Connectionists: COSYNE 2011: Call for workshop proposals

[Ila Fiete]

Computational and Systems Neuroscience 2011

http://www.cosyne.org

Main meeting: February 24, 2011 - February 27, 2011

Marriott, Downtown, Salt Lake City, Utah Workshops: February 28, 2011 -
March 1, 2011

Snowbird Ski Resort, Snowbird, Utah

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--------------------- CALL FOR WORKSHOP PROPOSALS ---------------------
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PROPOSAL DEADLINE: Preference will be given to proposals received by 15
September 2010; proposals received by 30 October 2010 will be
considered, if space is available

A series of workshops will be held after the main Cosyne meeting
(http://cosyne.org/). The goal is to provide an informal forum for the
discussion of important research questions and challenges. Controversial
issues, open problems, comparisons of competing approaches, and
alternative viewpoints are encouraged.

The overarching goal of all workshops should be the integration of
empirical and theoretical approaches, in an environment that fosters
collegial discussion and debate. Preference will be given to proposals
that differ in content, scope, and/or approach from workshops of recent
years (examples available at cosyne.org).

Relevant topics include, but are not limited to: sensory processing;
motor planning and control; multisensory integration; motivation, reward
and decision making; learning and memory; adaptation and plasticity;
neural coding; neural circuitry and network models; dendritic
processing; and methods in computational or systems neuroscience.

WORKSHOP DETAILS:

-- There will be 4-8 workshops/day, running in parallel. -- Each
workshop is expected to draw between 15 and 80 people. -- The workshops
will be split into morning (8:00-11:00 AM) and afternoon (4:30-7:30 PM)
sessions. -- Workshops will be held at Snowbird, a ski resort located 30
miles (typically less than an hour) from the Salt Lake City airport. --
Buses from the main conference will be provided.

SUBMISSION INSTRUCTIONS:

Deadline: 15 September 2010

Format: plain text only -- please no attachments email to:
cosyne11workshops at googlegroups.com (Mark Laubach, Brent Doiron)

Proposals should include:

- Name(s) and email address(es) of the organizers (no more than 2
organizers per session, please). A primary contact should be designated.
-- A title. -- A brief description of: what the workshop is to address
and accomplish, why the topic is of interest, who the targeted group of
participants is.

-- Names of potential invitees, with indication of which speakers are
confirmed. Preference will be given to workshops with the most confirmed
speakers.

-- Proposed workshop length (1 or 2 days). Most workshops will be
limited to a single day. If you think your workshop needs 2 days, please
explain why.

-- A *brief* resume of the workshop organizer along with a *brief* list
of publications (about half a page total).

WORKSHOP ORGANIZERS RESPONSIBILITIES:

-- Coordinate workshop participation and content. -- Moderate the
discussion.

SUGGESTIONS:

Experience has shown that the best discussions during a workshop are
those that arise spontaneously. A good way to foster these is to have
short talks and long question periods (e.g. 30+15 minutes), and have
plenty of breaks. Also, when it comes to the number of talks, in the
words of Jerry Brown, less is more. We recommend fewer than 10 talks.

WORKSHOP COSTS:

Detailed registration costs, etc, will be available here

Please note: Cosyne does NOT provide travel funding for workshop
speakers. All workshop speakers are expected to pay for workshop
registration fees. Participants are encouraged to register early, in
order to qualify for discounted registration rates. One complementary
(free) organizer registration is provided per workshop. For workshops
with 2 organizers, the free registration can be given to one of the
organizers or split evenly between them.

COSYNE 2010 WORKSHOP CHAIRS: Mark Laubach (Yale), Brent Doiron
(Pittsburgh)

QUESTIONS: email: cosyne11workshops at googlegroups.com