- Comp-neuro - lists.cnsorg.org

PostDoc position in bio-inspired neural networks for robot control

by Falotico Egidio

A postdoc position is available at The BioRobotics Insititute, Scuola Superiore SantAnna, Pisa, Italy. http://www.santannapisa.it/en/istituto/biorobotica/biorobotics-institute The position is part of the Human Brain Project SP10 Neurorobotics. The work will be carried out under the supervision of Prof. Cecilia Laschi. The initial appointment is for one year, funding is available for up to 2 years. Start date is 1st April 2016, or as soon as possible thereafter. Position description Goal: Design and development of a sensory-motor coordination control system based on bio-inspired neural network for robots acting in simulated environment. Description: The main research activity concerns the development of brain-inspired computational algorithms for robot control. In particular, the objective of this research is the modelling and implementation in a neural simulator of bio-inspired neural networks for the control of robots performing sensory-motor tasks in simulated environment. The research activity requires in-depth knowledge, proven by previous research or professional activity, of neural computational models. The ideal candidate has also programming experience with C,C++, python, languages. Preference will be given to knowledge of spiking neural networks for robot control. Context The postdoc will be enrolled in the Human Brain Project and in particular in the SP10-Neurorobotics For more information please refer to: http://www.neurorobotics.net/ https://www.humanbrainproject.eu/it/neurorobotics-platform To apply For any question and for application instructions please send an email to Egidio Falotico (egidio.falotico(a)sssup.it) by March 12th. -- Egidio Falotico Computer Scientist PhD in BioRobotics PhD in Cognitive Science The BioRobotics Institute Polo Sant'Anna Valdera - Scuola Superiore Sant'Anna Viale Rinaldo Piaggio, 34 - 56025 - Pontedera (PI) - Italy Phone: +39 050 883 457 e-mail: e.falotico(a)sssup.it

March 7, 2016

NBT Analytics is looking for a lead programmer

by Simon-Shlomo Poil

Dear all, NBT Analytics is looking for a lead programmer. This Amsterdam based startup focuses on offering comprehensive EEG analyses for clinical trials, with the aim of improving drug development for CNS disorders. Get in touch if interested! Please read more here: http://www.nbt-analytics.com/#career Best regards, -- Dr. Simon-Shlomo Poil Co-founder / Chief Technology Officer NBT Analytics BV Amsterdam Health and Technology Center Paasheuvelweg 25 1105BP Amsterdam The Netherlands Website: https://www.nbt-analytics.com <http://www.nbt-analytics.com/> -- NBT Analytics BV http://www.nbt-analytics.com IMPORTANT: This message and any attachments are intended for the individual or entity named above. It may contain confidential, proprietary or legally privileged information. No confidentiality or privilege is waived or lost by any mistransmission. If you are not the intended recipient, you must not read, copy, use or disclose this communication to others; also please notify the sender by replying to this message, and then delete it from your system. Thank you.

March 7, 2016

Fellowships (fee reduction): Summer Systems Neuroscience study abroad in Budapest

by Érdi Péter

Dear Community: Due to the generous support of an anonymous donor, we are now able to offer Fellowships for the Summer study abroad program: http://sysneuro-semester.org/; June 12 - Aug 5 2016, Budapest, leading to a strong fee reduction $3500 (tuition + accommodation). The original fee was $7000. Acceptance on rolling basis, conditional by the closing date of March 21st, 2016. Act rapidly! Systems Neuroscience is a study abroad summer program for undergraduates. Applications and inquiry: bscs(a)bscs-us.org (cc to negyessy.laszlo(a)wigner.mta.hu) Péter Érdi Program Director

March 7, 2016

ICDL-EPIROB 2016: approaching deadline ( April 1st ) for papers and workshops submission

by Arnaud Blanchard

Approaching deadline ( April 1st ) for papers and workshops submission Call for Papers & Call for Workshops IEEE ICDL-EPIROB 2016 The Sixth Joint IEEE International Conference on Development and Learning and on Epigenetic Robotics Cergy-Pontoise / Paris, France September 19-22th, 2016 http://www.icdl-epirob.org <http://www.icdl-epirob.org/> == Conference description IEEE ICDL-Epirob is the premier forum for advances in epigenetic robotics and developmental psychology with the focus on learning and development in biological and artificial systems. This single-track conference brings together researchers from cognitive sciences, computer sciences, and robotics to explore their shared interests in autonomous learning and development. The design and study of both robotic and simulated embodied and situated computational models that are inspired by the principles of human development will be presented at the conference. A special event -- the «Babybot challenge» — will see renowned psychologists challenging engineers and modelers in how to use the tools of developmental robotics to replicate and extend the key findings. This year, thanks to special funding from Paris-Seine University, six renowned invited speakers will cover the different facets of the conference. We invite you to participate in IEEE ICDL-Epirob by sharing your research, insights, experience, and enthusiasm. A social event “on the paths of the impressionists” will allow you to discover the old city of Pontoise and Auvers sur Oise where Vincent Van Gogh painted some of his most famous masterpieces. Excursions to Paris, Versailles and Giverny will be proposed for spouses. == Keynote speakers * Tamim Asfour (http://h2t.anthropomatik.kit.edu/english/21_66.php <http://h2t.anthropomatik.kit.edu/english/21_66.php>) * Karl Friston (http://www.fil.ion.ucl.ac.uk/~karl <http://www.fil.ion.ucl.ac.uk/~karl>) * Julie Grezes (http://iec-lnc.ens.fr/social-cognition-group/membres-100/faculty-177/grezes… <http://iec-lnc.ens.fr/social-cognition-group/membres-100/faculty-177/grezes…>) * Tony Prescott (https://www.sheffield.ac.uk/psychology/staff/academic/tony-prescott <https://www.sheffield.ac.uk/psychology/staff/academic/tony-prescott>) * One more to be confirmed == Call for submissions of workshops and papers We invite submissions for this exciting window into the future of developmental sciences. Submissions which establish novel links between brain, behavior and computation are particularly encouraged. == Topics of interest include (but are not limited to): * the development of perceptual, motor, cognitive, emotional, social, and communication skills in biological systems and robots; * embodiment; * general principles of development and learning; * interaction of nature and nurture; * sensitive/critical periods; * developmental psychology; * developmental stages; * grounding of knowledge and development of representations; * architectures for cognitive development and open-ended learning; * neural plasticity; * statistical learning; * reward and value systems; * intrinsic motivations, exploration and play; * interaction of development and evolution; * use of robots in applied settings such as autism therapy; * epistemological foundations and philosophical issues. Any of the topics above can be simultaneously studied from the neuroscience, psychology or modeling/robotic point of view. == Submissions will be accepted in several formats: 1. Full six-page paper submissions: Accepted papers will be included in the conference proceedings and will be selected for either an oral presentation or a featured poster presentation. Featured posters will have a 1 minute "teaser" presentation as part of the main conference session and will be showcased in the poster sessions. 2. Two-page poster abstract submissions: To encourage discussion of late-breaking results or for work that is not sufficiently mature for a full paper, we will accept 2-page abstracts. These submissions will NOT be included in the conference proceedings. Accepted abstracts will be presented during poster sessions. 3. Tutorials and workshops: We invite experts in different areas to organize either a tutorial or a workshop to be held on the first day of the conference. Tutorials are meant to provide insights into specific topics as well as overviews that will inform the interdisciplinary audience about the state-of-the-art in child development, neuroscience, robotics, or any of the other disciplines represented at the conference. A workshop is an opportunity to present a topic cumulatively. Workshop can be half- or full-day in duration including oral presentations as well as posters. Submission format: two pages. == Call for Tutorials and Workshops We invite experts in different areas to organize a tutorial or workshop, which will be held on the first day of the conference. Participants in tutorials and workshops are asked to register for the main conference. Tutorials are meant to provide insights into specific topics as well as overviews that will inform the interdisciplinary audience about the state-of-the-art in child development, neuroscience, robotics, or any of the other disciplines represented at the conference. A workshop is an opportunity to present a topic cumulatively. Workshops can be half- or full-day in duration including oral presentations as well as posters. We would like to receive applications in pdf format for organizing a workshop with the following informations: * title / workshop or tutorial * organiser's name, research structure and coordinate (email) * how many invited presentations/ and 'open' presentations * is there a call for posters? * what is the timetable * website address ? Proposals should be sent to Sofiane Boucenna sofiane.boucenna(a)u-cergy.fr <mailto:sofiane.boucenna@u-cergy.fr>, Verena Hafner hafner(a)informatik.hu-berlin.de <mailto:hafner@informatik.hu-berlin.de> & Alex Pitti alexandre.pitti(a)u-cergy.fr <mailto:alexandre.pitti@u-cergy.fr> == Important dates * April 1st, 2016, paper and workshops submission deadline * June 1st, 2016, author notification * July 1st, 2014, final version (camera ready) due * September 19th-22nd, 2014, conference == Program committee General chairs: * Minoru Asada Osaka (Japan). * Philippe Gaussier, Cergy-Pontoise (France). Program chairs: * Verena Hafner, Berlin (Germany) * Alexandre Pitti, Cergy-Pontoise (France) Bridge chairs: • David Cohen, Paris (France) • Mathew Schlesinger, Southern Illinois (USA) Publication chairs: * Sofiane Boucenna, Cergy-Pontoise (France) Publicity chairs: * Arnaud Blanchard, Cergy-Pontoise (France) * Manuel Lopes, Bordeaux (France) * Yulia Sandamirskaya, Zürich (Switzerland) Local chairs: * Pierre Andry, Cergy-Pontoise (France) * Nicolas Cuperlier, Cergy-Pontoise (France) Finance chairs: * Ghilès Mostafaoui, Cergy-Pontoise (France)

March 7, 2016

2nd Call for Papers: Extracellular Space

by Reinoud Maex

JOURNAL OF INTEGRATIVE NEUROSCIENCE http://www.worldscinet.com/jin Call for Papers! Special Issue on Extracellular Space In experimental neuroscience, most electric signals are picked up from the electrolytic (or colloidal) solution that constitutes extracellular (interneuronal) space, yet the origin of these potentials is incompletely understood. Even more, theoreticians have recently argued about the physical principles underlying these phenomena. The present special issue invites experimental and theoretical work that can shed light on electric phenomena in extracellular space, with an emphasis on extracellular potentials and endogenous electric field interactions. The contributions solicited are original research papers and comprehensive reviews on methodological aspects. Submission deadline: 30 September 2016 Contact: Dr. Reinoud Maex reinoud.maex(a)ens.fr Questions that may be addressed are (but are not limited to): 1. The nature of extracellular potentials - What is nature of the electric currents, and what is the velocity (distribution) of the ions involved? Since membrane currents underlie the extracellular currents, what are the relative contributions of synaptic versus voltage-gated channels, excitatory versus inhibitory synapses, capacitive currents? How important are Lorenz forces between currents (due to the generated magnetic fields) and is there a contribution of polarization currents? - Is extracellular space purely resistive, or is a capacitive component involved, and what factors (such as ionic concentration, Debye shielding, etc.) contribute to its resistivity? 2. Modeling of extracellular potentials and electric field interactions - What level of detail is needed to model extracellular electrical phenomena, and which formalism can be employed? How valid is the cable equation, or need slow concentration changes of the major ionic components involved be modeled explicitly? How can LFP calculations be incorporated in simulation software? - Can volume transmission be simulated adequately as volume conductors? Are ephaptic coupling effects adequately simulated in one dimension? 3. Neuronal inference from measured extracellular potentials - What is the importance of the electrode characteristics for the proper interpretation of the measured signals? - What are the underlying assumptions, and limitations, of current-source-density analysis? How valid is the dipole approximation? Why are recent experiments being interpreted in terms of monopoles, and can single-compartmental model neurons generate local field potentials at all? - What can be learned from the power density distribution of signal frequencies? 4. Neurostimulation - What is the effect on neurons of an externally applied current or potential, and what mechanism (or rationale) underlies deep brain stimulation? 5. Physiological roles of extracellular potentials and endogenous electrical fields - Do extracellular potentials contribute to neuron-neuron and neuron-glia communication? Can there be a role for extracellular potentials in the homeostasis, clearance, and volume regulation of extracellular space, and in the control of blood flow and of the blood-brain-barrier. - What is the integrative role of endogenous electrical fields in brain function?

March 7, 2016

Research scientist positions at Vicarious

by Dileep George

Vicarious is a research startup with a long term mission to build the first human-level artificial intelligence. We believe that perception, action, reasoning, and language are intimately intertwined and need to be tackled in an integrated framework. Our work is multi-disciplinary and draws upon machine learning, graphical models, neuroscience, cognitive science, and software engineering. Vicarious is one of the few places where you'd hear cortical columns, probabilistic inference, Piagetian learning, stochastic gradient descent, and parallel implementation all discussed in the same meeting. Our strategy involves looking at the whole problem of intelligence while we make progress on different aspects of it. Trying to tackle the whole problem imposes constraints on how the different parts should behave. We have open positions for researchers to work on the following: (1) Visual perception and sensorimotor learning (2) Concept acquisition and reasoning (3) Reinforcement learning and planning (4) Grounded language understanding You will be joining a tight-knit team of scientists and engineers. Using inductive biases drawn from neuroscience, our system requires orders of magnitude less training data than traditional machine learning techniques. Our underlying framework combines advantages of deep architectures and generative probabilistic models. We use modern software engineering practices, and we strive to maintain a codebase and a culture that are a joy to work in. Visit http://www.vicarious.com/about.html for more information about the team. Qualifications/characteristics we are looking for (all are not required, but the more the better): • PhD in CS/EE/Computational Neuroscience or related disciplines. • skilled with graphical models, inference algorithms, deep learning, computer vision, machine learning, optimization • skilled in designing experiments to understand how a complex system works/fails • excellent software engineering skills • curious about how the brain works and interested in exploring how machine learning can benefit from biological constraints • willingness to pursue contrarian ideas Desired personal qualities • Integrity • Ability to admit when wrong • Altruism • Fearlessness working outside your comfort zone • Patience with others • Intellectual breadth • Sense of humor Visit http://careers.vicarious.com to learn more about the open positions and to apply.

March 7, 2016

Final Call for Papers: ECCV 2016

by Hamdi Dibeklioglu

Final Call for Papers – European Conference on Computer Vision 2016 Papers in the main technical program must describe high-quality, original research. Topics of interest include all aspects of computer vision and pattern recognition including, but not limited to: • 3D computer vision • Computational photography, sensing and display • Face and gesture • Low-level vision and image processing • Motion and tracking • Optimization methods • Physics-based vision, photometry and shape-from-X • Recognition: detection, categorization, indexing, matching • Segmentation, grouping and shape representation • Statistical methods and learning • Video: events, activities and surveillance • Applications Paper submission deadline: Monday, 14 March 2016 - 11:59 PST. Supplementary materials deadline: Monday, 21 March 2016. Announcement of decisions: Friday, 1 July, 2016. In addition to the main technical program, the conference will include tutorials, workshops, demonstrations, and exhibits. For more information, see http://www.eccv2016.org

March 6, 2016

CfP: 2nd Int. Workshop on Machine learning, Optimization & big Data - MOD 2016 - Paper submission deadline: March 31, 2016

by Giuseppe Nicosia

[Apologies if you receive multiple copies of this announcement] [Please kindly help forward it to potentially interested attendees] 2nd International Workshop on Machine learning, Optimization and big Data - MOD 2016 An Interdisciplinary Workshop: Machine Learning, Optimization and Data Science without Borders, Volterra (Pisa) -Tuscany, August 26-29, 2016 http://www.taosciences.it/mod/ modworkshop2016(a)gmail.com CALL FOR PAPERS Paper submission deadline: March 31, 2016 http://www.taosciences.it/mod/call-for-papers/ https://easychair.org/conferences/?conf=mod2016 KEYNOTE SPEAKERS + Nello Cristianini, Bristol University, UK + George Michailidis, University of Florida, USA + Stephen H. Muggleton, Imperial College London, UK + Panos Pardalos, University of Florida, USA Other Keynote Speakers will be announced soon POST-PROCEEDINGS by Lecture Notes in Computer Science - Springer JOURNAL SPECIAL ISSUE Computational Optimization and Applications Journal - Springer INDUSTRIAL PANEL + Adam Gibson, Data Scientist and co-founder at Skymind, San Francisco, USA - TBC + Giovanni Giuffrida, CEO and co-founder at Neodata Group, Italy + Andy Petrella, Data Scientist and co-founder at Data Fellas, Liège, Belgium - TBC + Daniele Quercia, Head of Social Dynamics group at Bell Labs, Cambridge, UK + Fabrizio Silvestri, Principal Research Scientist at Yahoo London, UK SPECIAL SESSIONS + Deep Learning: Theory, Architectures, Algorithms and Applications + Data-driven Algorithmics – Data for informed decisions + Multi-Objective Optimization Algorithms The MOD 2016 workshop will consist of four days of workshop sessions and special sessions. We invite submissions of papers, abstracts and posters on all topics related to Machine learning, Optimization and Big Data including real-world applications for the workshop proceedings. MOD 2016 Types of Submissions When submitting a paper to MOD 2016, authors are required to select one of the following four types of papers: + Long paper: original novel and unpublished work (max. 12 pages in Springer LNCS format); + Short paper: an extended abstract of novel work (max. 4 pages); + Work for oral presentation only (no page restriction; any format). For example, work already published elsewhere, which is relevant and which may solicit fruitful discussion at the workshop; + Work for poster presentation only. The poster format for the presentation is A0 (118.9 cm high and 84.1 cm wide, respectively 46.8 x 33.1 inch). For research work which is relevant and which may solicit fruitful discussion at the workshop. MOD 2016 Post-Proceedings All accepted long papers will be published in a volume of the series 'Lecture Notes in Computer Science' from Springer after the Workshop. Instructions for preparing and submitting the final versions (camera-ready papers) of all accepted papers will be available later on. All the other papers (short papers, abstract of the oral presentations, poster presentations) will be published on the MOD 2016 web site. Journal Special Issue on Computational Optimization and Applications Journal The top 8-10 accepted articles will have the opportunity to publish a revised and expanded version of their conference paper in the Computational Optimization and Applications Journal – Springer. MOD 2016 Submission System All papers must be submitted using EasyChair: https://easychair.org/conferences/?conf=mod2016 The deadline is March 31, 2016 Important Dates for the MOD 2016 Post-Proceedings + Paper Submission Deadline: March 31, 2016 + Decision Notification to Authors: May 1st, 2016 + Camera Ready Submission Deadline: June 1st, 2016 + Deadline for early Registration as Presenting Author: June 1st, 2016 + Late registration: June 2 – August 29, 2016 + On-Site registration: August 26-29, 2016 + MOD 2016 Workshop: August 26-29, 2016 MOD 2016 Program Committee The current MOD 2016 Program Committee includes 300+ confirmed Program Committee members: http://www.taosciences.it/mod/program-committee/ Any questions regarding the submission process can be sent to workshop organizers: modworkshop2016(a)gmail.com We look forward to seeing you in Tuscany! Giovanni Giuffrida, Giuseppe Nicosia & Panos Pardalos - MOD 2016 Chairs. http://www.taosciences.it/mod/ modworkshop2016(a)gmail.com MOD 2015 Edition: http://www.taosciences.it/mod-2015/MOD 2015 MOD 2015 Keynote Speakers: Vipin Kumar, University of Minnesota, USA Panos Pardalos, University of Florida, USA Tomaso Poggio, MIT, USA -- Giuseppe Nicosia, Ph.D. Associate Professor of Computer Engineering Dept of Mathematics & Computer Science University of Catania Viale A. Doria, 6 - 95125 Catania, Italy P +39 095 7383048 nicosia(a)dmi.unict.it http://www.dmi.unict.it/nicosia ================================================================== 3rd International Synthetic & Systems Biology Summer School - SSBSS 2016 * Biology meets Computer Science & Engineering * July 8-14, 2016 - Volterra (Pisa), Tuscany, Italy http://www.taosciences.it/ssbss/ ================================================================== 2nd International Workshop on Machine learning, Optimization & big Data - MOD 2016 August 26-29, 2016 - Volterra (Pisa), Tuscany, Italy http://www.taosciences.it/mod/ ==================================================================

March 6, 2016

PhD Studentship ? Interdisciplinary Neuroscience (Deadline March-31)

by mliou

<Apologies for cross-posting> TIGP-Interdisciplinary Neuroscience (INS) ━ Apply Now (Deadline March-31) The Interdisciplinary Neuroscience (INS) graduate program aims to study neuroscience using integrated approaches from chemistry, molecular and cellular biology, physiology, imaging, and computer science. Historically, it has been a great challenge to integrate distinct disciplines in order to discover the causes and to explore efficacious treatments for neurological and psychiatric disorders. Therefore, the Neuroscience Program at Academia Sinica (NPAS) has decided to establish the INS graduate program, in training students at the PhD level to perform neuroscience research with multidisciplinary approaches, by teaming up the School of Life Sciences and the School of Medicine at the National Yang-Ming University (NYMU) in 2013 and the Institute of Clinical Medicine at the National Cheng Kung University (NCKU) in 2014. Note that NPAS is an on-campus research program that promotes interaction and collaboration under the goal of promoting excellence in neuroscience research and education at the international level. Program Features: 1. Neural Development/Degeneration, 2. Molecular/Cellular Neuroscience, 3. Clinical/Translational Neuroscience, 4. Physiology/Systems Neuroscience, 5. Cognitive/Social Neuroscience, 6. Neuroinformatics/Neural Applied Sciences. Application Features: 1. Integrated neuroscience course, 2. Diverse seminar and international symposiums, 3. Well-equipped core facilities and research resources, 4. Satisfactory stipends and travel grant award, 5. Degree requirement. Requirements: 1. Bachelor/Master degree, 2. English requirements: TOEFL, IELTs or GEPT, 3. GRE, M.S. thesis, or research publication, 4. Transcript, 5. Two recommendation letters, 6. Statement of purpose. For more information, please visit our website: <http://npas.programs.sinica.edu.tw/ins/> http://npas.programs.sinica.edu.tw/ins/ Vira Yang TIGP Interdisciplinary Neuroscience Program 128 Academia Road, Section 2 NanKang, Taipei 115, Taiwan, R.O.C. Tel: +886-2-27873282 Email: tigpins at gate.sinica.edu.tw

March 6, 2016

PhD positions in computational neuroscience

by Mark van Rossum

3 YEAR PhD IN COMPUTATIONAL NEUROSCIENCE, UNIVERSITY OF EDINBURGH. We invite applications for our PhD programme in COMPUTATIONAL NEUROSCIENCE at the University of Edinburgh. Applicants need to have UK citizenship, or have been in the UK for the last 3 years. The studentships are ideal for students who want to apply their computational and analytical skills to problems in neuroscience and related fields. The following supervisor have openings: Peggy Seriès: Bayesian approaches to cognition and perception; computational psychiatry. Mark van Rossum: Synaptic plasticity; coding in the visual system; noise in the nervous system. Matthias Hennig: Models of neural networks; homeostasis and development; visual and auditory neuroscience; analysis of large-scale electrophysiological recordings The PhD project can be done in collaboration with one of the many affiliated departments and institutes. Edinburgh has been voted as 'best place to live in Britain', and has many exciting cultural and student activities. Students with a strong background in either computer science, mathematics, physics or engineering are particularly welcome to apply. Motivated students with other backgrounds will also be considered. Application procedure: For more info see http://www.anc.ed.ac.uk/neuroscience and contact one of the supervisors listed above. Next, apply at http://www.ed.ac.uk/studying/postgraduate/degrees/index.php?r=site/view&id=… -- Mark van Rossum, Reader, School of Informatics, U Edinburgh Forum Rm 2.52, 44-131-6511211 The University of Edinburgh is a charitable body, registered in Scotland, with registration number SC005336.

March 5, 2016

Brain Connectivity Workshop 2016 - REGISTRATION NOW OPEN

by Demian Battaglia

Brain Connectivity Workshop 2016, Marseille (France) Registration is open now! (reduced rates until March 30th) When: 22nd to 24th June, 2016 Link to official website: http://bcw2016.org We are happy to announce the 15th edition of the Brain Connectivity Workshop (BCW) to take place in Marseille from the 22nd to the 24th of June 2016. The Brain Connectivity Workshop (BCW) is a well-established workshop series, which has been held annually in Europe, USA, Australia and Asia for the last 14 years. BCW is an official satellite of the annual meeting of OHBM, which is held in Geneva, Switzerland in 2016. BCW attracts every year a public of 100-200 participants working in cognitive, computational and clinical neurosciences. The discussions are centered on all themes around brain connectivity including structural and functional imaging, modeling, brain function and clinics. BCW is highly influential in the field due to the traditionally high quality of speakers and a long track record of innovation. For instance, both, the Connectome and The Virtual Brain have been born within the BCW community. The typical BCW format —a first educational day of lectures held by international authorities in their fields, followed by two days of shorter talks with ample time for discussion provides a unique forum for creativity, controversy and brainstorming. BCW 2016, introduced by a first day of tutorials by experts in their field, will feature focused sessions on themes such as perturbing the brain, mapping the brain, and brain dynamics in function (cognition) and dysfunction (epilepsy). NB: Please note that European Cup of Football will be held in France during this period and hotels are going to be booked fast! Confirmed educational lecturers (day 1) and workshop speakers (days 2-3) include: Fabrice Bartolomei (Aix-Marseille University, Marseille, France) Michael Breakspear (QIMR, Brisbane, Australia) Vince Calhoun (University Of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM) Karl Friston (UCL, London, UK) Jorge Gonzalez-Martinez (Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, OH) Marc Goodfellow (University of Exeter, Exeter, UK) Charles Gray (Montana State University, Bozeman, MT) Claudius Gros (Goethe University, Frankfurt am Main, Germany) Martin Hoffman-Apitius (Fraunhofer Institute SCAI, St Augustin, Germany) Esther Krook-Magnuson (University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN) Pierre Luppi (Lyon Neuroscience Research Center, Lyon, France) Randy McIntosh (Baycrest Research Center, Toronto, ON) Lionel Naccache (ICM, Paris, France) Ivan Soltesz (UC Irvine, CA) Olaf Sporns (Indiana University, Bloomington, IN) William Stacey (University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI) Gregor Thut (University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK) Stephan Van Gils (University of Twente, Ae Enschede, The Netherlands) Michael Wibral (Goethe University, Frankfurt am Main, Germany) A special evening lecture will be delivered by Patrick Chauvel (Aix-Marseille University, Marseille, France). A detailed program is coming soon. Organizing committee Viktor Jirsa, Chair (INS, Aix-Marseille University, UMR 1106 INSERM) Demian Battaglia, Christian Bénar, Mireille Bonnard, Monique Esclapez (INS, Aix-Marseille University) Andrea Brovelli (INT, Aix-Marseille University), Maxime Guye (CRMBM, Aix-Marseille University, UMR 7339 CNRS & APHM) Ingo Bojak (University of Reading, UK). An event sponsored by: University Aix-Marseille, Ville de Marseille, Brain Products, Bionics, Springer EPJ Nonlinear Biomedical Physics Journal, Codebox, Institute of System Neuroscience Inserm, Institute of Neuroscience Timone, Center for Magnetic Resonance in Biology and Medicine, Mediterranean Society of Neuroscience (IBRO member)

March 5, 2016

Due March 7: MBL Methods in Computational Neuroscience Course Applications

by Mark Steven Goldman

Applications are open for the Methods in Computational Neuroscience course at the Marine Biology Laboratory in Woods Hole, MA. The course will run from July 27 to August 24, 2016, and the online application form can be found at: https://ws2.mbl.edu/studentapp/studentapp.asp?courseid=MCN The course application deadline is *March 7*. The course covers a range of topics in computational neuroscience including neuronal biophysics, neural coding & information processing, circuit dynamics, learning & memory, motor control, and cognitive processing & disease. In addition, numerous tutorials and problem sets will cover a broad range of computational and mathematical modeling methods. The course strongly emphasizes the collaboration between theory and experiment in solving neuroscience problems, and lectures will be given by a mixture of theorists and experimentalists. The Final weeks of the course are primarily reserved for work on projects that students design in collaboration with the resident faculty. Further information can be found on the MCN website: http://www.mbl.edu/mcn/ 2016 Course Directors: Michale Fee, MIT Mark Goldman, UC Davis 2016 Confirmed Faculty: Larry Abbott, Columbia University Steve Baccus, Stanford University Carlos Brody, Princeton University Emery Brown, MIT Dmitri Chklovskii, Simons Foundation Peter Dayan, University College London Sophie Deneve, Ecole Normale Superieure Uri Eden, Boston University Bard Ermentrout, University of Pittsburgh Adrienne Fairhall, University of Washington Ila Fiete, UT Austin Loren Frank, UCSF Jack Gallant, UC Berkeley Surya Ganguli, Stanford University Maria Geffen, University of Pennsylvania John Huguenard, Stanford University Nancy Kopell, Boston University Eve Marder, Brandeis University Bartlett Mel, University of Southern California Ken Miller, Columbia University Terry Sejnowski, Salk Institute Sara Solla, Northwestern University Haim Sompolinsky, Hebrew University Michael Stryker, UCSF Josh Tenenbaum, MIT Daniel Wolpert, Cambridge University

March 5, 2016

Postdoctoral postions in sensory neuroscience

by Rinberg, Dmitry

A postdoctoral positions are available in the Rinberg lab (www.rinberglab.com) at the NYU Neuroscience Institute, to study olfactory information processing in an awake behaving animal. The lab is using electrophysiology, imaging, optogenetics, and psychophysics to understand how features of olfactory stimuli are represented in neuronal activity of an awake mouse, and how these features are read by higher brain areas. Postdoctoral researchers will engage in both experimental and computational studies of multineuronal coding in awake, behaving mice. These include, but are not limited to, measurement and analysis of electrophysiological and imaging signals from olfactory bulb and olfactory cortices of the mouse, olfactory psychophysical experiments, and developing new methods for multiunit recordings and stimulations in behaving mice. Candidates with physics and computational backgrounds are very welcome to apply. Interested applicants should send a cover letter, CV, and arrange for reference letters to be e-mailed to Dima Rinberg (rinberg(a)nyu.edu) ------------------------------------------------------------ This email message, including any attachments, is for the sole use of the intended recipient(s) and may contain information that is proprietary, confidential, and exempt from disclosure under applicable law. Any unauthorized review, use, disclosure, or distribution is prohibited. If you have received this email in error please notify the sender by return email and delete the original message. Please note, the recipient should check this email and any attachments for the presence of viruses. The organization accepts no liability for any damage caused by any virus transmitted by this email. =================================

March 4, 2016

Postdoctoral position in computational neuroscience

by Maxim Bazhenov

Applications are invited for post-doctoral research position in the laboratories of Drs. Nikolai Rulkov and Maxim Bazhenov at the University of California, San Diego to develop novel computational models of large-scale brain dynamics. This project involves close collaboration with experimental and theoretical groups. The ultimate goal of this research is understanding how the large-scale brain dynamics arises from individual dynamics of spiking neurons and synaptic interactions. The successful candidate will be responsible for the design of new classes of thalamic, cortical and hippocampal neuron models based on the discrete time (difference) equations. These models will be used to model brain network dynamics during sleep and wakefulness, as well as guide data analysis and produce novel experimental predictions. Qualified applicants are expected to have experience in dynamical systems, conductance-based neuronal modeling and theory of digital signal processing. Programming experience with C/C++ is required. Knowledge of PYTHON or MATLAB is a plus. The University of California offers excellent benefits. Salary is based on research experience. The initial appointment is for 1 year with a possibility of extension. Applicants should send a brief statement of research interests, a CV and the names of three references to Maxim Bazhenov (bazhenov(a)salk.edu) and Nikolai Rulkov (nrulkov(a)ucsd.edu)

March 4, 2016

Postdoc in Warsaw - kernel-based method of electrophysiological source imaging

by Daniel Wójcik

https://neuroinflab.wordpress.com/jobs/ POSTDOCTORAL POSITION IN COMPUTATIONAL NEUROSCIENCE: kESI – kernel-based method of electrophysiological source imaging The Neuroinformatics Laboratory (https://neuroinflab.wordpress.com/) at the Nencki Institute of Experimental Biology of the Polish Academy of Sciences (NENCKI, www.nencki.gov.pl) headed by Prof. Daniel Wójcik (http://www.neuroinf.pl/Members/danek) invites applications for a postdoctoral position (36 months starting between March 2016 and October 2016) that will be available as part of a nationally funded project (NCN OPUS). The goal of the project is to develop and implement a new technique of source localization of specific events in neural activity, such as a seizure, from multimodal imaging data, including ECoG (strip and grid electrodes), depth electrophysiological recordings, and MRI data from humans. The method will be validated with ground truth model data and tested on clinical data obtained from epilepsy patients. The fellow will build on already existing tools and techniques developed in the lab, see especially Potworowski et al. 2012 and Ness et al. 2015. Requirements: - PhD, preferred in physics/biophysics, mathematics, computer science, electrical engineering, computational neuroscience or related fields - Strong interest in brain research - Preference for people with experience in one or more of: numerical solutions of PDEs, electrodynamics, computational neuroscience, brain imaging - Advanced programming experience, Python preferred - Exceptional motivation for scientific research (demonstrated in former education record, additional courses completed, list of publications and conferences attended, previous scientific experience, references of the candidate’s thesis advisor, letter-of-intent) - Proficiency in English Application The application should contain the following documents/information: - CV including the list of publications, scholarships and awards, list of computational projects in which the candidate participated (preferably with links to the project website/publication or the candidate’s GitHub account). - Copy of PhD diploma - The applicant should arrange for two letters of recommendation to be sent directly to Prof. Wojcik and should provide contact information (email, phone) for the two referees in the cover letter. Application deadline: We are accepting applications until the position is filled Short-listed candidates with the highest score will be selected for personal or online interviews. Start date: between March 2016 and October 2016 The salary is around 5900 PLN / month (around 4200 PLN after taxes and deductions). To apply or ask for further information send email to d.wojcik(a)nencki.gov.pl -- Prof. Daniel K. Wojcik Laboratory of Neuroinformatics, Head PhD Studies, Head Nencki Institute of Experimental Biology 3 Pasteur St, 02-093 Warsaw, Poland tel: (+48 22) 5892348 fax: (+48 22) 8225342 skype: danek8317 http://dwojcik.pl/ http://neuroinflab.wordpress.com/ http://orcid.org/0000-0003-0812-9872

March 4, 2016

Summer School on Dynamic Field Theory...

by John Spencer (PSY)

Greetings Colleagues, I will be teaching a Summer School on Dynamic Field Theory from June 6-17, 2016 at the University of East Anglia. Dynamic field theory is a framework for understanding how the brain gives rise to thinking in real time, and how cognitive decisions leave memory traces that are the basis for learning and development. The Summer School will provide an overview of DFT, using a new text: Dynamic Thinking-A Primer on Dynamic Field Theory. To apply, send a 2-page CV and brief cover letter describing why you want to attend the school to: ssf.advancedtraining(a)uea.ac.uk<mailto:ssf.advancedtraining@uea.ac.uk> Additional details including information on fees can be found at http://www.dynamicfieldtheory.org/engage/ Cheers, John Spencer John P. Spencer, PhD Professor School of Psychology, Room 0.09 Lawrence Stenhouse Building, University of East Anglia, Norwich Research Park, Norwich NR4 7TJ United Kingdom Email: j.spencer(a)uea.ac.uk<mailto:j.spencer@uea.ac.uk> School website: http://www.uea.ac.uk/psy Telephone 01603 593968 [cid:image001.png@01D09851.EF67E200] UK Top 20 (16th Complete University Guide 2015, 18th Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide 2015-16) UK 2nd for Student Satisfaction (National Student Survey 2015) World Top 1% (Times Higher Education World Rankings 2015-16) World Top 100 (Leiden Ranking 2015) [facebook]<http://www.facebook.com/ueaofficial> [twitter-old] <http://www.twitter.com/uniofeastanglia> [tumblr] <http://uniofeastanglia.tumblr.com/> [flickr] <http://www.flickr.com/uniofeastanglia> [linkedin] <http://www.linkedin.com/edu/school?id=12699> [youtube] <http://www.youtube.com/ueaofficial> [cid:image008.png@01CF8BB5.50024060] <http://instagram.com/uniofeastanglia>

March 4, 2016

Deadline extension | CENICS 2016 || July 24 - 28, 2016 - Nice, France

by Sandra Sendra

INVITATION: ================= The submission deadline is March 23, 2016. Please consider to contribute to and/or forward to the appropriate groups the following opportunity to submit and publish original scientific results to: - CENICS 2016, The Ninth International Conference on Advances in Circuits, Electronics and Micro-electronics Authors of selected papers will be invited to submit extended article versions to one of the IARIA Journals: http://www.iariajournals.org ================= ============== CENICS 2016 | Call for Papers =============== CALL FOR PAPERS, TUTORIALS, PANELS CENICS 2016, The Ninth International Conference on Advances in Circuits, Electronics and Micro-electronics General page: http://www.iaria.org/conferences2016/CENICS16.html Submission page: http://www.iaria.org/conferences2016/SubmitCENICS16.html Event schedule: July 24 - 28, 2016 - Nice, France Contributions: - regular papers [in the proceedings, digital library] - short papers (work in progress) [in the proceedings, digital library] - ideas: two pages [in the proceedings, digital library] - extended abstracts: two pages [in the proceedings, digital library] - posters: two pages [in the proceedings, digital library] - posters: slide only [slide-deck posted at www.iaria.org] - presentations: slide only [slide-deck posted at www.iaria.org] - demos: two pages [posted at www.iaria.org] - doctoral forum submissions: [in the proceedings, digital library] Proposals for: - mini symposia: see http://www.iaria.org/symposium.html - workshops: see http://www.iaria.org/workshop.html - tutorials: [slide-deck posed on www.iaria.org] - panels: [slide-deck posed on www.iaria.org] Submission deadline: March 23, 2016 Sponsored by IARIA, www.iaria.org Extended versions of selected papers will be published in IARIA Journals: http://www.iariajournals.org Print proceedings will be available via Curran Associates, Inc.: http://www.proceedings.com/9769.html Articles will be archived in the free access ThinkMind Digital Library: http://www.thinkmind.org The topics suggested by the conference can be discussed in term of concepts, state of the art, research, standards, implementations, running experiments, applications, and industrial case studies. Authors are invited to submit complete unpublished papers, which are not under review in any other conference or journal in the following, but not limited to, topic areas. All tracks are open to both research and industry contributions, in terms of Regular papers, Posters, Work in progress, Technical/marketing/business presentations, Demos, Tutorials, and Panels. Before submission, please check and comply with the editorial rules: http://www.iaria.org/editorialrules.html CENICS 2016 Topics (for topics and submission details: see CfP on the site) Call for Papers: http://www.iaria.org/conferences2016/CfPCENICS16.html ============================================================ Semiconductors and applications Special semiconductors; Tunable bandgap semiconductors; Piezoelectricity; Polarization; Breakdown voltage; Superconductivity; Ferromagnetism; Biocompatibility; Chemical and thermal stability; Power amplification at very high frequencies; High temperature electronics; LEDs and lasers; Photodetectors; Transistors; Piezoelectric filters Design, models and languages Languages and models for specification and design of hardware; Robust, reliable and/or safe embedded electronics; Circuits/hardware description languages; Standards related to design languages; Processor and memory design; Embedded system design; VHDL-related standards; Electronic circuits modelling; Automatic generation of models; Quantitative analysis of models; Distributed CAD systems; Collaborative design based on Internet and WWW; Electronic systems design based on WWW; System- and high-level synthesis, HW/SW codesign Signal processing circuits Signal processing; High-speed signal processing; Multi-scale signal processing and imaging; Asynchronous circuits and systems; High frequency processing; Power and signal amplifiers; Parallel processing circuits; Equalization processing; Compression, transcoding, and applied signal processing Arithmetic computational circuits Operational arithmetic circuits; Basic arithmetic operations; Modular operations; Decimal-floating point operations; Multiple-precision operations; Squaring and exponentiation; Polynomial evaluations; Periodic functions; Operational approximations; Parallel decimal operations Microelectronics Components and circuits for communications; HMIC and MMIC design; Micro-electronics; Nano-electronics; Lasers and mini-lasers; Miniature devices; Low power electronics; Nano-scale electronics materials Electronics technologies Organic optoelectronic; Implantable electronics; Wearable electronics; Low power electronics; Electronic microarray technology and applications; RF and Microwave Special circuits Programmable circuits; Design of reconfigurable micro-chips; VLSI circuits design; Low-noise circuits; Digital modulators; Micro-sensors; Micro-antennas; Thermal circuits; Reconfigurable circuits; Dynamically reconfigurable processors; Oscillators; VCOs and phased-array transmitters Consumer electronics Home-oriented electronics; Biometric circuits; Home gateway; Home theater circuitry; Game systems; Interactive and directed programming electronics; Advanced DVD and CD; Interactive and directed programming electronics Application-oriented electronics Navigation electronics; Industrial electronics; Automotive electronics; Application-oriented electronics; Telemedicine and eHealth electronics; Biochip design for health science applications; Bio-systems and miniature instruments; Biosensors and biosensor networks; Industrial measurement electronics; Industrial control electronics; Energy distribution electronics; Energy saving and conversion circuits; Indoor and outdoor light control systems; Power electronics; Avionics electronics; Railways electronics; Vehicular electronics; Embedded electronics; Process industry electronics ------------------------ CENICS 2016 Committee: http://www.iaria.org/conferences2016/ComCENICS16.html CENICS Advisory Committee Vladimir Privman, Clarkson University - Potsdam, USA Sergey Y. Yurish, Technical University of Catalonia (UPC-Barcelona), Spain Martin Horauer, University of Applied Sciences Technikum Wien, Austria Adrian Muscat, University of Malta, Malta CENICS 2016 Research/Industry Chairs Ravi M. Yadahalli, S G Balekundri Institute of Technology, Belagavi, Karnataka, India CENICS 2016 Industry Liaison Chairs Falk Salewski, Muenster University of Applied Sciences, Germany CENICS 2016 Publicity Chair Sandra Sendra Compte, Universidad Polit�cnica de Valencia, Spain CENICS 2016 Special Area Chairs Formalisms Peeter Ellervee, Tallinn University of Technology, Estonia Application-oriented Josu Etxaniz Mara�on, University of the Basque Country / Universidad del Pa�s Vasco / Euskal Herriko Unibertsitatea - Bilbao, Spain Sensors Yulong Zhao, Xi'an Jiaotong University, China ==============

March 4, 2016

Postdoctoral position in Theoretical Neuroscience

by Yashar Ahmadian

POSITION: Yashar Ahmadian's Theoretical Neuroscience group at University of Oregon, in Eugene, Oregon, is seeking a highly motivated postdoctoral researcher to work on developing theoretical models of information processing in animal brains and statistical methods for analyzing high-dimensional neural and behavioral datasets. The position is available immediately, and provides a competitive annual salary and benefits. RESEARCH TOPIC: The driving questions behind our research are: How do large neuronal populations, particularly in sensory cerebral cortex, process inputs and adapt to their statistical structure on multiple time scales? What is the role of these networks' intrinsic dynamics in sensory processing, and the role of horizontal and feedback connections in shaping this dynamics? What general computations can be performed by partially random connectivity, not designed or learned for specific tasks? In the pursuit of these aims we use techniques and concepts from statistical physics, machine learning, random matrix theory, and statistics. We will also develop new statistical methods for uncovering structure in high-dimensional neural data (Calcium-imaging, multi-electrode recordings, EEG). We collaborate closely with experimental labs in systems and cognitive neuroscience in the Institute of Neuroscience at University of Oregon, and some of the projects will involve hands on analysis of experimental data. For more information, please visit: http://uoneuro.uoregon.edu/ahmadian/index.php http://www.neuro.uoregon.edu/ ENVIRONMENT: Our group is young and dynamic. We are affiliated with the Biology and Mathematics departments and the Institute of Neuroscience at the University of Oregon. The Institute of Neuroscience is a closely knit community with lots of cross-talk between computational, systems and cognitive neuroscientists. Eugene is a culturally diverse city, with a beautiful and pristine surrounding geography. Situated in the Willamette valley, we are minutes away from the lush Oregon rain forests and hot springs, an hour away from the Cascade mountain range, and also an hour from the Pacific ocean. QUALIFICATIONS: selection criteria include strong mathematical/analytical skills, programming experience, familiarity with computational neuroscience and/or machine learning, and past research accomplishments. Applicants must have a Ph.D. in a quantitative discipline, e.g. physics, engineering, math, machine learning or statistics. Previous experience with neurobiology or a Ph.D. in computational neuroscience is advantageous but not required. APPLICATION: Applicants should submit a statement of research interests (1-2 pages), a current CV, and the names and contacts of 2-3 references. Questions and application material should be emailed to Yashar Ahmadian (yashar(at)uoregon.edu) Application review will begin on March 4 and continue until the position is filled.

March 4, 2016

Human Brain Project workshop on Neurorobotics @ Biorob2016 - Call for Contributions

by Falotico Egidio

Dear colleagues (with advance apologies for any cross-postings), We invite submissions for oral or poster presentations at the Huma Brain Project workshop on Neurorobotics that will be organized on June 26th, at the sixth IEEE RAS/EMBS International Conference on Biomedical Robotics and Biomechatronics BioRob 2016, in Singapore. http://sssa.bioroboticsinstitute.it/workshops/biorob2016 Prospective authors should submit the extended abstract (one A4 page, in PDF format) by March 30th, 2016 . Notification of acceptance will be received no later than April 8th. For submission please refer to the following link: http://sssa.bioroboticsinstitute.it/workshops/biorob2016/HBPPaperSubmission… ABSTRACT Neurorobotics is already an established branch of robotics that in the last years, taking advantage from an increase in the accessibility of existing neuroscientific data and knowledge, allowed building robotic systems that can exhibit robustness, adaptability and several features of the human intelligence. Reciprocally, significant developments in robotics and machine learning put robotics in the service of neuroscience as experimental platforms or test-beds of brain models. In the last years, advanced insights and the increasing availability of cheap processing power has led Neurorobotics to follow two tracks of research with different goals and methods: The first track focuses on neuro-inspired computing paradigms that mimic nervous system functions based on Spiking Neural Networks. This does not only foster our understanding of biological systems but also contributes to future technical applications in artificial systems. In the past, limited processing power and the lack of appropriate models and tools shifted the focus of research far away from biological neural networks. Recently a number of projects like the US BRAIN Initiative and the Human Brain Project have taken up the challenge by combining efforts from the fields of neuroscience and computer science to enable the large scale modeling and simulation of biological neural networks with billions of spiking neurons. The second track, extending the theory of classical artificial neural networks, mostly relies on simpler neuron models but integrate them in novel network architectures. These networks are extensively used in robotics, allowing mimicking the function of some brain areas in order to reproduce complex behaviors with a reduced computational cost. This workshop seeks to present and discuss advances in neuroscientific models for cognition and new perspectives in control for robotic applications based on both biologically-inspired and artificial neural networks. The final goal is to bring together researchers from both robotics and neuroscience in order to explore how to maximize the progress at the multidisciplinary frontier evaluating the advantages of both tracks of the Neurorobotics research. TOPICS OF INTEREST - Bio-inspired sensory-motor coordination and adaptive control - Active perception - Neurocontrollers - Self-organization and sensory-motor mapping - Predictive behaviour - Bio-inspired learning robots - Robot imitation and learning by demonstration - Memory-based algorithms - Cognitive behaviours in robots - Reservoir computing - Deep learning - Neuromorphic computing for robotics KEYNOTE SPEAKERS Giorgio Metta (Italian Institute of Technology, Italy) - The use of motor invariants can improve action discrimination Tomohiro Shibata (Kyushu Institute of Technology, Japan) Functional Robotic Assistance of Human Motor Learning Ruediger Dillman (Research Center for Information Technology, Germany) - Modelling Cortical Sensor-Motor Control Functionalities with a Spiking Neural-Robot Control Simulator Sunil L. Kukreja (National University of Singapore, Singapore) Integration of Neuromorphic Tactile Perception with Haptic Feedback in a Virtual and Augmented Reality World for Advanced Robotic Control Best Regards, Egidio Falotico, Cecilia Laschi (The BioRobotics Institite,Scuola Superiore SantAnna , Italy) Florian Röhrbein, Florian Walter (Technical University of Munich, Germany) Organizers

March 3, 2016

Faculty position in Image and Vision Computing at Edinburgh

by Barbara Webb

Applications are invited for a Lecturer to join the Institute of Perception, Action and Behaviour, part of the School of Informatics, at The University of Edinburgh. For an exceptional candidate, appointment to the position of Senior Lecturer or Reader will be considered. Closing date for applications, 21st March 2016, via form available here: https://www.vacancies.ed.ac.uk/pls/corehrrecruit/erq_jobspec_version_4.disp… The Institute carries out research in Machine Vision, Graphics, and Robotics. It also has substantial cross links to the Institute of Adaptive and Neural Computation. Candidates with an interest in the computational neuroscience of vision, machine learning, or the application of computer vision to robotics are particularly encouraged to apply; but applications in any area of Image and Vision computing will be considered. The School of Informatics plays a leading role in the EPRSC Centres for Doctoral Training in Robotics and Autonomous Systems, and in Data Science, with opportunities for the appointee to supervise PhD students from the Centres (and from other sources). In partnership with Heriot Watt University, we have recently established the Edinburgh Centre for Robotics, with substantial infrastructure funding for robotic platforms and supporting facilities. The University of Edinburgh is also one of the five joint venture partner universities in the UK's Alan Turing Institute for Data Science; this gives rise to opportunities to interact with PhD students, research fellows and senior researchers within the Turing Institute. In addition, there are many opportunities to interact with other parts of the University and beyond in order to further the candidate's research agenda. The successful candidate will have a PhD; experience as an established researcher in Image and Vision Computing; enthusiasm to undertake original research including leading a research group; ability to engage with undergraduate and postgraduate teaching and academic supervision; ability to be involved in enhancing eLearning and on-line teaching initiatives. The post is full time and open ended and is available from 4th January 2017. Informal enquiries should be directed to Professor Barbara Webb, Director of the Institute for Perception, Action and Behaviour: B.Webb(a)ed.ac.uk -- The University of Edinburgh is a charitable body, registered in Scotland, with registration number SC005336.

March 3, 2016

postdoc position in reinforcement learning & sleep

by Benoît Girard

Position description The goal of the post-doc will be to investigate the bridges to be established between the alternation of online & offline processes in reinforcement learning, and the replay processes observed in sleep and resting conditions of animals. The developed models will aim at simulating behavioral and neurophysiological data. We are looking for highly motivated candidates with a strong academic record. A background in computational neuroscience or machine learning is required. We specifically seek candidates with significant experience in reinforcement learning. Programming skills in modern C++ and python are expected. Context The DREAM European project (http://www.robotsthatdream.eu/) is focused on thebootstrap of a developmental process allowing a robot to learn about its environment and the objects it contains. DREAM is a project of the FET call (Future and Emerging Technologies) on « Knowing, doing, being: cognition beyond problem solving ». The position proposed here contributes to the DREAM workpackage dedicated to cross fertilization with neuroscience. Thanks to active collaborations with experimentalists, there will be access to fresh animal data. The position will be located in the Institute of Intelligent Systems and Robotics (ISIR, http://www.isir.upmc.fr) Paris, France. ISIR belongs to the UPMC-Sorbonne Universités which is among the top ranked French universities. ISIR is located in the center of Paris, at walking distance from other academic institutions (Ecole Normale Supérieure, La Sorbonne, Collège de France, etc.), and from famous monuments (Notre Dame, Le Panthéon, etc.). Speaking or understanding french is not required. To apply Applicants should send a CV, letter of motivation (max 2 pages), and 2-3 letters of reference via e-mail to benoit.girard(a)upmc.fr, with [DREAM post-doc] in the subject of the mail. Review of applicants will begin immediately, and will continue until the position is filled. The earliest start date is July 2016. Fiche_poste_post-doc_WP5.pages

March 3, 2016

Open positions in research, data science, and machine learning at Spotify

by Zachary Nichols

Spotify is seeking talented researchers and engineers to work on a variety of questions in an open, collaborative environment. Positions include data scientists and engineers with strong software skills, as well as individuals with some software ability who are strong at research design, statistical hypothesis testing, or who have strong domain expertise in relevant areas (such as the psychophysics of audio perception or behavioral modeling). Your work will involve novel research in areas like content recommendation, personalization, optimization, predictive user modeling, and large-scale experiments. You will work with a diverse team to bring research ideas from initial hypotheses, to well-designed experiments, to implementations that can scale to millions of people and billions of data points. Above all, your work will impact the way the world experiences music. The open positions span this process, including: *Research Lead* (New York, NY) *Data Scientist* (New York, NY and Stockholm, Sweden) *Machine Learning Engineer* (New York, NY and Boston, MA) *Data Engineer* (New York, NY and Boston, MA) We also have summer internships available in New York and Boston for undergraduate or graduate students. For more information, or to apply, please see www.spotify.com/jobs/ We are an equal opportunity employer and value diversity at our company. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status.

March 2, 2016

Post-Doc Position Bioinformatics in Marseille, France: Large-scale brain modeling and machine learning Neurodegenerative Diseases

by OTTEN Lisa

Bioinformatician Neurodegenerative diseases post-Doc position Large-scale brain modeling and machine learning A rare 2-year postdoc position opportunity for a creative & innovative Bioinformatician with a desire to play a key role in the exciting field of neurodegenerative diseases and aging. The Bioinformatician will be based in Marseille (Timone University Hospital Campus) and will have the exciting challenge of combining data mining & modelling algorithms that will direct the future of neurodegenerative disorders treatments. This is a role operating on the forefront of science that will reward the individual through job satisfaction, both career & personal development opportunities. The position is for 1 year starting now, renewable for another year and with a salary commensurate with experience. Working with a multidisciplinary team of clinicians, imaging specialists, biologists, engineers, physicists and software engineers, the Bioinformatician will work on parameter inference for connectome-based large-scale brain network models (see The Virtual Brain http://www.thevirtualbrain.org<http://www.thevirtualbrain.org/>) (leader V Jirsa) applied to clinical brain imaging data (EEG, MEG, fMRI) (leader M Guye) and systems biology (leader C Nguyen). In particular, the project will involve the application and evaluation of common Bayesian estimation techniques such as Markov-Chain Monte-Carlo and variational schemes to high-dimensional time-series models of brain activity. Finally, the on-site high-performance cluster will be used to evaluate models on large datasets comprising groups of patients. Minimum Qualifications & Experience: Doctoral degree in the field of computer science, physics, engineering or related fields, ideally with specialization in bio-informatics or computational neuroscience. Good communication skills in English, both oral and written. In particular candidates should be capable of presenting technical information and data to non-experts in a clear and concise manner Desirable Qualifications & Experience: Candidates should be comfortable working with machine learning techniques and programming in a data-friendly language such as MATLAB, Python, R, Julia etc. Experience with nonlinear dynamical systems and signal processing, which play a large role in model construction and preprocessing, are valued but not required. The project is proposed by the Federation Hospitalo-Universitaire DHUNE and funded by Aix-Marseille University A*MIDEX. To learn more about this fascinating role send your CV and covering letter to: Prof Olivier Blin, DHUNE Coordination, Clinical Pharmacology, Timone Hospital, 13385 Marseille Cedex 5. Email: olivier.blin(a)ap-hm.fr Kind regards, Lisa Otten

March 2, 2016

Call for Submissions: Doctoral Symposium on Foundations and Applications of Self-* Systems (FAS*W)

by Jan-Philipp Steghöfer

**************************************************************************** FAS*W 2016 (SASO and ICCAC) Call For Doctoral Symposium Submissions Doctoral Symposium on Foundations and Applications of Self-* Systems (FAS*W) Augsburg, Germany, September 12 & 16, 2016 http://fasstar2016.informatik.uni-augsburg.de/ http://iccac2016.se.rit.edu/ http://uni-augsburg.de/saso2016 @SASO2016Conf **************************************************************************** Foundations and Applications of Self* Systems (FAS*) is the umbrella for two closely related but independent conferences, the International Conference on Self-Adaptive and Self-Organizing Systems (SASO) and the International Conference on Cloud and Autonomic Computing (ICCAC). The FAS* Doctoral Symposium provides an international forum for PhD Students working in research areas addressed by FAS*. In this forum, PhD students will get unique opportunities to subject their research to the scrutiny of external experts, gain experience in the presentation of research, connect to peers and experts addressing similar problems, and get advice from a panel of internationally leading researchers. Different from the technical tracks of the conference, the FAS* Doctoral Symposium focuses on the specific needs of young researchers at the beginning of their career. As such, particular emphasis will be placed on a critical and constructive feedback that shall help participants to successfully conclude their PhD studies. PhD students working in any area addressed by the FAS* conferences are invited to submit a Doctoral Symposium paper in which they describe the key motivation and objectives of their research project, and reflect on the methodology as well as the current status of their PhD studies. Complementing the thematic focus of FAS*, we particularly solicit contributions in the following areas: * Engineering of self-organizing and self-adaptive systems We solicit theoretical and applied works addressing fundamental principles underlying self-organizing systems, as well as methods that allow to quantify, model and reproduce the self-* characteristics of complex systems in biological, social, physical and technical systems. Examples include mechanisms underlying distributed decision- making and collective intelligence, software engineering challenges in self-adaptive systems, as well as general application of self-* principles in the engineering of technical systems. * Complex Cyber-physical and socio-technical systems We welcome contributions that apply self-* principles to address challenges in the design of complex cyber- physical and socio-technical systems. Particular examples include smart grid infrastructures, sensor networks, opportunistic networking scenarios, as well as large-scale social information systems. Works addressing challenges such as the security, privacy and anonymity of users, or mechanisms to prevent censorship, manipulation or unfairness in socio-technical systems are especially welcome. We further solicit works on socio- technical and socio-economic challenges in P2P systems, such as the design of incentive, trust and reputation mechanisms. * Self-* approaches in Massive-Scale Decentralized Systems Works in this area use self-* approaches to address challenges in the design and operation of massive scale decentralized systems. Examples include Peer-to-Peer technologies, as well as overlay topology management schemes. We are further interested in decentralized data mining and machine learning approaches, as well as decentralized approaches to monitor, model and adapt distributed systems. Works using self-* principles to address the inherent challenges in the design of massive-scale systems with unreliable and heterogeneous are of particular interest. * Autonomic Computing Systems Here we are interested in all works addressing the self-configuration, self-optimization and self-adaptation of cloud computing services, data centers and general distributed computing systems. Examples for questions addressed in this area include the monitoring and modeling of cloud services, the design of efficient resource allocation mechanisms, the application of data mining and machine learning techniques to analyze and predict the behavior of technical systems, as well as the characterization of distributed computing workloads. * Application of Self-* in Robotics and Spatial Computing Finally, we welcome contributions using self-* principles in the areas of robotics, swarm robotics and spatial computing. Here, examples for works of interest include environmental modeling and perception, machine vision, and self-adaptation mechanisms in robotics, distributed coordination and collective intelligence in multi- robot systems, as well as novel paradigms for the programming of autonomous, spatially distributed entities. --------------------------- Submission Instructions --------------------------- Submissions should have a length of max. six pages and be formatted according to the IEEE Computer Society Press proceedings style guide. Authors should submit their papers using the EasyChair installation of the main conference, which is available at: https://easychair.org/conferences/?conf=saso2016 Please note that only single-author submissions are accepted, which focus on the topic of the doctoral work. The name of the supervisor (« supervised by ... ») should be clearly marked below the author’s name in the paper. Submissions should further adhere to the following structure: * Motivation: motivate the open problem that you want to address and briefly summarize existing approaches along with their deficiencies. * Objectives: describe the key objectives of your PhD project and argue how achieving them will solve the open problem outlined in the motivation. * Methodology: outline what methodology you will adopt to meet the objectives of your project. Clearly state on what existing works your work will build. * Research Plan: describe what preliminary results – if any – you have already achieved and summarize your plans for future work. Please add a rough schedule that allows to judge whether your research plan is feasible. Authors of accepted papers shall prepare a final, camera ready version of the paper, taking into account all feedback from reviewers, and formatted according to the IEEE Computer Society Press proceedings style guide. Doctoral Symposium papers will be advertised in the final program, and will be submitted to IEEE Xplore as part of the SASO proceedings. Papers will also be made available in the IEEE Digital Library. -------------------- Review Process -------------------- Each submission will be reviewed by at least two Doctoral Symposium experts (see list below) that cover the different areas of interest of the conference. Submissions will be evaluated based on their relevance to FAS*, the motivation and quality of the proposed research, as well as the suitability of the chosen methodology. Authors of accepted papers will have different opportunities to present their project at the conference. Besides a full presentation during the PhD Symposium session, an “Elevator Pitch Session” will be organized during the main conference, where authors get the chance to briefly showcase their research. In addition, the Best Doctoral Symposium paper will be selected and the award will be presented during the main conference. Finally, selected authors will have the additional chance to present their work via a poster in the poster session of the main conference. --------------------------- Invited Talk --------------------------- To be announced --------------------------- Doctoral Symposium Experts --------------------------- * Ozalp Babaoglu – University of Bologna, IT * Jacob Beal – BBN Technologies, USA * Kurt Geihs – Universitaet Kassel, DE * Tom Holvoet – KU Leuven, BE * Manish Parashar – Rutgers University, USA * Jeremy Pitt – Imperial College London, UK * Mark Jelasity – University of Szeged, HU * Burkhard Stiller – University of Zurich, CH * Giuseppe Valetto – Fondazione Bruno Kessler, Trento, IT * Salim Hariri – University of Arizona, USA * Simon Dobson – University of St Andrews, Scotland, UK * Antonio Bucchiarone - Fondazione Bruno Kessler, Trento, IT To be completed --------------------------- Important Dates --------------------------- Abstract Submission due: May 29, 2016 Paper Submission due: June 12, 2016 Notifications due: July 10, 2016 Camera ready version due: July 24, 2016 Conference date: September 12-16, 2016 --------------------------- Contact Information --------------------------- For any further information, please contact the Doctoral Symposium chairs: Pradeep Murukannaiah Department of Computer Scienc North Carolina State University Raleigh, NC, 27606, USA pmuruka(a)ncsu.edu http://www4.ncsu.edu/~pmuruka/ Dr. Ingo Scholtes Chair of Systems Design ETH Zurich CH-8092 Zurich Switzerland ischoltes(a)ethz.ch http://www.ingoscholtes.net

March 1, 2016

SSBSS 2016 Call for Oral Presentations/Posters: 8-14 July 2016, Volterra (Pisa) Tuscany, Italy - 3rd Int. Synthetic & Systems Biology Summer School - Application DEADLINE: March 31, 2016

by Giuseppe Nicosia

* Our sincere apologies if you receive multiple copies of this announcement * Please help us distributing in your circles (emails, blogs, and social networks) the call for participation and call for oral talks/posters for SSBSS 2016. Together we will make SSBSS a great event! ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3rd International Synthetic and Systems Biology Summer School - SSBSS 2016, 8-14 July 2016, Volterra (Pisa) - Tuscany, Italy ssbss.school(a)gmail.com http://www.taosciences.it/ssbss/ https://www.facebook.com/ssbss.school/ https://twitter.com/SchoolSsbss The Synthetic and Systems Biology Summer School (SSBSS) is a full-immersion five-day residential summer school at the Volterra Learning Center (Pisa - Tuscany, Italy) on cutting-edge advances in systems and synthetic biology with lectures delivered by world-renowned experts. The school provides a stimulating environment for students (from Master students to PhD students), Post-Docs, early career researches, academics and industry leaders. Participants will also have the chance to present their results (with Oral Talks and Posters), and to interact with their peers, in a friendly and constructive environment. SSBSS 2016 DEADLINES: Application: March 31, 2016 Notification Acceptance: April 10, 2016 Oral Presentation/Poster Submission: March 31, 2016 Notification of Decision for Oral/Poster Presentation: April 10, 2016 http://www.taosciences.it/ssbss/#application-form SPEAKERS * Yaakov (Kobi) Benenson, Synthetic Biology Group@Department of Biosystems Science and Engineering, ETH Zurich, Basel, Switzerland Lecture 1: The practice of mammalian synthetic biology Lecture 2: Mammalian cell classifiers * Leonidas Bleris, Bioengineering Department, The University of Texas at Dallas, USA Lecture 1: Genome Editing Technologies and Therapeutic Modalities Lecture 2: Benchmark Circuits and Topological Properties * Domitilla Del Vecchio, Department of Mechanical Engineering, MIT, USA Lecture 1: Modularity in genetic circuits: Dream versus Reality Lecture 2: Engineering Modularity in Genetic Circuits * Diego Di Bernardo, Dept of Chemical Materials and Industrial Production Engineering University of Naples "Federico II", Naples, Italy Lecture 1: "Engineering and Control of Biological Circuits in Yeast" Lecture 2: "Engineering and Control of Biological Circuits in Mammalian Cells * Barbara Di Ventura, Synthetic Biology Group, BioQuant/DKFZ, Heidelberg, Germany Lecture 1: Using blue light to control protein localization in living mammalian cells Lecture 2: Using split inteins for protein engineering in living cells * J. Gootenberg, Feng Zhang's Group, Department of Systems Biology, Harvard Medical School, Harvard University, USA Lectures: TBA * Markus Herrgard, Technical University of Denmark - Biosustain, Novo Nordisk Foundation Center for Biosustainability, Denmark Lecture 1: "Developing an Integrated Cell Factory Design Tool" Lecture 2: "Using Automated Laboratory Evolution to Optimize Cell Factories” * Shalev Itzkovitz, Department of Molecular Cell Biology, Weizmann Institute of Science, Israel Lecture 1: "Single Molecule Approaches for Studying Gene Expression in Intact Mammalian Tissues" Lecture 2: "Systems Biology of Stem Cell-Maintained Tissues” * Francesco Ricci, Dipartimento di Scienze e Tecnologie Chimiche, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy Lecture 1: "DNA Nanotechnology Tools and Reactions for Synthetic Biology" Lecture 2: "Nature-inspired DNA-based Nanodevices More speakers will be announced soon! INDUSTRIAL PANEL * Speakers TBA Next Generation Sequencing Workshop – Afternoon July 12th, 2016 * “How fast can we align sequences?” Mario Guarracino, CNR, Italy * “Advanced Bioinformatics tools for NGS” – TBC Luca Zammataro, Yale University, USA Tutorials: * “Detection and analysis of contaminating sequences in NGS sequencing data” Ilaria Granata, CNR, Italy * “Detection and interpretation of circular RNAs in RNA-seq experiments” Parijat Tripathi, CNR, Italy Scientific Committee Jole Costanza, Italian Institute of Technology, Italy Diego Di Bernardo, TeleThon Institute of Genetics & Medicine - TIGEM and University of Napoli "Federico II", Italy Barbara Di Camillo, University of Padova, Italy Simone Furini, University of Siena, Italy Emanuele Domenico Giordano, University of Bologna, Italy Massimo Gulisano, University of Catania, Italy Mario Guarracino, ICAR-CNR, Italy Markus Herrgard, Novo Nordisk Foundation Center for Biosustainability, Technical University of Denmark, Denmark Paolo Magni, University of Pavia, Italy Giuseppe Narzisi, New York Genome Center, USA Giuseppe Nicosia, University of Catania, Italy Wieslaw Nowak, Nicholas Copernicus University, Poland Danilo Porro, University of Milano Bicocca, Italy Francesco Ricci, University of Rome "Tor Vergata", Italy Gianna Maria Toffolo, University of Padova, Italy Renato Umeton, MIT, USA Luca Zammataro, Yale University, USA School Directors Diego Di Bernardo, TeleThon Institute of Genetics & Medicine - TIGEM and University of Napoli "Federico II", Italy Giuseppe Nicosia, University of Catania, Italy Luca Zammataro, Yale University, USA See you in Tuscany in July! The Organizing Committee. ssbss.school(a)gmail.com http://www.taosciences.it/ssbss/ https://www.facebook.com/ssbss.school/ https://twitter.com/SchoolSsbss * Apologies for multiple copies. Please forward to anybody who might be interested * * Other Events in Tuscany: * 2nd International Workshop on Machine learning, Optimization and big Data - MOD 2016 An Interdisciplinary Workshop: Machine Learning, Optimization and Data Science without Borders, Volterra (Pisa) -Tuscany, August 26-29, 2016 http://www.taosciences.it/mod/ modworkshop2016(a)gmail.com CALL FOR PAPERS Paper submission deadline: March 31, 2016 http://www.taosciences.it/mod/call-for-papers/ https://easychair.org/conferences/?conf=mod2016 KEYNOTE SPEAKERS + Nello Cristianini, Bristol University, UK + George Michailidis, University of Florida, USA + Stephen H. Muggleton, Imperial College London, UK + Panos Pardalos, University of Florida, USA Other Keynote Speakers will be announced soon POST-PROCEEDINGS by Lecture Notes in Computer Science - Springer JOURNAL SPECIAL ISSUE Computational Optimization and Applications Journal - Springer -- Giuseppe Nicosia, Ph.D. Associate Professor of Computer Engineering Dept of Mathematics & Computer Science University of Catania Viale A. Doria, 6 - 95125 Catania, Italy P +39 095 7383048 nicosia(a)dmi.unict.it http://www.dmi.unict.it/nicosia ================================================================== 3rd International Synthetic & Systems Biology Summer School - SSBSS 2016 * Biology meets Computer Science & Engineering * July 8-14, 2016 - Volterra (Pisa), Tuscany, Italy http://www.taosciences.it/ssbss/ ================================================================== 2nd International Workshop on Machine learning, Optimization & big Data - MOD 2016 August 26-29, 2016 - Volterra (Pisa), Tuscany, Italy http://www.taosciences.it/mod/ ==================================================================

March 1, 2016

PhD position in computational neuroscience at Frankfurt University

by Claudius Gros

I would like to brink your attention our PhD-program in Computational Neurosciences / Complex Dynamical Systems At the Institute of Theoretical Physics, University of Frankfurt am Main, Field(s): computational neurosciences, complex systems, theory neural networks, simulated robotics, dynamical systems. Application deadline: April 22, 2016 Contact: Prof. Claudius Gros E-mail: cgr[(a)]itp.uni-frankfurt.de Address: Institute for Theoretical Physics, J.W. Goethe University Frankfurt, We are developing new models and generative principles for the brain using a range of toolsets from dynamical systems theory and computational neurosciences. Examples are new objective functions and generating functionals for the sensory-motor loop, transient state dynamics and self-limiting Hebbian plasticity rules. Several subjects are available for the announced PhD thesis including the generation of attractor metadynamics through short-term synaptic plasticity and/or the generation of motor primitives through self-organized embodiment within the sensory-motor loop. The work will include analytical investigations and numerical simulations of neural networks and/or of simulated robots, using the toolset of dynamical systems theory. The candidate should have a Diploma/Master in physics with an excellent academic track record and good computational skills. Experience or strong interest in the fields of complex systems, computational neurosciences, dynamical systems theory and/or artificial or biological cognitive systems is expected. The degree of scientific research experience is expected to be on the level of a German Diploma/Master. The appointment will start summer 2016, for up to three years. Interested applicants should submit a curriculum vitae and a list of publications, and arrange for letters of reference to be sent to the address above Claudius Gros http://www.itp.uni-frankfurt.de/~gros ***************************************** *** Prof. Dr. Claudius Gros *** *** +49 (0)69 798 47818 *** *** http://itp.uni-frankfurt.de/~gros *** ***************************************** ----------------------------------------------------------- --- Complex and Adaptive Dynamical Systems, A Primer --- --- A graduate-level textbook, Springer (2008/10/13/15) --- -----------------------------------------------------------

Feb. 29, 2016

High performance environment for collaborative neuroscience research

by Ted Carnevale

Please accept our apologies if you have already received a similar message from another source-- Dear colleague: We are trying to gauge the interest among the neuroscience community in a collaborative environment that provides secure data storage and sharing, combined with high performance computing resources like those offered by NSG*. We would greatly appreciate your participation in this survey https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1vY7xXaeXFDb63EbgmgvQ7ZbUNpIopvh6UuTpwYeDmz… which will take about 10 minutes to complete. Please feel free to bring this to the attention of your collaborators or students who might also be interested. Ted Carnevale, Neuroscience Department, Yale University Amit Majumdar, San Diego Supercomputer Center, UCSD *--NSG is the Neuroscience Gateway https://www.nsgportal.org which provides free supercomputing cycles to neuroscientists for using tools such as NEURON, Brian, GENESIS, MOOSE, NEST, PyNN, and FreeSurfer.

Feb. 28, 2016

ICANN 2016 Barcelona - EXTENSION of the Last Call for contributions

by Antonio Javier Pons Rivero

*EXTENSION of t**he **Last Call**for Oral Presentation, Poster Presentation and/or Full **P**aper Contribution* *www.icann2016.org* *ICANN 2016 * 25th Annual Conference on Artificial Neural Networks BarcelonaTech (UPC), Barcelona, Spain 6 - 9 September 2016* Special event*: ENNS 25th Anniversary ============================================================ /The International Conference on Artificial Neural Networks (ICANN) is the annual flagship conference of the European Neural Network Society (ENNS). In 2016 the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya (BarcelonaTech) will organis//e the 25th ICANN Conference from //the //6th to //the //9th //of //September 2016 in Barcelona, Spain, in collaboration with the Universit//at//Pompeu Fabra (UPF)./ *INVITED KEYNOTE SPEAKERS* 1. *Wlodek Duch *(Nicolaus Copernicus University, Torun, Poland) 2. *Erkki Oja *(Aalto University, Helsinki, Finland) 3. *Joaquin Fuster *(University of California at Los Angeles, USA) 4. *Murray Shanahan* (Imperial College London, UK) 5. *Günther Palm*(University of Ulm, Germany) 6. *Stephen Coombes *(University of Nottingham, UK) 7. *Etienne Koechlin*(Pierre and Marie Curie University, France) *IMPORTANT DATES* */EXTENDED Submission of abstracts and papers: /**1 April 2016 **//EXTENDED /Submission of /**/d/**/emonstration proposals: /**1 April 2016 */Notification of acceptance:/8 May 2016 /Camera-ready paper and registration: /15 May 2016 /Conference dates:/6-9 September 2016 *CONFERENCE TOPICS* ICANN 2016 will feature the main tracks /Brain Inspired Computing/ and /Machine Learning Research/, with strong cross-disciplinary interactions and applications. All research fields dealing with Neural Networks will be present at the conference. A non-exhaustive list of topics includes: * Brain Inspired Computing: Cognitive models, Computational Neuroscience, Self-organisation, Reinforcement Learning, Neural Control and Planning, Hybrid Neural-Symbolic Architectures, Neural Dynamics, Recurrent Networks, Deep Learning. * Machine Learning: Neural Network Theory, Neural Network Models, Graphical Models, Bayesian Networks, Kernel Methods, Generative Models, Information Theoretic Learning, Reinforcement Learning, Relational Learning, Dynamical Models. * Neural Applications for: Intelligent Robotics, Neurorobotics, Language Processing, Image Processing, Sensor Fusion, Pattern Recognition, Data Mining, Neural Agents, Brain-Computer Interaction, Neural Hardware, Evolutionary Neural Networks. *** CONFERENCE REGISTRATION FEE**S* Early registration fees have been kept particularly low for this kind of event because ENNS and ICANN aim to fully implement the academicnot-for-profit policy. Undergraduate students (Bachelor and Master level): 90 EUR PhD Students: 200 EUR Regular delegates: 250 EUR *ENNS members have a reduction of 40 EUR* Students can apply for ENNS funded travel grants to attend (see the conference website). *CALL FOR CONTRIBUTED SCIENTIFIC COMMUNICATIONS* All scientific communications presented at ICANN 2016 will be reviewed and scientifically evaluated by a panel of experts. The conference will feature three categories of communications: - oral communications (15'+5') - poster communications (on permanent display and with a 2-hour presentation) - demonstrations Authors willing to present original contributions for any category must submit a manuscript of a maximum length of 8 pages.Accepted papers of contributing authors will be published in Springer-Verlag Lecture Notes in Computer Science (LNCS) series. Selected papers will be invited after the conference for a full journal paper submission. Authors willing to present a contribution for oral communications and posters without submitting a full manuscript must submit a 1-page abstract. The abstracts will be published all together in a proceedings section without an author index. In case of programme constraints the priority will be given to original contributions accompanied by a full paper submission. Submission of communications will be online. More details are available on the conference website (http://icann2016.org/index.php/contributors/submission) *BEST PAPER AWARDS* ENNS will sponsor a maximum of four best paper awards, two in the Brain Inspired Computing track (one poster and one oral communication) and, analogously, two in the Machine Learning Research track. All awardees will be presented during the final ceremony. *ORGANISATION** General Chair:*/ Antonio J. Pons Rivero/(UPC Barcelona, Spain)* Local**co-Chairs:* /Jordi Garcia-Ojalvo/(UPF Barcelona, Spain), /Paul Verschure/(UPF Barcelona, Spain) *Organising Committee Chairs:*/ Daniel Malagarriga/(UPC Barcelona, Spain), /Lara Escuain/(UPC Barcelona, Spain), /Caroline Kleinheny/(ENNS Lausanne, Switzerland) *Honorary Chair: *Alessandro E. P. Villa * Communication* *Chair:*/ Paolo Masulli/(ENNS Lausanne, Switzerland) *********************************************** Antonio J. Pons Rivero General Chair of ICANN 2016 Terrassa School of Industrial and Aeronautical Engineering (ETSEIAT) Nonlinear dynamics, nonlinear optics and lasers Group BarcelonaTech (UPC) Edifici GAIA Rbla. Sant Nebridi, 22 08222 Terrassa, Spain Caroline Kleinheny Secretary of the European Neural Network Society University of Lausanne Internef 137k, Quartier UNIL Dorigny 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland ***********************************************

Feb. 28, 2016

CNS*2016 Abstract Deadline extension to March 6, 2016

by Tam, Nicoladie

Abstract Deadline extension to March 6, 2016 This is one and only extension of the abstract submission CNS*2016 Call for Abstracts Organization for Computational Neurosciences (OCNS) 25th Annual Meeting Jeju, South Korea July 2-7, 2016 The main meeting (July 3-5) will be preceded by a day of tutorials (July 2) and followed by two days of workshops (July 6-7). Invited Keynote Speakers: * Nicolas Brunel, University of Chicago, USA * Alain Destexhe, CNRS, France * Mitsuo Kawato, Advanced Telecommunications Research Institute (ATR), Japan * Tatyana Sharpee, Salk Institute, USA Abstract submission<https://ocns.memberclicks.net/cns-2016-abstract-submission> deadline extension: March 6, 2016, 11 pm, Pacific Time, USA Travel award<http://www.cnsorg.org/cns-2016-travel-awards> application deadline extension: March 6, 2016 Apply for membership<http://www.cnsorg.org/join-ocns> by March 1, 2016 to ensure the member registration rate for your abstract submission Workshop proposals<http://www.cnsorg.org/cns-2016-call-for-workshops> are now being accepted. Note that one of the authors has to register as sponsoring author for the main meeting before abstract submission is possible. In case the abstract is not accepted for presentation, the registration fee will be refunded. For up-to-date conference information, please visit: http://www.cnsorg.org/cns-2016

Feb. 27, 2016

Postdoctoral position in Multisensory perception and action at New York University Abu Dhabi

by Robert Volcic

The Psychology Department at New York University Abu Dhabi is inviting applications for a fully funded postdoctoral associate position in the area of Psychology with interests in human perceptual and motor systems. The postdoctoral associate will work under the supervision of Dr. Robert Volcic (http://volcic.github.io) and will carry out behavioral studies on human multisensory perception (mainly vision and touch) and action (reaching and grasping). The lab will be equipped with a state of the art system for 3D visualization, a head tracking system, and a motion capture system for monitoring reaching and grasping movements. Moreover, the postdoctoral associate will have access to an eye movement tracker, and to fMRI and EEG facilities. Applicants must hold (or be close to completing) a Ph.D. in Psychology, Cognitive Science, Neuroscience, Biology, or related fields. Prior experience in vision/haptic/motor research is important as is programming efficiency. Applications will be accepted immediately and will be considered on a rolling basis. Please visit our website at http://nyuad.nyu.edu/about/careers/faculty-positions.html for instructions and information on how to apply. To be considered, all applicants must submit a cover letter, a curriculum vitae with full publication list, a statement of research interests, representative publications, expected date of availability, and names of two referees, all in PDF format. If you have any questions, please e-mail robert.volcic(a)nyu.edu. The preferred start date is September 1st, 2016. A later start date is possible based on the needs of the applicant. The duration of employment is for two years with the possibility to renew. This position is based in Abu Dhabi (U.A.E.). The terms of employment are competitive and include housing and other benefits. About NYUAD: New York University has established itself as a Global Network University, a multi-site, organically connected network encompassing key global cities and idea capitals. The network has three foundational degree-granting campuses: New York, Abu Dhabi, and Shanghai, complimented by a network of eleven research and study-away sites across five continents. Faculty and students will circulate within this global network in pursuit of common research interests and the promotion of cross-cultural and interdisciplinary solutions for problems both local and global. Entering its sixth year, NYU Abu Dhabi has recruited a cohort of faculty who are at once distinguished in their research and teaching. Our students are drawn from around the world and surpass all traditional recruitment benchmarks, both US and global. NYU Abu Dhabi’s highly selective liberal arts enterprise is complimented by an institute for advanced research, sponsoring cutting-edge projects across the Arts, Humanities, Social Sciences, Sciences, and Engineering. EOE/Minorities/Females/Vet/Disabled

Feb. 26, 2016

CoSMo 2016 registration open

by Gunnar Blohm

*Sixth Annual Computational Sensory-Motor Neuroscience Summer School (CoSMo 2016)* University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA July 31 - August 14, 2016 We would like to invite you to join us for the sixth annual Computational Sensory-Motor Neuroscience Summer School. The course is about experimental, computational and medical aspects of sensory-motor neuroscience with a focus on active learning. Covered topics include multi-sensory integration, motor learning & control, computational methods, sensory-motor transformations and neural coding / decoding. An important focus is on doing research as opposed to just hearing about it. Each teaching module will take up two days with morning lecture sessions. Afternoon sessions involve hands-on Matlab programming, simulation and data-analysis. Newly acquired computational tools can also be applied in 2-week evening group research projects. The course is aimed at students and post-doctoral fellows from diverse backgrounds including Life Sciences, Psychology, Computer Science, Physics, Mathematics and Engineering. Basic knowledge in calculus, linear algebra and Matlab is expected. Enrollment will be limited to 40 trainees. *Application deadline: Apr 11, 2016* For more information and to apply, please go to <http://www.compneurosci.com/CoSMo/>http://www.compneurosci.com/CoSMo/ Scholarship information and the application form can be found here: http://www.compneurosci.com/CoSMo/application.html The school is co-organized by Drs Gunnar Blohm, Paul Schrater, and Konrad Körding. This year, it receives funding from the NIH through a Brain Initiative R25 grant and from The Brain Canada Foundation. -- ------------------------------------------------------- Dr. Gunnar BLOHM Associate Professor in Computational Neuroscience Association for Canadian Neuroinformatics and Computational Neuroscience (CNCN) Centre for Neuroscience Studies, Departments of Biomedical and Molecular Sciences, Mathematics & Statistics, and Psychology, School of Computing, and Canadian Action and Perception Network (CAPnet) Queen’s University 18, Stuart Street Kingston, Ontario, Canada, K7L 3N6 Tel: (613) 533-3385 Fax: (613) 533-6840 Email: Gunnar.Blohm(a)QueensU.ca Web: http://www.compneurosci.com/

Feb. 26, 2016

Neuroimaging Data Analyst Position at the University of Illinois at Chicago (Summer/Fall 2016)

by Sylvia Morelli

Drs. Sylvia Morelli and K. Luan Phan are considering applications for a neuroimaging data analyst to work jointly in the Empathy and Social Connection Lab (http://www.morellilab.com/ <http://www.morellilab.com/>) and the Mood and Anxiety Disorders Research Program (http://www.psych.uic.edu/research/mood-and-anxiety-disorders-research-progr… <http://www.psych.uic.edu/research/mood-and-anxiety-disorders-research-progr…>) at University of Illinois at Chicago. The data analyst will have the opportunity to analyze several data sets related to social cognitive affective neuroscience (e.g., empathy, social networks, reward learning, decision-making, emotional processing and regulation, fear learning and extinction) in healthy and psychiatric populations (e.g., anxiety and depression), as well as pharmacotherapy and psychotherapy treatment response. The analyst will implement the latest approaches developing in the field of imaging neuroscience — including but not limited to pattern classification, prospective prediction, machine learning, effective connectivity, connectomics/graph theory, computational modeling – and train others (faculty, postdocs, graduate students) on conventional and new analysis techniques. The position will involve analyzing data across multiple modalities including self-report, behavior, psychophysiology (SCR, startle), EEG/ERP, DTI, structural MRI and functional MRI – at single-unit and integrated levels. The data analyst will work amongst diverse investigators across disciplines (e.g., neuroscience, psychology, psychiatry). Successful applicants will have a Masters- or PhD-level degree in neuroscience, psychology, computer science, statistics/biostatistics or mathematics and/or a record of extensive experience in analyzing structural and functional MRI data. Applicants should also be fluent in SPM (or AFNI/BrainVoyager), statistical packages (e.g., Matlab and R), and programming languages (e.g., Unix). Excellent communication (verbal and written) and organizational skills are required. The position will be fully funded for at least 2 years with the potential for a longer-term position. We will review applications beginning March 1, until the position is filled. Applicants should send a CV, a statement describing their qualifications for the position and relevant experience, and the names of 2-3 references that may be contacted for a recommendation to Dr. Morelli (smorelli(a)uic.edu <mailto:smorelli@uic.edu>) and Dr. Phan (klphan(a)psych.uic.edu <mailto:klphan@psych.uic.edu>).

Feb. 25, 2016

2 Postdoc positions in modeling dendritic integration and synaptic plasticity

by Walter Senn

Dear Colleagues, dear all, We are inviting applications for 2 postdoc positions (for at least 2 years, earliest start April 1, 2016) in computational neuroscience at the University of Bern, Switzerland. Our research is devoted to models of synaptic plasticity and dendritic integration that serve as a computational paradigm for learning in neuronal networks. We have recently suggested to consider “Learning by the dendritic prediction of somatic spiking” (Neuron 2014) that assigns an intrinsic computational task to neurons and dendrites. This concept will be extended by including dendritic nonlinearities and considering networks of such neuronal prediction elements. The 2 positions are: 1) Postdoc for modeling dendritic integration. We have shown how the error-backpropagation algorithm translates to a dendritic tree that displays NMDA-spikes in individual dendritic branches (PLoS Comp Biol 2016). Along these ideas a biophysical model of dendritic integration will be worked out that makes also contact to Bayesian integration. 2) Postdoc for modeling synaptic plasticity and learning in networks. The neurons as intrinsic prediction elements will be connected to form a network that mimics various learning tasks and that is particularly suited for imitation learning. You will profit from generous travel funding and from collaborations in- and outside the Human Brain Project, and you will also enjoy the beautiful city and surrounding of Switzerland’s capital. Ideal candidates have a strong background in computational neuroscience and machine learning. Please send CV, letter of motivation, and publication list by March 11 to Walter Senn (senn(a)pyl.unibe.ch) and Sabine Herzog (herzog(a)pyl.unibe.ch) With best wishes Walter Senn PS: For recent work of our group see http://www.physio.unibe.ch/~senn/neuroscience.aspx

Feb. 25, 2016

Call for Applications: Paul J. Salem Postdoctoral Scholars in Computational Brain Science – Brown Institute for Brain Science

by Michael J Frank

The Brown Institute for Brain Science Initiative for Computation in Brain and Mind <http://compneuro.clps.brown.edu> is seeking applicants for the Paul J. Salem Postdoctoral Scholarships in Brain Science. The postdoctoral scholars will lead an exciting new project at the interface between machine learning and neuroscience. In particular, we are looking for computational neuroscientists interested in the application and development of novel machine learning methods for the analysis of neural recordings. Candidates are expected to have a solid background in modern machine learning and signal processing as well as demonstrated interest in experimental neuroscience. In addition, to conducting primary research with large neural data sets, candidates will be involved in the mentoring of students, and the organization of workshops. Candidates are expected to interact closely with the Neurotechnology group within the Brain Institute. The initial appointment is for 12 months with the potential to renew. The salary is competitive. The start date is negotiable although funding is available now. Research group: *The Initiative for Computation in Brain and Mind (ICBM;* <http://compneuro.clps.brown.edu>http://compneuro.clps.brown.edu) which began Fall 2013 within the Brown Institute for Brain Science, creates an exciting intellectual environment that fosters synergistic collaborations across departments. Groups affiliated with the initiative work on two core levels of computation. The first level focuses on theoretical neuroscience, including computational perception, control over action and learning, and fundamental questions in neuronal networks (synaptic plasticity, circuits, networks, oscillations). The second level focuses on applications and neurotechnology, including brain-machine interfaces, advanced neural data analysis, computer vision, computational psychiatry, and robotics. ICBM has 16 core computational faculty (http://compneuro.clps.brown.edu/people/) spanning six departments, and many more faculty who incorporate computation for theory development, analysis, or both. Computational neuroscience tools at Brown have been applied in projects including brain-machine control of robotic arms in paralyzed humans; models of visual systems in biological organisms and their innovative application for classifying animal behavioral patterns; predicting and quantifying effects of genetics, disease, medications, and brain stimulation on motor and cognitive function; identification of the source of neural rhythms and their roles in sensorimotor function; development of fundamental theories of brain plasticity, and learning; state-of-the art models of machine learning and reinforcement learning in computer science. The Brown Institute for Brain Science (BIBS) advances multidisciplinary research, technology development, and training in the brain sciences. BIBS unites more than 100 faculty from departments across Brown, spanning basic and clinical departments, and physical and biological sciences. BIBS creates opportunities and essential support to advance interdisciplinary research efforts among these groups including training funds to support interdisciplinary scholarship and research. Requirements: Candidates must have received their PhDs within 3 years of the application deadline, and will work under the supervision of faculty members at Brown University who are affiliated with the Initiative for Computation in Brain and Mind. They must have a strong background in computational neuroscience and machine learning, with a track record of relevant publications at top venues (such as NIPS or ICML). Excellent programming skills are required (C/C++/Matlab/Python). Application: Please send your applications by email to cbm-info(a)brown.edu. Please include a brief statement of interests, a curriculum vitae, a list of publications and 2-3 letters of reference (addressed directly to cbm-info(a)brown.edu) There is no deadline for the application but applicants are encouraged to apply as soon as possible as the position will be filled as soon as a suitable applicant is found. ------------------------------ Michael J Frank, PhD, Professor Laboratory for Neural Computation and Cognition Brown University http://ski.clps.brown.edu (401)-863-6872

Feb. 25, 2016

[IEEE ICCI*CC'16:] RE: IEEE ICCI*CC'16 Update

by Yingxu Wang

Dear Colleague, The 15th IEEE International Conference on Cognitive Informatics and Cognitive Computing (ICCI*CC'16) will be held at Stanford University, CA, USA during Aug. 22-23, 2016 (http://www.ucalgary.ca/icci_cc/iccicc-16) The IEEE ICCI*CC series is a flagship conference of its field sponsored by IEEE Computer, Computational Intelligence, and SMC Societies. It forms a transdisciplinary field that studies the internal information processing mechanisms of the brain, the underlying abstract intelligence (aI) theories and denotational mathematics, and their engineering applications in cognitive computing, computational intelligence, and cognitive systems. Paper submission is via Easy Chair at: https://www.easychair.org/conferences/?conf=iccicc2016. Submission deadline is approaching on Feb. 29, 2016. Special session papers may get a grace period by coordination of the session chairs. The conference will be featured by a number of keynote speeches that highlight the cutting-edge theories and novel technologies for cognitive systems and computational intelligence inspired by the brain such as: a) Natural Language Understanding vs. Natural Language Precisiation Prof. Lotfi A. Zadeh, UC Berkeley, USA b) Hebbian Learning and the LMS Algorithm Prof. Bernard Widrow, Stanford \university, USA c) Deep Learning and Deep Thinking by Cognitive Robots and Computational Intelligent Systems Prof. Yingxu Wang, University of Calgary, Canada You are welcome to submit a paper to IEEE ICCI*CC'16 or to organize a special session related to the theme of the conference. The Proceedings of ICCI*CC'16 will be published by IEEE CS Press and indexed by EI, DBLP, and IEEE eXplore. Selected papers from the proceedings will be published in leading international journals and IEEE transactions. We look forward to having an opportunity to meet you at IEEE ICCI*CC'16. Best regards, Prof. Yingxu Wang IEEE ICCI*CC'16 Co-Chair _______________________________________________ This message was sent to all subscribers of ieeeicci13-L To unsubscribe, see instructions at: http://www.ucalgary.ca/it/email/mailman E-mail: ieeeicci13-L(a)mailman.ucalgary.ca Homepage: http://mailman.ucalgary.ca/mailman/listinfo/ieeeicci13-l

Feb. 24, 2016

1st Call for Abstracts: the 8th Int'l Workshop on Guided Self-Organization (GSO-2016, Cancun, Mexico, 7 July 2016)

by Joseph Lizier

Dear All, This is an announcement and Call for Abstracts for the Eighth International Workshop on Guided Self-Organization (GSO-2016) to be held on July 7, 2016 at ALIFE XV in Cancun, Mexico: http://guided-self.org/gso8/ The GSO Workshop will bring together invited experts and researchers in self-organizing systems, with particular emphasis on the information- and network-theoretic foundations of GSO and the information dynamics of complex systems. The following topics are of special interest: information-theoretic measures of complexity, nonlinear dynamics, complex networks, information-driven self-organization (IDSO), applications of GSO to complex networks, distributed computation, machine learning, swarm intelligence, bio-inspired systems, computational neuroscience, systems biology, cooperative and modular robotics, etc. Submissions to the workshop are extended abstracts (one page). If interested in participating, please send an extended abstract (by May 29, 2016) by email to: prokopenko.mikhail(a)gmail.com The notifications are expected by June 10, 2016. Authors of accepted submissions will present the content to the workshop. We expect that selected papers of GSO-2016 will be published in a special issue (research topic) of Frontiers of Robotics and AI, or Artificial Life journals. Please consult above website for more information. Best wishes, Mikhail Prokopenko Carlos Gershenson Daniel Polani <apologies for possible cross-posting>

Feb. 24, 2016

Postdoc in Bordeaux, France. Application deadline 01/04/2016.

by Nicolas P. Rougier

Postdoc in Bordeaux, France at the Neurodegenerative Diseases Institute <http://www.imn-bordeaux.org/en/> Application deadline 01/04/2016. Details & application at INRIA website <http://www.inria.fr/en/institute/recruitment/offers/post-doctoral-research-…>. Actor–critic models of the basal ganglia We developed a model of the basal ganglia (Piron et al., 2016) that introduces an action selection mechanism that is based upon the competition between a positive feedback through the direct pathway and a negative feedback through the hyperdirect pathway. The model also exploits the parallel organization of circuits between the basal ganglia and the cortex using segregated loops: one loop allows to choose the cue and one loop allows to make the actual motor selection. Learning occurs between the cognitive cortex and the cognitive striatum using a simple reinforcement learning where the values of the different cues are updated after each decision. As in most computational models of the basal ganglia, this model relies on an actor-critic architecture where the dopamine signal is used to encode the temporal difference prediction error signal in the critic (Joel et al., 2002; Khamassi et al., 2005). However, this algorithm is not very elaborated and its implementation is not biologically plausible since values are stored outside the model. The objectives of this postdoc is thus to review and to re-implement (Python) main actor-critic models of the literature in order to compare them on a common set of decision tasks (two-arm bandit task for example) in terms of biological plausibility and performances. Special attention will be given to the "Primary Value and Learned Value Pavlovian Learning Algorithm" model (O'Reilly, 2007) and the AGREL model (Roefselma et al. 2005). From these replications (that will be published in ReScience <http://rescience.github.io/>), the most plausible and compatible mechanisms will be implemented in our own model of the basal ganglia in order to replace the current reinforcement learning algorithm (Guthrie et al., 2013, Piron et al. 2016). Profiles PhD in computational neuroscience or computer science (machine learning) with strong experience in Python & the scientific Python stack (numpy, scipy, matplotlib, git/github). References • Joel, D., Niv, Y., & Ruppin, E. (2002). Actor–critic models of the basal ganglia: New anatomical and computational perspectives. Neural Networks, 15(4-6), 535–547. • Khamassi, M., Lachèze, L., Girard, B., Berthoz, A., Guillot, A. (2005). Actor-critic models of reinforcement learning in the basal ganglia: From natural to artificial rats. Adaptive Behavior, 13 (2). • Guthrie, M., Leblois, A., Garenne, A., & Boraud, T. (2013). Interaction between cognitive and motor cortico-basal ganglia loops during decision making: a computational study. Journal of Neurophysiology, 109(12). • C. Piron, D. Kase, M. Topalidou, M. Goillandeau, H. Orignac, T. N'Guyen, N.P. Rougier, T. Boraud, The globus pallidus pars interna in goal oriented and habitual behavior. Resolving an old standing paradox, Movement Disorders, (2016), to appear. • O'Reilly, R. C., Frank, M. J., Hazy, T. E., & Watz, B. (2007). PVLV: The Primary Value and Learned Value Pavlovian Learning Algorithm. Behavioral Neuroscience, 121(1). • Roelfsema, P.R., van Ooyen A. (2005). Attention-gated reinforcement learning of internal representations for classification. Neural Computation. Nicolas P. Rougier

Feb. 24, 2016

Postdoc and PhD positions and further opportunities in the Bernstein group “Neural network dynamics and computation” (Raoul-Martin Memmesheimer)

by Memmesheimer, Raoul M.

Postdoc and PhD positions and further opportunities in the Bernstein group “Neural network dynamics and computation” (Raoul-Martin Memmesheimer) There are fully funded positions available at the PhD and at the postdoctoral researcher level in my future group at FIAS Frankfurt, with an envisaged starting date of July 2016. At an earlier career stage, you can write your Bachelor’s or Master’s thesis, or do a short-term internship to get to know research in theoretical neuroscience/neurophysics. Depending on the project and the need, financial support is available. Optimal backgrounds of applicants include theoretical neuroscience and/or theoretical physics, computer science, mathematics, quantitative biology. Under the overarching topic “Bridging the scales: Spiking in artificial and biological neural computation”, we aim to develop spiking networks for the solution of artificial intelligence problems and we aim to understand healthy and pathological spike patterns. Your theoretical work in the group may delineate principles underlying effective computations with spiking neurons, investigate the origins of pathological dynamics in the hippocampus, or explore the impact of coupling nonlinearities found in this brain region. Some of the planned projects are directly guided by recent experimental results and aim at explanations that have been requested by experimentally working collaborative partners. Others have a higher level of abstraction and explore rather principal questions. For the different projects, collaborative partnerships have been arranged with experimentally working scientists at Heidelberg University (group of A. Draguhn) and Bonn University (group of H. Beck), and with theoretically working groups at Columbia University (group of L. Abbott), Radboud Unversity (group of H.J. Kappen) and FIAS Frankfurt (group of Jochen Triesch). Of course I am also happy to discuss your own ideas for your future research in the group. If you are interested in more information, see my website (www.memmesheimer.net) contact me via email (rm3354(a)cumc.columbia.edu) at CoSyne 2016, or, if you are in the neighborhood, drop by at my office at Columbia University. -- Raoul-Martin Memmesheimer Center for Theoretical Neuroscience, Columbia University, New York, USA Web: www.memmesheimer.net Phone: +1 (646) 774 7329 Email: rm3354(a)cumc.columbia.edu<mailto:rm3354@cumc.columbia.edu>

Feb. 23, 2016

2016 Summer workshop on the dynamic brain: applications open

by Adrienne Fairhall

View online Announcing the Summer Workshop on the Dynamic Brain, co-hosted by the Allen Institute for Brain Science and the Computational Neuroscience Program at the University of Washington and directed by Drs. Christof Koch and Adrienne Fairhall. This intensive, two-week, projects-based, interdisciplinary course aims to give advanced students in neuroscience, biology, physics, engineering and computer science a rapid introduction to the current state of understanding of the neurobiology of sensory processing, including anatomy, physiology and neural coding. The workshop will include data analyses, Python and other software boot-camps, and lectures, taught by faculty from the University of Washington and the Allen Institute for Brain Science, on topics focused on the mammalian cortex and closely associated satellite structures. Subscribe | Unsubscribe | Feedback | Privacy Policy Copyright ©2016. Allen Institute for Brain Science. All Rights Reserved.

Feb. 23, 2016

Post-doctoral Research Fellow - Computational Modelling of Deep brain Stimulation for Parkinson's disease

by Olga Grant

Post-doctoral Research Fellow - Computational Modelling of Deep brain Stimulation for Parkinson's disease Highly motivated candidates are invited to join an exciting new project to develop multiscale models of the neuromuscular system for closed-loop deep brain stimulation (DBS). We are seeking a post-doctoral research fellow to develop models of the electric field around the implanted electrode during deep brain stimulation and its interaction with surrounding neurons. Despite the success of DBS, the mechanisms by which it works are not yet understood. This project aims to address this question and to design closed-loop control strategies for DBS through a combination of computational modelling and experimentation. The project represents an exciting opportunity for enthusiastic candidates to work on a new multidisciplinary research project funded by the European Research Council (ERC). The Neuromuscular Systems and Neural Engineering Lab is a multidisciplinary research group led by Prof. Madeleine Lowery in the School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering at University College Dublin. Our research involves applying engineering principles, in particular mathematical modelling, signal analysis and experimentation, to understand how the nervous system controls muscle in healthy and diseased states. Through this research we aim to improve our understanding of the neuromuscular system to address fundamental questions in the control of human movement and to develop improved therapeutic and rehabilitation strategies. Candidates should hold a PhD in Biomedical Engineering, Electrical/Electronic Engineering or a related discipline, with prior experience in electromagnetic finite element analysis and/or computational neural modelling. Excellent communication, analytical and programming skills are required. Full details of the position and the application process are available through the UCD Human Resources website ( <https://www.ucd.ie/hr/jobvacancies/> https://www.ucd.ie/hr/jobvacancies/) . Informal enquiries may be made to Prof. Madeleine Lowery UCD School of electrical Electronic & Communications Engineering University College Dublin Belfield Dublin 4 Ireland madeleine.lowery(a)ucd.ie Tel. +353 1 716 1911 ____________________________________ Dr Olga M Grant Research Project Manager School of Electrical & Electronic Engineering Tel +353 (1) 7161778

Feb. 23, 2016

Postdoctoral position in computational neuroscience (sensory processing & decision-making)

by Ralf Haefner

A postdoctoral position is available in the computational neuroscience group of Ralf Haefner in the department for Brain & Cognitive Sciences at the University of Rochester (NY). The focus of our group is on understanding the neural basis of perceptual decision-making. Based on the assumption that the brain performs probabilistic inference using an internal model of the world, we ask questions such as: What is the nature of the internal model? How is it learnt? How are posterior beliefs represented by spiking responses of populations of neurons? What algorithm does the brain use to compute its beliefs? How do cognitive priors influence sensory processing? What is the role of attention in a probabilistic inference framework? What is the role of feedback connections to sensory areas more generally? In order to answer these questions, we perform studies ranging from purely theoretical at the interface of neuroscience and machine learning, to neural data analysis, to psychophysics. Our collaborations with electrophysiology labs inside our department (Greg DeAngelis, Jude Mitchell) and externally (e.g. Born lab at Harvard Medical School, Cumming lab at NIH) allow for the testing of theoretical models using state-of-the-art cortical population recordings in behaving animals and, if desired, the opportunity to record your own data. We also collaborate with the theoretical groups of Jakob Macke (Caesar Institute, Bonn) and Stefano Panzeri (IIT in Trieste). For past work indicative of future directions see... Haefner et al. NatNeuro 2013: http://www.nature.com/neuro/journal/v16/n2/full/nn.3309.html Smolyanskaya et al. Neuron 2015: http://www.cell.com/neuron/abstract/S0896-6273(15)00561-9 Haefner et al. Neuron 2016 (accepted): http://arxiv.org/abs/1409.0257 …and our presentations at the upcoming COSYNE 2016: Poster II-17 (Main Meeting, Fri): Chicharro et. al at Poster III-1 (Main Meeting, Sat): Lange et al. at Talk in “choice-related feedback” Workshop (Tue), Haefner et al. We’re looking for a motivated candidate with strong mathematical and programming skills. The ideal candidate would also be familiar with (or quick to pick up) machine learning techniques, especially relating to inference in probabilistic models, and/or any relevant neuroscience background. The successful candidate with join a highly collaborative department with a strong tradition in probabilistic modeling across a wide range from sensory processing to linguistics (https://www.bcs.rochester.edu/research/index.html <https://www.bcs.rochester.edu/research/index.html> ). The city of Rochester is located on the shore of Lake Ontario in upstate New York on the edge of the finger lakes region, and has a high quality of life (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rochester,_New_York <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rochester,_New_York> ). Start date and duration are flexible. Please send applications including a brief research statement, a CV and names of 2-3 references by email. I'll be at COSYNE for both conference and workshops and available to meet there in person. Ralf Haefner Assistant Professor Brain & Cognitive Sciences University of Rochester (NY) rhaefner(a)bcs.rochester.edu <mailto:rhaefner@bcs.rochester.edu>

Feb. 23, 2016

Postdoc positions: computational modeling of neurodegenerative disease

by Christina M. Weaver

Two postdoctoral positions, one empirical and one computational, are available in the interdisciplinary research group of Drs. Jennifer Luebke (Boston University School of Medicine, Boston MA) and Christina Weaver (Franklin & Marshall College, Lancaster PA) starting as early as April 2016. The research project involves the assessment of the detailed structure and function of cortical and striatal neurons in mouse models of Huntington’s disease, and computational modeling of these neurons. Experimental approaches will make extensive use of in vitro slice electrophysiology (whole-cell patch-clamp recordings) and cellular imaging techniques (primarily confocal fluorescence microscopy). Computational modeling of the empirically characterized neurons will use parameter optimization algorithms developed in the Weaver lab, and will eventually be incorporated into local microcircuits and larger cortico-striatal networks. For an overview of our interdisciplinary approach, see our joint publications including Luebke et al., *Cerebral Cortex* (2015), PMID 24323499 and Coskren et al., *J. Comput. Neuro*. (2015), PMID 25527184. Applicants should have a strong background in neuroscience and/or modeling, and have a keen interest in imaging, biophysical, and computational approaches in neuroscience research. Review of applications will begin March 10, 2016, and will continue until the positions are filled. Interested applicants should send their CV, a brief statement of current and future research interests, and the contact information of three references to christina.weaver(a)fandm.edu or jluebke(a)bu.edu. Required Skills * For Empirical position (Boston, MA): Experience with electrophysiology and/or confocal imaging is preferred. Additional background or strong interest in computational neuroscience is a plus. * For Modeling position (based in Lancaster, PA with occasional travel to Boston): Experience with NEURON compartmental modeling software and/or automated parameter optimization is preferred. * Excellent written and verbal communication skills * Ph.D., M.D. or equivalent from an accredited institution * We are an equal opportunity employer and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability status, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law. We are a VEVRAA Federal Contractor. Job Location Boston, Massachusetts and Lancaster, Pennsylvania, United States Position Type Full-Time/Regular Salary Conditions and remuneration will be according to the regulations of the National Institutes of Health for postdoctoral trainees. Bottom of Form Christina M. Weaver, Ph.D. Associate Professor of Mathematics Department of Mathematics and Computer Science Franklin & Marshall College P.O. Box 3003 Lancaster, PA 17604-3003 Phone: (717) 291-3872 Fax: (717) 358-4507 Email: christina.weaver(a)fandm.edu

Feb. 23, 2016

2nd call for illusion submissions: the 12th Best Illusion of the Year Contest

by Susana Martinez-Conde

****2nd CALL FOR ILLUSION SUBMISSIONS: THE WORLD'S 12TH ANNUAL BEST ILLUSION OF THE YEARSM CONTEST**** <http://illusionoftheyear.com> http://illusionoftheyear.com We are happy to announce the 12th edition of world's Best Illusion of the YearSM Contest!! Submissions are now welcome! In 2015, the Best Illusion of the YearSM Contest became an annual online event, with the goal of bringing the creativity of the illusion creator community all around the world. Anybody with an internet connection can now participate! No matter where you live, you can be a contestant, and/or vote for the Top 3 winners! Contestants are invited to submit 1-minute videos, in mp4 format, featuring novel illusions (unpublished, or published no earlier than 2015) of all sensory modalities (visual, auditory, etc.) and/or cognitive nature. The content of the 1-minute video presenting your illusion is solely up to you, and the only requirement is that it wows all viewers! Some examples include, but are not limited to: * -A slide presentation, or succession of images, with a voice over (and/or written text, if you prefer) * -A video of yourself describing your illusion * -A video animation/enactment of your illusion An international panel of impartial judges will rate all the videos and narrow them down to the Top 10. Then, online voters around the world will choose their favorite illusions from the Top 10 finalists. All Top 10 finalists will receive a commemorative plaque. In addition, the Top 3 winners will receive cash prizes: $3,000 USD for first place; $2,000 USD for second place, and $1,000 USD for third place. The Judge Panel will rate illusions according to: * -Significance to our understanding of the human mind and brain * -Simplicity of the description * -Sheer beauty * -Counterintuitive quality * -Spectacularity Submissions will be held in strict confidence by the Judge Panel. Only the Top 10 illusions will be posted online, to allow worldwide voting. Participation in the Best Illusion of the YearSM Contest does not preclude you from also submitting your work for publication elsewhere. By participating in the Best Illusion of the YearSM Contest you agree to have your illusion posted on the Contest website, if selected among the Top 10, and included in press releases and other promotional materials/fundraising initiatives for the Contest. You (and your co-authors, if appropriate) will retain the full copyright of your illusion, and receive full credit as illusion creator(s). Illusions submitted to previous editions of the contest can be re-submitted to the 2016 Contest, as long as they meet the above requirements and were not among the Top 10 finalists in previous years. You can send your 1-minute video to Susana Martinez-Conde via email ( <mailto:smart@neuralcorrelate.com> smart(a)neuralcorrelate.com) until April 15, 2016. On behalf of the Executive Board of the Neural Correlate Society: Jose-Manuel Alonso, Stephen Macknik, Susana Martinez-Conde, Luis Martinez, Xoana Troncoso, Peter Tse ----------------------------------- Susana Martinez-Conde, PhD Professor of Ophthalmology, Neurology, and Physiology & Pharmacology Empire Innovator Scholar Director, Laboratory of Integrative Neuroscience State University of New York (SUNY) Downstate Medical Center 450 Clarkson Ave, Brooklyn NY 11203, USA Email: smart(a)neuralcorrelate.com <mailto:smart@neuralcorrelate.com> Phone: +1 718-270-4520 http://smc.neuralcorrelate.com <http://smc.neuralcorrelate.com/>

Feb. 23, 2016

2nd announcement: 4th Baltic-Nordic Summer School on Neuroinformatics (BNNI 2016)

by Daniel Wójcik

4th Baltic-Nordic Summer School on Neuroinformatics (BNNI 2016) Understanding neurons, cognition and behavior through neuroinformatics Place: Nencki Institute of Experimental Biology, and Faculty of Physics, University of Warsaw Warsaw, Poland Time: June 15-18, 2016 More information and applications at http://bit.do/bnni2016 Important dates: 28 February 2016 Application deadline [EXTENDED] 13 March 2016 Acceptance notification 15-18 June 2016 Summer School We invite advanced master students, doctoral students, and postdoctoral researchers to participate in the BNNI 2016 to be held at the Nencki Institute of Experimental Biology and the Faculty of Physics of the University of Warsaw. The course is interdisciplinary and covers modeling at different levels of organization of the brain, analysis of neural data, brain atlases, and other aspects of neuroinformatics. The course combines lectures, tutorials and computer exercises. This summer school is the fourth in the series of the Baltic-Nordic Courses on Neuroinformatics (BNNI 2013 in Kaunas, BNNI 2014 in Tampere, BNNI 2015 in Tartu). The target audience of the course will be advanced master students, doctoral students and postdoctoral researchers in natural and life sciences, from physics, chemistry, mathematics, computer science, informatics and information technology, to biology, medicine, and psychology, who would like to get an introduction to neuroinformatics and computational neuroscience. Some experience with programming and quantitative reasoning as well as strong interest in computational and mathematical modeling of the brain are required to benefit from the school. Faculty includes Piotr Durka, University of Warsaw, Warsaw, Poland Gaute Einevoll, Norwegian University of Life Sciences, Aas, Norway Bruce Graham, University of Stirling, United Kingdom Marja-Leena Linne, Tampere University of Technology, Finland Szymon Łęski, Nencki Institute of Experimental Biology, Warsaw, Poland Arnd Roth, University College London, UK Ausra Saudargiene, Vytautas Magnus University, Kaunas, Lithuania Eleni Vasilaki, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, United Kingdom Daniel Wójcik, Nencki Institute of Experimental Biology, Warsaw, Poland Jarosław Żygierewicz, University of Warsaw, Warsaw, Poland Venue The lectures will be held at the Nencki Institute of Experimental Biology of the Polish Academy of Sciences and the computer classes in the Faculty of Physics of the University of Warsaw. The two buildings are next to each other, they are located at the center of Ochota campus, encompassing a number of university departments and research institutes. Practical arrangements There is a small tuition fee of 100 euros. The organizers will provide teaching, meals and coffee during the course. The participants are expected to cover their travel and health insurance expenses as well as lodging. Small financial support is available for those without funding. Inexpensive lodging for all the students will be organized. The course is supported by the IBRO-PERC committee, University of Warsaw, and the Nencki Institute We are looking forward to welcome you at the BNNI 2016 in Warsaw, Poland! -- Prof. Daniel K. Wojcik Laboratory of Neuroinformatics, Head PhD Studies, Head Nencki Institute of Experimental Biology 3 Pasteur St, 02-093 Warsaw, Poland tel: (+48 22) 5892348 fax: (+48 22) 8225342 skype: danek8317 http://dwojcik.pl/ http://neuroinflab.wordpress.com/ http://orcid.org/0000-0003-0812-9872

Feb. 22, 2016

Final Program of the Columbia Workshop on Brain Circuits, Memory and Computation

by Aurel A. Lazar

Columbia Workshop on Brain Circuits, Memory and Computation Friday and Saturday, March 18-19, 2016 | 501 NWC Building Organizer and Program Chair: Aurel A. Lazar (Columbia University) The goal of the workshop is to bring together researchers interested in developing executable models of neural computa- tion/processing of the brain of model organisms. Of interest are models of computation that consist of elementary units of processing using brain circuits and memory elements. Elementary units of computation/processing include population encod- ing/decoding circuits with biophysically-grounded neuron models, non-linear dendritic processors for motion detection/direction selectivity, spike processing and pattern recognition neural circuits, movement control and decision-making circuits, etc. Memory units include models of spatio-temporal memory circuits, circuit models for memory access and storage, etc. A major aim of the workshop is to explore the integration of various sensory and control circuits in higher brain centers. Program Overview Friday 09:00 AM - 05:30 PM 09:00 AM - 09:45 AM Alexander Borst (MPI Neurobiology), Functional Characterization of the Input Elements to the Drosophila Motion Detector 09:45 AM - 10:30 AM Michael B. Reiser (HHMI Janelia), The Circuit Basis of Directional Selectivity in the Drosophila Visual System 10:30 AM - 11:00 AM Coee Break 11:00 AM - 11:45 AM Thomas R. Clandinin (Stanford), How Does Contrast Selectivity Emerge in Motion Processing Pathways 11:45 AM - 12:30 PM Chung-Chuan Lo (National Tsing Hua University), The Virtual Fly Brain { from Bench-Top to Cyberspace 12:30 PM - 02:00 PM Lunch Break (On your own, see a list of restaurants in the area on the back) 02:00 PM - 02:45 PM J. Douglas Armstrong (University of Edinburgh), VirtualFlyBrain.org - An Integration Hub for Drosophila Neuroscience 02:45 PM - 03:30 PM Michael Hawrylycz (Allen Institute for Brain Science), Multiscale Gene Expression Signatures in the Mammalian Brain 03:30 PM - 04:00 PM Afternoon Break 04:00 PM - 04:45 PM Gaby Maimon (Rockefeller University), Probing the Neurophysiological Basis of Cognitive Operations in Behaving Drosophila 04:45 PM - 05:30 PM Stanley Heinze (Lund University), Merging Information about Direction and Distance - the Bee Central Complex as the Potential Neural Substrate for Path Integration Saturday 09:00 AM - 05:30 PM 09:00 AM - 09:45 AM Glenn C. Turner (HHMI Janelia), The Mushroom Body and Learning - Flexibly Assigning Valence to Odors 09:45 AM - 10:30 AM Vanessa Ruta (Rockefeller University), Circuit Mechanisms for Flexible Sensory Processing in Drosophila 10:30 AM - 11:00 AM Coee Break 11:00 AM - 11:45 AM Marta Zlatic (HHMI Janelia), Circuits Principles of Memory-Based Behavioral Choice 11:45 AM - 12:30 PM Friedrich T. Sommer (UC Berkeley), Interplay of Structural and Weight Plasticity: Eects on Memory Capacity and Connections to Cognitive Phenomena 12:30 PM - 02:00 PM Lunch Break (On your own, see a list of restaurants in the area on the back) 02:00 PM - 02:45 PM Mala Murthy (Princeton University), Neural Mechanisms for Dynamic Acoustic Communication in Flies 02:45 PM - 03:30 PM Matthieu Louis (Center for Genomic Regulation, Barcelona), Bayesian Maggots: Multisensory Integration in the Drosophila Larva 03:30 PM - 04:00 PM Afternoon Break 04:00 PM - 04:45 PM Kwabena Boahen (Stanford University), Neuromorphic Chips: Combining Analog Computation with Digital Communication 04:45 PM - 05:30 PM Panel Discussion: The Logic of NeuroInformation Processing of the Fruit Fly Brain Registration is free but all participants have to register at: https://bcmc16.eventbrite.com/ Workshop Website: http://www.bionet.ee.columbia.edu/workshops/bcmc/2016 Aurel http://www.bionet.ee.columbia.edu

Feb. 22, 2016

ICANN 2016 Barcelona - Last Call for contributions

by antonio

*Last Call for Oral Presentation, Poster Presentation and/or Full **P**aper Contribution* *www.icann2016.org* *ICANN 2016 * 25th Annual Conference on Artificial Neural Networks BarcelonaTech (UPC), Barcelona, Spain 6 - 9 September 2016* Special event*: ENNS 25th Anniversary ============================================================ /The International Conference on Artificial Neural Networks (ICANN) is the annual flagship conference of the European Neural Network Society (ENNS). In 2016 the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya (BarcelonaTech) will organis//e the 25th ICANN Conference from //the //6th to //the //9th //of //September 2016 in Barcelona, Spain, in collaboration with the Universit//at//Pompeu Fabra (UPF)./ *INVITED KEYNOTE SPEAKERS* 1. *Wlodek Duch *(Nicolaus Copernicus University, Torun, Poland) 2. *Erkki Oja *(Aalto University, Helsinki, Finland) 3. *Joaquin Fuster *(University of California at Los Angeles, USA) 4. *Murray Shanahan* (Imperial College London, UK) 5. *Günther Palm*(University of Ulm, Germany) 6. *Stephen Coombes *(University of Nottingham, UK) 7. *Etienne Koechlin*( Pierre and Marie Curie University, France) *IMPORTANT DATES* /Submission of abstracts and papers: /1 March 2016 /Submission of //d//emonstration proposals: /1 March 2016 /Notification of acceptance:/8 May 2016 /Camera-ready paper and registration: /15 May 2016 /Conference dates:/6-9 September 2016 *CONFERENCE TOPICS* ICANN 2016 will feature the main tracks /Brain Inspired Computing/ and /Machine Learning Research/, with strong cross-disciplinary interactions and applications. All research fields dealing with Neural Networks will be present at the conference. A non-exhaustive list of topics includes: * Brain Inspired Computing: Cognitive models, Computational Neuroscience, Self-organisation, Reinforcement Learning, Neural Control and Planning, Hybrid Neural-Symbolic Architectures, Neural Dynamics, Recurrent Networks, Deep Learning. * Machine Learning: Neural Network Theory, Neural Network Models, Graphical Models, Bayesian Networks, Kernel Methods, Generative Models, Information Theoretic Learning, Reinforcement Learning, Relational Learning, Dynamical Models. * Neural Applications for: Intelligent Robotics, Neurorobotics, Language Processing, Image Processing, Sensor Fusion, Pattern Recognition, Data Mining, Neural Agents, Brain-Computer Interaction, Neural Hardware, Evolutionary Neural Networks. *** CONFERENCE REGISTRATION FEE**S* Early registration fees have been kept particularly low for this kind of event because ENNS and ICANN aim to fully implement the academicnot-for-profit policy. Undergraduate students (Bachelor and Master level): 90 EUR PhD Students: 200 EUR Regular delegates: 250 EUR *ENNS members have a reduction of 40 EUR* Students can apply for ENNS funded travel grants to attend (see the conference website). *CALL FOR CONTRIBUTED SCIENTIFIC COMMUNICATIONS* All scientific communications presented at ICANN 2016 will be reviewed and scientifically evaluated by a panel of experts. The conference will feature three categories of communications: - oral communications (15'+5') - poster communications (on permanent display and with a 2-hour presentation) - demonstrations Authors willing to present original contributions for any category must submit a manuscript of a maximum length of 8 pages.Accepted papers of contributing authors will be published in Springer-Verlag Lecture Notes in Computer Science (LNCS) series. Selected papers will be invited after the conference for a full journal paper submission. Authors willing to present a contribution for oral communications and posters without submitting a full manuscript must submit a 1-page abstract. The abstracts will be published all together in a proceedings section without an author index. In case of programme constraints the priority will be given to original contributions accompanied by a full paper submission. Submission of communications will be online. More details are available on the conference website (http://icann2016.org/index.php/contributors/submission) *BEST PAPER AWARDS* ENNS will sponsor a maximum of four best paper awards, two in the Brain Inspired Computing track (one poster and one oral communication) and, analogously, two in the Machine Learning Research track. All awardees will be presented during the final ceremony. *ORGANISATION** General Chair:*/ Antonio J. Pons Rivero/(UPC Barcelona, Spain)* Local**co-Chairs:* /Jordi Garcia-Ojalvo/(UPF Barcelona, Spain), /Paul Verschure/(UPF Barcelona, Spain) *Organising Committee Chairs:*/ Daniel Malagarriga/(UPC Barcelona, Spain), /Lara Escuain/(UPC Barcelona, Spain), /Caroline Kleinheny/(ENNS Lausanne, Switzerland) *Honorary Chair: *Alessandro E. P. Villa * Communication* *Chair:*/ Paolo Masulli/(ENNS Lausanne, Switzerland) *********************************************** Antonio J. Pons Rivero General Chair of ICANN 2016 Terrassa School of Industrial and Aeronautical Engineering (ETSEIAT) Nonlinear dynamics, nonlinear optics and lasers Group BarcelonaTech (UPC) Edifici GAIA Rbla. Sant Nebridi, 22 08222 Terrassa, Spain Caroline Kleinheny Secretary of the European Neural Network Society University of Lausanne Internef 137k, Quartier UNIL Dorigny 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland ***********************************************

Feb. 22, 2016

CFP-SEARCH 2016: Safe, Energy-Aware, & Reliable Connected Health Workshop

by Youssef Iraqi

Apologies if you received multiple copies of this CFP. CALL FOR PAPERS SEARCH 2016: Safe, Energy-Aware, & Reliable Connected Health Workshop https://sites.google.com/site/searchw2016/ In conjunction with The First IEEE Conference on Connected Health: Applications, Systems and Engineering Technologies (CHASE 2016) Washington D.C., June 27-29, 2016 http://conferences.computer.org/chase/ is inviting you to submit your research work to this workshop and also to forward to the appropriate groups this invitation. ------------------------------------- Purpose and scope ------------------------------------- This workshop, organized in conjunction with CHASE 2016, provides an international forum for research community working on energy efficient, green, safe, and reliable connected health research areas. Topics of interest include, but are not limited to: • Energy efficient protocols for connected health. • Energy efficient medical sensors. • Energy optimization in connected health. • Energy efficient resource allocation in connected health. • Safety issues in connected health. • Fault Tolerance in connected health. • Reliability of connected health technologies: m-Health, WBSN. • Safety and security concerns in connected medical devices. • Testing and validation of connected health technologies and architectures. • Simulation based methods in connected health. • Formal methods in connected health. • Surveys and state of the art reports in the area. • Other related topics ------------------------------------- Submission ------------------------------------- Perspective authors are invited to submit their papers using EDAS System (https://edas.info/newPaper.php?c=21965) A full paper should not have more than six (6) IEEE style pages including results, figures and references. One (1) additional page is allowed with a charge of USD100, if accepted. Papers exceeding 7 pages will not be accepted at EDAS, nor will they be reviewed at all. Papers will be reviewed with the standard reviewing procedure (with at least 3 independent anonymous reviews). Accepted papers will be published on IEEE Explore (http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/) Authors can use the standard IEEE templates for Microsoft Word or LaTeX formats that can be found at: http://www.ieee.org/conferences_events/conferences/publishing/templates.html Submission link: http://edas.info/newPaper.php?c=21965 ------------------------------------- Important Dates ------------------------------------- - Papers Submissions Deadline: March 11, 2016 - Notification of Acceptance: April 18, 2016 - Deadline for Author Registration: May 15, 2016 - Deadline for Camera-ready Papers: May 15, 2015 -------------------------------------------------------------------------- IMPORTANT IEEE POLICY ANNOUNCEMENT -------------------------------------------------------------------------- The IEEE reserves the right to exclude a paper from distribution after the conference (including its removal from IEEE Xplore) if the paper is not presented. Note: To be published in the IEEE Workshop Proceedings and to be eligible for publication in IEEE /Xplore®/, an author of an accepted paper is required to register for the workshop and the paper must be presented by an author of that paper at the workshop unless the TPC Chair grants permission for a substitute presenter arranged in advance of the event and who is qualified both to present and answer questions. Non-refundable registration fees must be paid prior to uploading the final IEEE formatted, publication-ready version of the paper.Papers will be published in the IEEE CHASE 2016 Proceedings and submitted to IEEE /Xplore®/. IEEE CHASE 2016 TPC Chairs. Dr. Youssef Iraqi Associate Professor Electrical and Computer Engineering Department [cid:logo.gif] PO Box 127788, Abu Dhabi, UAE T +971 (0)2 501 8323 F +971 (0)2 447 2441 Youssef.Iraqi(a)kustar.ac.ae [cid:twitter.jpg]<https://twitter.com/KhalifaUni> [cid:fb.jpg] <https://www.facebook.com/KhalifaUniversity> [cid:youtube.jpg] <http://www.youtube.com/user/KhalifaUniversity> [cid:instagram.jpg] <http://instagram.com/khalifauni> [cid:linkedin.jpg] <https://www.linkedin.com/company/khalifa-university-?trk=biz-companies-cym> [cid:slogan.png]

Feb. 22, 2016

Postdoctoral position at Kyoto U

by Hidetoshi Urakubo

Dear all, Integrated Systems Biology Lab at Kyoto U (Japan) invites applications for research position for analyses of three-dimensional microscopic images and/or functional magnetic images (fMRI, for example) from the animal/human brain, with a strong motivation into systems/computational neuroscience. We look forward to your applications and recommendations. The full advertisement is available below. On behalf of Prof. Shin Ishii Hidetoshi Urakubo ============================================== Shin Ishii Lab, Dep Sys Sci, Grad Sch Info, Kyoto U Yoshida-Honmachi 36-1, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8501 Japan Phone: +81-75-753-4908 Fax: +81-75-753-4907 Email: urakubo-h(a)sys.i.kyoto-u.ac.jp ============================================== ============== 1) We are seeking a highly motivated post-doc researcher, with a background in image processing, neuroinformatics, or systems/computational neuroscience. We are conducting a research project, “Brain Mapping by Integrated Neurotechnologies for Disease Studies (Brain/MINDS; http://brainminds.jp/en/ ; Phil. Trans. R. Soc. B 370: 20140310).” This project aims to map the structure and function of neuronal circuits to understand the vast complexity of the human brain. The candidate will work on the projects on 3D reconstitution of marmoset brain atlas from 3D microscopic images (from EM and/or Optical) under collaboration with experiment teams. 2) We are also seeking a highly motivated post-doc researcher, with a background of systems/computational neuroscience, especially using a combination of brain imaging (EEG, fMRI, etc) and theoretical/computational modeling. Please see our references (Shikauchi and Ishii 2015, Scientific Rep. 5, 17648; Yoshida and Ishii 2006, Neuron 50(5), pp. 781-789). For both of them, a PhD or a MD degree, a proven track record of peer-reviewed publications, and solid communication skills in English and/or Japanese are essential. All projects are done with our tenure track and post-doc researchers of various backgrounds including systems biology, bioinformatics, computational biology, mathematical engineering, and machine learning. Our laboratory also has a strong collaboration with other laboratories in Advanced Telecommunications Research Institute International (ATR) and RIKEN Brain Science Institute. [Job title and Job description] Title is a Full-time Researcher / Full-time Research Engineer The position is open after April 1st 2016 (negotiable) Work location is Yoshidahonmachi 36-1, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto-city, Japan. 606-8501 The contract is annually renewable up to 3 years based on the evaluation. Salary will be commensurate with qualifications and experience. Social insurance will be applied. Days off include weekends, public holidays, Year-end and New Year holidays, Foundation Day, and summer vacation. These and other provisions are in accordance with Kyoto U regulations (Kyoto University’s regultions). [Application and required documents] Please send the following five materials to the address below, either in printed or electronic form: 1. Complete CV 2. List of publications 3. Reprints of 1 to 3 major publications 4. Document (one or two pages in A4 or letter size) describing: - Summary of your previous research - Interests and proposal for research 5. Two letters of recommendation (including one from the current supervisor, if available) [Selection process] Selection will be made based on application screening and interviews. [Requirements] Applicants must: - have a Ph.D. (or be near completion). - have strong motivations and ambitions to participate in the research above. [Number of openings] One or two [Deadline for application] May 1st (will remain open if positions are not filled) [Send application to] Shin Ishii Integrated Systems Biology Laboratory, Graduate School of Informatics, Kyoto University Yoshida-honmachi, Sakyo, Kyoto 606-8501, Japan Email: Shin Ishii <ishii-sec(a)sys.i.kyoto-u.ac.jp> http://ishiilab.jp/kyoto/en/

Feb. 22, 2016

Call For Participation: 2016 Telluride Neuromorphic Cognition Engineering Workshop

by Ralph Etienne-Cummings

*Telluride Neuromorphic Cognition Engineering Workshop 2016 Wiki ¶ <https://neuromorphs.net/nm/wiki/2016#TellurideNeuromorphicCognitionEngineer…>* Sunday Jun 26th - Saturday July 16th, 2016 - * click here for workshop calendar <https://www.google.com/calendar/embed?src=hguqv4rgstl12d0m0n6c704nsg%40grou…>, Telluride Elementary School, Telluride, Colorado - click for google map location <https://maps.google.com/maps/myplaces?ll=37.939984,-107.815039&spn=0.011998…>.* *Applications to the 2016 Telluride Neuromorphic Cognition Engineering Workshop* 2016 NEUROMORPHIC COGNITION ENGINEERING WORKSHOP https://neuromorphs.net/nm/wiki/2016 Sunday June 26th - Saturday July 16th, 2016, Telluride, Colorado *IMPORTANT DATES FOR APPLICATION (Instructions are at the bottom of the page)* Application Website Open - 16th February, 2016 Applications Due - 2nd April, 2016 Notification of Acceptance - 15th April, 2016 *Application website: https://academicjobsonline.org/ajo/jobs/7040 <https://academicjobsonline.org/ajo/jobs/7040>.* *GOALS:* Neuromorphic engineers design and fabricate artificial neural systems whose organizing principles are based on those of biological nervous systems. Over the past 18 years, this research community has focused on the understanding of low-level sensory processing and systems infrastructure; efforts are now expanding to apply this knowledge and infrastructure to addressing higher-level problems in perception, cognition, and learning. In this 3-week intensive workshop and through the Institute for Neuromorphic Engineering (INE), the mission is to promote interaction between senior and junior researchers; to educate new members of the community; to introduce new enabling fields and applications to the community; to promote on-going collaborative activities emerging from the Workshop, and to promote a self-sustaining research field. *FORMAT:* The three week summer workshop will include background lectures on systems and cognitive neuroscience (in particular sensory processing, learning and memory, motor systems and attention), practical tutorials on emerging hardware design, mobile robots, hands-on projects, and special interest groups. Participants are required to take part and possibly complete at least one of the projects proposed. They are furthermore encouraged to become involved in as many of the other activities proposed as interest and time allow. There will be two lectures in the morning that cover issues that are important to the community in general. Because of the diverse range of backgrounds among the participants, some of these lectures will be tutorials, rather than detailed reports of current research. These lectures will be given by invited speakers. Projects and interest groups meet in the late afternoons, and after dinner. In the early afternoon there will be tutorials on a wide spectrum of topics, including analog VLSI, mobile robotics, vision and auditory systems, central-pattern-generators, selective attention mechanisms, cognitive systems, etc. *2016 TOPIC AREAS:* Decoding Multi-Modal Effects on Auditory Cognition: Edmund Lalor (Trinity College Dublin), Alain de Cheveigne (UPMC, France), Malcolm Slaney (Google), and Shihab Shamma (UM-College Park) Spike-Based Cognition in Active Neuromorphic Systems: Ryad Benjamin Benosman (UPMC, Paris), Cornelia Fermuller (Univ. of Maryland), Garrick Orchard (National University of Singapore), Michele Rucci (Boston University), and Bert Shi (Hong Kong University of Science and Technology) Neuromorphic Path Planning for Robots in a Disaster Response Scenario: Jeff Krichmar (University of California, Irvine) and Jennifer Hasler (Georgia Institute of Technology) Neuromorphic Tactile Sensing:James Wright (MARCS Institute, Western Sydney University), Jonathan Tapson (MARCS Institute, Western Sydney University), and Nitish V. Thakor (SINAPSE, Singapore University for Neurotechnology) Computational Neuroscience (invitational mini-workshop): Terry Sejnowski (Salk Institute) *LOCATION AND ARRANGEMENTS:* The summer school will take place in the small town of Telluride, 9000 feet high in southwest Colorado, about 6 hours drive away from Denver (350 miles). There are several small airports (e.g. Montrose) close to Telluride. All facilities within the beautifully renovated public school building are fully accessible to participants with disabilities. Participants will be housed in ski condominiums, within walking distance of the school. Participants are expected to share condominiums. The workshop is intended to be very informal and hands-on. Participants are not required to have had previous experience in analog VLSI circuit design, computational or machine vision, systems level neurophysiology or modeling the brain at the systems level. However, we strongly encourage active researchers with relevant backgrounds from academia, industry and national laboratories to apply, in particular if they are prepared to work on specific projects, talk about their own work or bring demonstrations to Telluride (e.g. robots, chips, software). Wireless internet access will be provided. Technical staff present throughout the workshops will assist with software and hardware issues. We encourage participants to bring along their personal laptop. No cars are required. Given the small size of the town, we recommend that you do not rent a car. Bring hiking boots, warm clothes, rain gear, and a backpack, since Telluride is surrounded by beautiful mountains. Unless otherwise arranged with one of the organizers, we expect participants to stay for the entire duration of this three week workshop. *FINANCIAL ARRANGEMENTS:* Notification of acceptances will be mailed out around the April 15th, 2016. The Workshop covers all your accommodations and facilities costs for the 3 weeks duration. You are responsible for your own travel to the Workshop. Registration Fees: For expenses not covered by federal funds, a Workshop registration fee is required. The fee is $1500 per participant for the 3-week Workshop. This is expected from all participants at the time of acceptance. Accommodations: The cost of a shared condominium, typically a bedroom in a shared condo for senior participants or a shared room for students, will be covered for all academic participants. Upgrades to a private rooms or condos will cost extra. Participants from National Laboratories and Industry are expected to pay for these condominiums. The 2016 Workshop and Summer School on Neuromorphic Engineering is sponsored by the National Science Foundation, Institute of Neuromorphic Engineering, University of Maryland - College Park, Institute for Neuroinformatics – University of Zurich and ETH Zurich, Georgia Institute of Technology, Johns Hopkins University, Boston University, University of Western Sydney and the Salk Institute. *Workshop Directors:* Cornelia Fermüller (University of Maryland) Ralph Etienne-Cummings (Johns Hopkins Univ.) Shih-Chii Liu (University of Zurich and ETH Zurich) Timmer Horiuchi (University of Maryland) Katalin Gotthard (University of Arizona) Michael Pfeiffer (University of Zurich and ETH Zurich) Francisco Barranco (University of Granada) Former 2007-2013 Workshop Director: Tobi Delbruck (University of Zurich and ETH Zurich) Workshop Advisory Board: Andreas Andreou (Johns Hopkins University) Andre van Schaik (University Western Sydney, Australia) Avis Cohen (University of Maryland) Barbara Shinn-Cunningham (Boston University) Giacomo Indiveri (Institute of Neuroinformatics, University of Zurich and ETH Zurich) Jonathan Tapson (University Western Sydney, Australia) Malcolm Slaney (Google) Jennifer Hasler (Georgia Institute of Technology) Rodney Douglas (Institute of Neuroinformatics, University of Zurich and ETH Zurich) Shihab Shamma (University of Maryland) Tobi Delbruck (Institute of Neuroinformatics, University of Zurich and ETH Zurich) *HOW TO APPLY:* Applicants should be at the level of graduate students or above (i.e. postdoctoral fellows, faculty, research and engineering staff and the equivalent positions in industry and national laboratories). We actively encourage women and minority candidates to apply. Anyone interested in proposing or discussing specific projects should contact the appropriate topic leaders directly. The application website is (after February 16th, 2016): https://academicjobsonline.org/ajo/jobs/7040 <https://academicjobsonline.org/ajo/jobs/7040>. Application information needed: Contact email address. First name, Last name, Affiliation, valid e-mail address. Curriculum Vitae (a short version, please). One page summary of background and interests relevant to the workshop, including possible ideas for workshop projects. Please indicate which topic areas you would most likely join. Two letters of recommendation (uploaded directly by references). Applicants will be notified by e-mail. 16th February, 2016 - Applications accepted on website 2nd April, 2016 - Applications Due 15th April, 2016 - Notification of Acceptance -- Ralph Etienne-Cummings, PhD, FIEEE Professor and Chairman Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering Computational Sensor Motor Systems Lab Laboratory for Computational Sensing and Robotics The Johns Hopkins University Baltimore, MD [image: cid:image001.png@01CFC064.B58B46A0]

Feb. 22, 2016

POSTDOCTORAL POSITION IN COMPUTATIONAL COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT

by Dirk Bernhardt-Walther

The Cognitive Development Lab at The Ohio State University under the direction of Dr. Vladimir Sloutsky is seeking applicants for a postdoctoral research associate position for an NIH-funded project studying the development and neurobiology of categorization. The successful candidate is expected to work closely with Vladimir Sloutsky, Jay Myung, and Brandon Turner (at Ohio State) and Brad Love (at UCL) on modeling of cross-sectional and longitudinal data, on linking of genetic and behavioral data across development, and on model selection. The postdoc is expected to be an active part of the Cognitive Development lab that has general research interests in the development of cognition and to interact actively with Drs. Myung, Turner, and Love. The position is for three years with a possibility of reappointment. A successful candidate must have a Ph.D. in psychology, cognitive science, neuroscience, or related field and have a strong research record and previous experience in computational or statistical modeling. Although previous experience with developmental research is not necessary, special consideration will be given to candidates who have interest in understanding the development of cognition. Primary responsibilities will include active participation in research and collaboration with other members of the lab and the research team. Interested applicants should send a CV, research statement, representative publications, and names of three recommenders to Alicia Sciemca ( alicia.scimeca(a)gmail.com) -- the lab manager at the Cognitive Development Lab. Informal inquires may be sent to Vladimir Sloutsky (sloutsky.1(a)osu.edu) Applications will be received until the position is filled. The earliest start date is Summer of 2016. To learn more about research in the lab, visit our website: http://cogdev.osu.edu

Feb. 21, 2016