Hello!

We are happy to announce the first Open Lab Online workshops on Bonsai.

Bonsai is an open-source reactive programming language that is particularly useful for modern behavioral neuroscience experiments. It allows users to synchronize multiple data streams, precisely deliver stimuli, and run experiments in closed-loop settings, while integrating signals and devices from different systems. From calcium imaging and sound recordings to sensors, feeders, motors, and stimulus delivery systems, Bonsai offers a flexible and powerful way to build experimental workflows.

These workshops correspond to Module I of a 3-module online course of increasing difficulty. In this first module, participants will be introduced to the basics of Bonsai — its logic, core principles, and potential applications. The workshop will also cover how to track animals during experiments, detect their presence in ROIs, run simple closed-loop paradigms, and perform basic logical operations.

To make participation easier across schedules and time zones, we are offering two alternative sessions of the same workshop:

Session 1: May 8, 2026, 10:00–12:00 CEST (UTC+2)
https://nenckiopenlab.org/event/introduction-to-bonsai-module-i/

Session 2: May 18, 2026, 16:00–18:00 CEST (UTC+2)
https://nenckiopenlab.org/event/introduction-to-bonsai-module-i-2/

Requirements: no prior programming experience is needed. A Windows computer and a webcam are required.

Workshop fee: EUR 10
Fee waivers are available upon request.

Instructor: Mateusz Kostecki, Heidelberg University

We also warmly invite you to join our Open Lab Online Discord, which is a space for discussion, exchange, and community around open tools and methods. All important workshop information and updates will also be shared there.

If you would like to get involved in Open Lab Online, you can also fill out our surveys:
Organizer survey: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeRqICetBCRbKZnjM9HlmLp1RKql3nUqxgupUVsPoEsjvbm3Q/viewform
Instructor survey: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdDZioKGcDdsP7AFE6-mS6R_y7-kWTf6t2wUxqdf21eTSEOCQ/viewform

If you have any questions, feel free to contact us at openlab@nencki.edu.pl or reach out to us on Discord.

Best wishes,

Mateusz Kostecki