Connectionists: Open Positions: 6 PhD students and 1 Post-Doc - Bernstein Group for Computational Neuroscience Bremen

[David Rotermund]

The new Bernstein research group "Functional adaptation of the visual 
cortex" funded by the BMBF has been established at the Center for 
Cognitive Sciences/University of Bremen. This interdisciplinary research 
group works on selected topics in Computational Neuroscience, joining 
theory and experiment to understand information processing in the brain. 
The following institutes participate in the Bernstein group:
Institute for Theoretical Neurophysics
Brain Research Institute III (Theoretical Neurobiology)
Brain Research Institute IV (Human Neurobiology)

The aim of this Bernstein Group is to investigate neuronal mechanisms 
underlying functional adaptations in the visual system by theoretical 
and experimental approaches. The research program will comprise four 
projects, investigating (1) theoretical concepts encompassing putative 
neuronal mechanisms and structures enabling adaptive, selective 
information processing in the cortex (Prof. Dr. Pawelzik), (2) adaptive 
mechanisms integrating contextual information, prior knowledge, and 
on-going cortical activity into coherent percepts (NN), (3) adaptive, 
task- and stimulus-specific routing of information flow in visual cortex 
(Prof. Dr. Kreiter), and (4) dynamic integration of temporal signals, 
and fast control and adaptive learning under closed loop conditions 
(Prof. Dr. Fahle).

Our integrative approach encompasses theoretical investigations and 
modelling studies on different levels, tightly linked to experimental 
investigations combining psychophysical experiments with 
electrophysiological recordings of attentional modulation and 
inter-areal communication in awake and behaving monkeys, and 
complemented by psychophysical and fMRI experiments in humans.

Open Positions

Positions are offered for:

Project 1: Mechanisms and structures of adaptive neural information 
processing
1 PhD student (E13/2 TVöD) will primarily use theoretical approaches to 
investigate mechanisms of adaptive computation in spiking neuronal 
networks. The candidate should have a strong background in neural 
network theory, and be also interested in testing newly developed 
paradigms in biophysically realistic settings with large-scale computer 
simulations running on our Linux cluster.

Project 2: Adaptive integration of contextual information and prior 
knowledge into coherent percepts
1 Post-Doc (E 14 TVöD) will lead and shape the research activities in 
this project. In parallel, this experienced candidate is expected to 
coordinate the exchange between experimental studies and theoretical 
work within the whole research group, hereby structuring the 
collaboration between the different projects, as well as organizing the 
exchange of ideas with external partners at the Bernstein centers.

1 PhD student (E13/2 TVöD) will perform psychophysical experiments (in 
Prof. Fahle's Lab) on feature integration in visual cortex, guided by 
theoretical work of the Post-Doc.

Project 3: Adaptive routing of information flow in the visual cortex
1 PhD student (E13/2 TVöD) will investigate attention-dependent signal 
selection and dynamic routing of information in the visual cortex by 
electrophysiological multi-electrode recordings in trained monkeys.

1 PhD student (E13/2 TVöD) with a comprehensive background in theory and 
data analysis will identify basic neuronal mechanisms of signal 
selection and dynamic routing of information. The candidate is expected 
to study realistic models of cortical microcircuits based on constraints 
from monkey experiments and psychophysical studies performed within the 
Bernstein group.

Project 4: Dynamic integration of temporal signals and adaptive learning
1 PhD student (E13/2 TVöD) with a background in psychophysics will 
investigate temporal factors in figure-ground segregation, object 
representation and closed loop eye-hand coordination with psychophysical 
methods in humans.

1 PhD student (E13/2 TVöD) will study multi-modal adaptation on 
different time scales with spiking neuronal network models. The 
candidate should be interested in identifying putative mechanisms of 
fast adaptation and learning, and in establishing cross-links between 
experimental work, learning theory, up to control problems in technical 
applications.

Ideal candidates would be interested in pursuing research with a strong 
emphasis on computational questions and their experimental investigation 
in a tight interdisciplinary network. We also expect and encourage 
candidates to contribute own ideas in shaping the project. Basis for 
application is a successful graduation at a university in the field of 
natural studies.

The University of Bremen desires to increase the number of women in 
research and thus explicitly solicits applications from qualified women. 
Handicapped applicants will be treated preferentially if their personal 
and professional qualifications are equivalent. For additional 
information, contact positions at bernstein.uni-bremen.de or see 
http://www.bernstein.uni-bremen.de . The project will start from April 
2007 onwards.