research and motivation statement (1 page max.) as well as the names of 2 references. Please send your application as a single document in pdf format, to both mathilde.bonnefond(a)inserm.fr and jeremie.mattout(a)inserm.fr, in an email entitled “Call for INRIA candidates”. Submission dead-line: December 8 (midnight GMT) this year. Remote interviews of the pre-selected candidates will likely be organized on December 20 and 21st this year. -------------------------------------------------------------------- Françoise Lecaignard Lyon Neuroscience research center (CRNL) - Team Cophy https://francoiselecaignar2.wixsite.com/flperso ________________________________

Nov. 22, 2023

Available Postdoc and PhD positions in computational neuroscience

by Lorenzo Fontolan

*Institut de Neurobiologie de la Méditerranée (INMED), Aix-Marseille University* The *Neural computation and dynamics* group led by Lorenzo Fontolan is seeking a postdoc and a Ph.D. student to join the lab. The projects are funded by the Turing Centre for Living Systems (CENTURI) at Aix-Marseille University, France. The selected candidates will develop computational models of brain circuits and/or cutting-edge analysis tools for the analysis of neural data, drawing inspiration from dynamical systems, physics, statistics, and machine learning. Research questions can be chosen from a range of topics – such as neural dynamics, neural coding, memory & learning, biophysics of the neuron. The Fontolan lab collaborates with local and international research groups employing advanced experimental techniques such as calcium imaging, optogenetics, and in vivo electrophysiology. The positions are funded by The Turing Center for Living Systems (CENTURI), an interdisciplinary center that aims at deciphering the complexity of biological systems, gathering researchers from 20 different research institutes in biology, physics, mathematics, computer science and engineering. The recruited candidates will conduct their project at the *Institut de Neurobiologie de la Méditerranée (Inmed). *Inmed, which accommodates more than 130 international researchers, is located inside the beautiful Luminy site of the Parc National des Calanques (Marseille). The Fontolan lab is also affiliated with the Center for Theoretical Physics here in Marseille. *Requirements*: Candidates with backgrounds in physics, mathematics, statistics, machine learning, computer science, and engineering are welcome to apply. The candidate should possess good mathematical and coding skills, plus the ability to think critically. In the Fontolan lab we are committed to creating an inclusive environment open to individuals from different cultures, ethnicities, and socio-economic backgrounds. Candidates should send a CV, a statement of interests, and expected date of availability to: lorenzo.fontolan(a)inserm.fr *For more information see:* Neural computation and dynamics group https://www.inmed.fr/neural-computation-and-dynamics Ph.D. position https://academicpositions.fr/ad/aix-marseille-universite/2023/phd-position-… Postdoc position https://academicpositions.fr/ad/aix-marseille-universite/2023/two-year-post… Looking forward to hearing from you! Lorenzo Fontolan -- Group Leader *Turing Centre for Living Systems (CENTURI) Institut de Neurobiologie de la Méditerranée & Centre de Physique Théorique Université Aix-Marseille, France* *https://www.inmed.fr/neural-computation-and-dynamics <https://www.inmed.fr/neural-computation-and-dynamics>* *https://centuri-livingsystems.org/l-fontolan/ <https://centuri-livingsystems.org/l-fontolan/>*

Nov. 20, 2023

Fully-funded PhD in machine-learning for analysing subject's decisions (Nottingham, UK)

by Mark Humphries

A fully-funded PhD is available with Dr Silvia Maggi and Professor Mark Humphries (University of Nottingham) and Dr Hazem Toutonji (University of Sheffield). Decision-making happens in dynamic environments. Understanding how subjects respond to such a fast-changing world requires approaches that can track subject's choice strategies at the resolution of single trials. We recently developed a Bayesian inference algorithm (Maggi et al., 2023, bioRxiv) that enables trial-resolution tracking of learning and exploration during learning. This project will build on this work to solve crucial problems of determining which of a set of behavioural strategies a subject is using and how to incorporate evidence uncertainty into its detection of the learning of strategies and transitions between them. Using the extended algorithm on datasets of rodents and humans performing decision tasks will let us test a range of hypotheses for how correct decisions are learnt and what innate strategies are used. Application deadline: November 30th 2023 PhD start date: February 1st 2024 Please send all queries to Silvia (silvia.maggi(a)nottingham.ac.uk) or Mark (mark.humphries(a)nottingham.ac.uk) Full details and how to apply here: https://www.findaphd.com/phds/project/cognitive-flexibility-in-dynamic-deci… Professor Mark Humphries | Professor of Computational Neuroscience Lab: humphries-lab.org<https://www.humphries-lab.org/> Twitter: @markdhumphries Public blog: https://medium.com/the-spike Book: "The Spike: An Epic Journey Through the Brain in 2.1 Seconds" (Princeton UP) out now in paperback: https://press.princeton.edu/books/paperback/9780691241487/the-spike 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 contact the sender and delete the email and attachment. Any views or opinions expressed by the author of this email do not necessarily reflect the views of the University of Nottingham. Email communications with the University of Nottingham may be monitored where permitted by law.

Nov. 20, 2023

Master, PhD and postdoc positions in computational neuroscience at the University Medical Center Bonn

by Tatjana Tchumatchenko

Dear friends and colleagues, It would great if you could spread the word among your students and postdocs: My group now at the University of Bonn Medical Center is looking for Master, PhD Students and Postdocs. Scientifically, our focus in on model building and data analysis methods which we build in close collaborations with experimental labs world wide. We are one of the leading computational neuroscience teams in Europe and obtained competitive prizes and third party funding from the European Research Council, German Research Foundation and other funding schemes. Your role: *Postdoc position The postdoc candidate will be involved in a computational project addressing how neurons efficiently synthesize and distribute proteins in order to ensure that these are readily available across all synapses, will analyze data and model synaptic plasticity changes in order to understand health and disease states computationally. This work is centered on computational tools and includes pen-and-paper calculations, data analysis, and numerical simulations and requires an interdisciplinary mindset. *PhD position The PhD candidate will be conducting circuit level data analysis and modeling of neural activity states. He/she will contribute to the development of machine learning algorithms to analyse imaging data or to distinguish different behavioral activity states. This work is centered on dynamical systems methods, data analysis and numerical simulations and requires an interdisciplinary mindset. Master students interested in conducting Master thesis research (6-12 months) related to the two projects above a welcome to apply. Your profile *fluency in written and spoken English *very good interdisciplinary and interpersonal communication skills *Master or PhD degree (depending on position) in a quantitative field (incl. physics, mathematics, computer science, machine learning, computational biology, neuroscience, life-sciences etc.) with a clear motivation to make an impact in neuroscience and biology *very good understanding of computational methods *very good experience in programming *a clear motivation for interdisciplinary research and passion for science *ability to work independently and develop own ideas *commitment to contribute to a supportive, welcoming and friendly team spirit When applying please attach a CV (with a publication record) and a current copy of academic transcripts and mention at least one academic reference. We are an equal opportunity employer. Our goal is to increase the proportion of women in areas where women are underrepresented and to promote their careers. We therefore strongly encourage women with relevant qualifications to apply. Applications will be treated in accordance with the State Equal Opportunities Act. Applications from qualified candidates with proven severe disabilities and people of equal status are particularly welcome. Contact info: Prof. Tatjana Tchumatchenko email: tatjana.tchumatchenko(a)uni-bonn.de www.tchumatchenko.de

Nov. 19, 2023

Assistant Professor position in Computational Neuroscience

by Laura Grafe

Bryn Mawr College Department of Psychology Assistant Professor The Department of Psychology at Bryn Mawr College invites applications for a full-time, tenure-track Assistant Professor position in Computational Neuroscience to begin August 1, 2024. We welcome scholars using computational methods to investigate the interface between psychological/neuroscience phenomena. We are looking for candidates who have a theoretically and methodologically sophisticated research program and can meaningfully incorporate undergraduate students in such research. The successful candidate will be expected to teach a computationally focused survey course in neuroscience, a seminar and lab course in their area of expertise, and contribute to service courses (e.g., Research Methods and Statistics; Introduction to Neuroscience). Candidates are also expected to be part of the department’s efforts to develop and teach a diverse and inclusive curriculum, including interdisciplinary programs and other college-wide initiatives such as the 360 Program, Emily Balch Seminars and/or the Data Science Minor. Candidates should hold a doctoral degree in Psychology, Neuroscience, or a closely allied field and must have completed all Ph.D. requirements by the start date. Postdoctoral experience is desirable. To apply for this position, candidates must submit a cover letter, curriculum vitae, teaching philosophy, research statement, and a statement of demonstrated commitment to diversity and inclusion to the Department of Psychology Search Committee via Interfolio at: http://apply.interfolio.com/136166. Candidates are asked to indicate which service courses (Research Methods and Statistics and/or Introduction to Neuroscience) they would be able to teach in their teaching statement. Applications received by January 22, 2024 will receive full consideration. In addition, candidates should arrange for three letters of recommendation to be submitted via Interfolio to the Department of Psychology Search Committee. Bryn Mawr College is a distinguished liberal arts women’s college with a vibrant faculty of scholar-teachers, a talented staff and intellectually curious students eager to make a difference in the world. The College is committed to increasing the diversity of its students, faculty, staff, and curricular offerings with a particular focus on enhancing ethnic and racial diversity and advancing social justice and inclusion. We believe diversity strengthens our community and enriches the education of our students. We have a student body of about 1,400 undergraduates (32 percent are U.S. students of color and 14 percent are international students). There are over 300 graduate students in coeducational graduate programs in social work, humanities and science. Bryn Mawr College is located in metropolitan Philadelphia and enjoys strong consortial relationships with Haverford College, Swarthmore College, and the University of Pennsylvania. Bryn Mawr College is an equal-opportunity employer; candidates from underrepresented groups and women are especially encouraged to apply. Laura Grafe Assistant Professor of Psychology Bryn Mawr College 610-526-5020

Nov. 18, 2023