Neuroscience Online Events 2020

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Dear BIRC Community,

Many neuroscience conferences this year have moved to an online format due to the COVID-19 pandemic making them far more accessible while decreasing registration costs. Please see a collection of relevant events below. We hope that you are able to take advantage of these resources.

  • World Wide Neuro
  • XhM Foundation Neuroscience for Kosovo
    • May 12th, 2020
    • $10 registration fee
    • Additional information
  • NeuroData Without Borders Hackathon
    • May 12th-15th, 2020
    • Free Registration
    • “In contrast to conferences, where the primary focus is to report results, the objective of the Hackathon is to provide a venue for NWB users and tool developers to learn about NWB and collaboratively work on any NWB-related research projects. This event is meant to foster community and collaboration around NWB, not competition.”
    • Additional information
  • BIRC Special Virtual Seminars
    • Typically every 2 weeks at 12pm ET
    • Upcoming talks scheduled for May19th and 26th
    • Schedule
    • email elizabeth.collin@uconn.edu to receive talk updates
  • Virtual Dopamine Conference
  • Neuro Technology Center: Optogenetics Symposium
    • May 27th, 2020
    • Free registration, closes May 13th
    • Additional information
  • Society for the Improvement of Psychological Science (SIPS)
    • June 21-23
    • Registration: free
    • Likely it will involve some combination of content communicated via video (e.g., pre-recorded workshops) and other content that involves interactive video-conferencing (e.g., live hackathons). We will let you know more as this planning takes form, and are excited to see how this new meeting takes shape in the hands of both the SIPS leadership and the SIPS community. 
    • Additional information
  • Gradients of Brain Organisation Virtual Satellite Event 
    • June 23
    • “Early career researchers will take centre stage for a series of talks on state-of-the-art development and application of gradient approaches”
    • Registration is free
    • Additional information
  • Scipy (Scientific Computing with Python) Conference
    • July 6-12
    • Students: $25 ; non students: $75
    • The annual SciPy Conference brings together over 900 participants from industry, academia, and government to showcase their latest projects, learn from skilled users and developers, and collaborate on code development. The full program will consist of 5 days tutorials and talks (July 6-10) and 2 days of developer sprints (July 11-12).
    • Additional information
  • Neuromatch Academy
    • “The Neuromatch Academy will be an open, online, 3-week intensive tutorial-based computational neuroscience training event (July 13-31, 2020). Participants from undergraduate to professors as well as industry are welcome”
    • Deadline to register: May 7th, 2020 (TODAY), by Midnight
    • Additional information 
  • Federation of European Neuroscience Societies Virtual Forum
    • July 20-22, 2020
    • Registration fees: €450 for non-member, €205 for student non-members
    • Additional information
  • Neuro HACKADEMY Summer School
    • July 27th-31st, 2020
    • “a summer school in neuroimaging and data science, held at the University of Washington eScience Institute.”
    • Apply for registration
  • Computational Psychiatry Course Zurich
    • September 7th-12th, 2020
    • This course is organized by the Translational Neuromodeling Unit (TNU) , University of Zurich & ETH Zurich and is designed to provide students across fields (neuroscience, psychiatry, physics, biology, psychology….) with the necessary toolkit to master challenges in computational psychiatry research.
    • Practically useful for students at all levels (MDs, Master, PhD, Postdoc, PI) coming from diverse backgrounds (neuroscience, psychology, medicine, engineering, physics, etc.), who would like to apply modeling techniques to study learning, decision-making or brain physiology in patients with psychiatric disorders
    • Free registration, closes August 23rd 2020
    • (Will be held online, not Zurich)
    • Registration

    Virtual Talk: Nathan Spreng, McGill University

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    Nathan Spreng, PhD

    McGill University

    Explorations into the default network of the human brain

    Tuesday, May 5th from 12–1:15pm ET via Zoom

    **Register here for Zoom using your institution/university email address**

    Bio: After receiving a Ph.D. in cognitive neuroscience from the psychology department at UCLA in 2006, Dr. Uddin completed a postdoctoral fellowship at the Child Study Center at NYU. For several years she worked as a faculty member in Psychiatry & Behavioral Science at the Stanford School of Medicine. She joined the psychology department at the University of Miami in 2014. Within a cognitive neuroscience framework, Dr. Uddin’s research combines functional connectivity analyses of resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging data and structural connectivity analyses of diffusion tensor imaging data to examine the organization of large-scale brain networks supporting executive functions. Her current projects focus on understanding dynamic network interactions underlying cognitive inflexibility in neurodevelopmental disorders such as autism. Dr. Uddin’s work has been published in the Journal of Neuroscience, Cerebral Cortex, JAMA Psychiatry, Biological Psychiatry, PNAS, and Nature Reviews Neuroscience. She was awarded the Young Investigator award by the Organization for Human Brain Mapping in 2017.

    Abstract: Executive control processes and flexible behaviors rely on the integrity of, and dynamic interactions between, several core large-scale brain networks. The right insular cortex is a critical component of a salience network that is thought to mediate interactions between brain networks involved in externally oriented and internally oriented processes. I will describe studies examining how brain network dynamics support flexible behaviors in typical and atypical development, presenting evidence suggesting a unique role for the dorsal anterior insular from studies of meta- analytic connectivity modeling, dynamic functional connectivity, and structural connectivity. These findings from adults, typically developing children, and children with autism suggest that structural and functional maturation of insular pathways is a critical component of the process by which human brain networks mature to support complex, flexible cognitive processes throughout the lifespan.

    Click here to see the full BIRC Speaker Series schedule and access recordings of past talks.

    Virtual Talk: Lucina Uddin, University of Miami

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    Lucina Uddin, PhD

    University of Miami

    Brain dynamics and flexible behaviors

    Tuesday, April 14th from 12-1:15pm EST via Zoom

    **Register here for Zoom using your institution/university email address**

    Bio: After receiving a Ph.D. in cognitive neuroscience from the psychology department at UCLA in 2006, Dr. Uddin completed a postdoctoral fellowship at the Child Study Center at NYU. For several years she worked as a faculty member in Psychiatry & Behavioral Science at the Stanford School of Medicine. She joined the psychology department at the University of Miami in 2014. Within a cognitive neuroscience framework, Dr. Uddin’s research combines functional connectivity analyses of resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging data and structural connectivity analyses of diffusion tensor imaging data to examine the organization of large-scale brain networks supporting executive functions. Her current projects focus on understanding dynamic network interactions underlying cognitive inflexibility in neurodevelopmental disorders such as autism. Dr. Uddin’s work has been published in the Journal of Neuroscience, Cerebral Cortex, JAMA Psychiatry, Biological Psychiatry, PNAS, and Nature Reviews Neuroscience. She was awarded the Young Investigator award by the Organization for Human Brain Mapping in 2017.

    Abstract: Executive control processes and flexible behaviors rely on the integrity of, and dynamic interactions between, several core large-scale brain networks. The right insular cortex is a critical component of a salience network that is thought to mediate interactions between brain networks involved in externally oriented and internally oriented processes. I will describe studies examining how brain network dynamics support flexible behaviors in typical and atypical development, presenting evidence suggesting a unique role for the dorsal anterior insular from studies of meta- analytic connectivity modeling, dynamic functional connectivity, and structural connectivity. These findings from adults, typically developing children, and children with autism suggest that structural and functional maturation of insular pathways is a critical component of the process by which human brain networks mature to support complex, flexible cognitive processes throughout the lifespan.

    Click here to see the full BIRC Speaker Series schedule and access recordings of past talks.

    Virtual Talk: Daniel Ansari, University of Western Ontario

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    Daniel Ansari, PhD

    University of Western Ontario

    Wednesday, April 1st from 1:00-2:15 pm EST via Zoom

    **Register here for Zoom using your university/institution email address**

    Abstract:

    Humans share with animals the ability to process numerical quantities in non-symbolic formats (e.g., collections of objects). Unlike other species, however, over cultural history, humans have developed symbolic representations (such as number words and digits) to represent numerical quantities exactly and abstractly. These symbols and their semantic referents form the foundations for higher-level numerical and mathematical skills. It is commonly assumed that symbols for number acquire their meaning by being mapped onto the pre-existing, phylogenetically ancient system for the approximate representation of non-symbolic number over the course of learning and development. In this talk I will challenge this hypothesis for how numerical symbols acquire their meanings (“the symbol grounding problem”). To do so, I will present a series of behavioral and neuroimaging studies with both children and adults that demonstrate that symbolic and non-symbolic processing of number is dissociated at both the behavioral and brain levels of analysis. I will discuss the implications of these data for theories of the origins of numerical symbol processing and its breakdown in children with mathematical learning disorders, such as Developmental Dyscalculia.

    Bio: Daniel Ansari received his PhD from University College London in 2003. Presently, Daniel Ansari is a Professor and Canada Research Chair in Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience in the Department of Psychology and the Brain & Mind Institute at the University of Western Ontario in London, Ontario, where he heads the Numerical Cognition Laboratory (www.numericalcognition.org). Ansari and his team explore the developmental trajectory underlying both the typical and atypical development of numerical and mathematical skills, using both behavioral and neuroimaging methods.

    Click here to see the full BIRC Speaker Series schedule and access recordings of past talks.

    BIRC’s response to the Coronavirus Outbreak Update #9 3-19-20

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    Here are some brief updates, which won’t impact any of you on the list serve (please note a virtual-only talk on 4/1 Wed).

    —————
    RESEARCH
    In-person research continues to be suspended and now until 5/11 or until further notice.
    —————
    CLINICAL
    In-person clinical is now suspended until 5/11 or until further notice.
    —————
    SERVICES CONTINUED
    We will continue to provide virtual services.
    BIRC will start hosting virtual-only talks if there seems to be interest. Dr. Daniel Ansari will kick us off on Wednesday, 4/1 at 1:00-2:15pm EST. He is a Professor and Canada Research Chair in Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience in the Department of Psychology and the Brain & Mind Institute at the University of Western Ontario in London, Canada. Dr. Ansari is an expert in educational neuroscience and MRI imaging of numerical processing. Please mark your calendars. Zoom in information and additional information TBA.
    Staff will continue to check in on the facility and equipment twice a week. No disinfection will be done.
    —————
     
    If you have any questions, as always, please contact us.
    Stay safe and please find humor in your daily lives in these challenging times.
    Warmly,
    BIRC Staff
    PS: For your entertainment, with the lockdown (in SF), this is my life right now. Perhaps it’s yours, too. 🙂

    BIRC’s response to the Coronavirus Outbreak Update #6 3-16-20

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    With many states and counties advancing into lockdown (SF is stating lockdown of the whole city together with neighboring counties effective tonight – just announced! I believe it will come our way to CT sooner than we think/hope. I hope I am wrong), we have made some adjustments.

    We technically remain open until the university announcement, but …

    RESEARCH SCANS
    We have cancelled all research scans until 4/6 and will continue to discourage scanning unless you can convince us 🙂

    CLINICAL SCANS
    While UCHC has decided to only cancel elective surgery at this point, and no outpatient services are cancelled, we have agreed to cancel/postpone all clinical scans as well. We will scan the remaining patients if there are critical needs but have suspended all clinical scans at least until 4/6 as well. We are currently not booking any new patients. Thanks for Leo Wolansky (UCHC Radiology Department Chair)’s understanding in the service of protecting our staff.
    Hence no disinfection will be done as complete telecommuting has started.

    If you have critical needs please contact me.

    Stay safe and happy…
    Fumiko

    BIRC’s response to the Coronavirus Outbreak Update #5 3-16-20

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    A quick update to you all. 

    RESEARCH SCANS
    We are currently technically open. But we do not have any research scans until the weekend (and they are non-EEG) and will likely close as soon as we get guidance from VPR. They are in discussions and will propose recommendations to the President this afternoon. We are urging the university to stop all non-critical/essential research that does not impact human health ASAP. We should have updates before any further research scans are done.

    CLINICAL SCANS
    We are in discussions with UCHC Radiology to stop clinical MRI as well as they are non-priority scans.

    OTHER ACTIVITIES
    We remain open virtually for any consultations or training that can be done remotely. We will suspend in person MRI safety training until further notice. LMK if this impacts your research plans.

    Please do not come in to use the conference rooms or data room unless necessary. While we have staff telecommute, we will not be disinfecting the areas as we had originally planned and was doing last week. If you do need to come in to BIRC, please contact me.

    Thank you,
    Fumiko

    BIRC’s response to the Coronavirus Outbreak Update #4 3-13-20

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    At this time BIRC will continue to be fully operational. Any scheduled research will not be impacted, and investigators can schedule additional research times as needed.

    Please note that we will be complying with the University’s request to have staff and faculty telecommute when possible and may not be in the facility during normal business hours; however, please feel free to email any questions to Fumiko Hoeft, Roeland Hancock, or Elisa Medeiros.

    IBRAiN Office Hours

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    IBRAiN fellows hold weekly office hours for the BIRC community to help users with their projects and provide short tutorials. Spring 2020 hours are held virtually Mondays 1:30-4:30p, Tuesdays 12-3p, Wednesdays 9a-12p, Thursdays 2-5p, and Fridays 2-5p. To join an office hour, connect to meeting 646 198 704 on UConn Webex.
    For more information about the fellows and office hours, please see https://birc.uconn.edu/ibrain-team/. Collectively, the fellows provide expertise in fMRI analysis using AFNI or FSL, cluster computing, and EEG analysis. If you have a research project that would benefit from IBRAiN involvement beyond office hours, please contact roeland.hancock@uconn.edu.

    Talk: David Badre, Brown University

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    David Badre, PhD
    Brown University

    Tuesday, March 3rd from 1:30-3:00 pm in Arjona 307

    Abstract:

    This talk will describe an on-going line of research in our lab investigating the cognitive and neural systems that support hierarchical cognitive control, or our ability to simultaneously control immediate actions while also holding more abstract, temporally remote goals in mind. Psychologists have long proposed that we have a capacity for hierarchical control, citing its potential contributions to sequential behavior, as well as higher-order planning, reasoning, and abstraction. Despite its importance for cognition, the cognitive and neural mechanisms that support hierarchical control remain unknown. Here I will provide a line of evidence suggesting that this type of complex control partly depends on gating of working memory by cortico-striatal circuits. In this light, I will discuss on-going efforts to develop fMRI methods that can characterize the dimensionality of neural representations in the prefrontal cortex that support complex task control.

    Bio:David Badre received his Ph.D. from the Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences at MIT in 2005. Following a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of California, Berkeley, he joined Brown’s Department of Cognitive, Linguistic, and Psychological Sciences as Assistant Professor in 2008 and was subsequently promoted to Associate Professor in 2014 and then Professor in 2019. He is also an affiliate of the Carney Institute for Brain Science and a trainer in the Neuroscience Graduate Program. His lab at Brown focuses on the cognitive neuroscience of memory and cognitive control with an emphasis on frontal lobe function and organization. Dr. Badre serves on the editorial boards of Psychological Science, Cognitive Science, and Behavioral Neuroscience.  He served as Section Editor covering “Executive Function and Cognitive Control” for Neuropsychologia until 2017. Presently, he serves on the Board of Reviewing Editors for the journal eLife, and he is a standing member of the Cognition and Perception study section of NIH. His research is supported by NINDS and NIMH at the NIH, and through the Office of Naval Research. His work has been recognized by several awards, including an Alfred P. Sloan Foundation Fellowship in Neuroscience, a James S. McDonnell Scholar Award in Understanding Human Cognition, and the Cognitive Neuroscience Society Young Investigator Award. His book on the neuroscience of cognitive control, entitled On Task: How the brain gets things done, will be published in November, 2020 through Princeton University Press.

    **Register here for Webex**

    Please email birc@uconn.edu if you are interested in meeting with a speaker. Click here to see the full BIRC Speaker Series schedule and access recordings of past talks.