Connectionists: Postdoc and PhD Positions in Computational Cognitive Neuroscience at UKE - Hamburg

[Stefano Panzeri]

The Panzeri and Donner laboratories at the University Medical Center
Hamburg-Eppendorf (UKE) aim to fill joint postdoc and PhD positions
starting at any time. The vacant positions are for collaborative projects
in computational cognitive neuroscience, and funding is available for
several years. Applications will be reviewed when they are received until
positions are filled.



Both labs aim to understand how higher brain functions such as sensation,
perception, decision-making, and memory, emerge from the interactions
between brain areas and/or populations of neurons within these areas. These
topics are studied in the healthy brain and in neuropsychiatric disorders,
and they are addressed through a tight interplay between theoretical and
experimental approaches. Joint ongoing work focuses on how feedforward and
feedback communication across the cortical hierarchy, excitation-inhibition
balance, and neuromodulatory processes, shape decision-making.



The Panzeri Lab, newly established at UKE Hamburg, is a theoretical lab
which develops advanced mathematical tools for brain data analysis, applies
these methods to real data to produce new results on neural information
processing, and develops biophysically plausible neural network models of
how information is processed in the brain. The Donner lab is an
experimental lab that combines pharmacological intervention, psychophysics,
eye-tracking, and neuroimaging (MEG and fMRI) in human subjects with
advanced data analysis and computational modeling tools to uncover
signatures and mechanisms of cognitive computation.



The new lab members will join existing teams with extensive expertise in
both computational and experimental neuroscience. The new lab members will
also benefit from both labs’ extensive international collaborations
including Harvard Medical School, Italian Institute of Technology, Baylor
College of Medicine, Cornell University, École Normale Supérieure, New York
University, Pompeu Fabra University, University of Pennsylvania, SISSA and
others.



We seek applications from qualified individuals from all demographics,
genders, and backgrounds. Both labs are committed to diversity, highly
international, and operate in English.



Hamburg is a vibrant, international, family-friendly, and green city. It
hosts one of the world’s largest harbors, an internationally acclaimed
concert hall, a large lake, and dozens of canals, lots of beautiful parks,
and many other nice places for leisure time. The UKE also has excellent
family-friendly facilities.



Candidates should have a solid background in numerate sciences and a keen
interest in applying advanced mathematical concepts to reveal the function
of the brain. Experience in quantitative or computational neuroscience is a
major plus. The main criterion, however, is a commitment to scientific
excellence.



Applications (full CV, statement of research interest and name and contact
of 2 referees) should be sent to  t.donner at uke.de ,
stefano.panzeri at gmail.com



Further information on both labs can be found here:

http://www.tobiasdonner.net

https://www.uke.de/english/departments-institutes/institutes/department-of-excellence-for-neural-information-processing/team/index.html



Recent relevant publications of the labs include:



Pfeffer, T. et al (2021), Circuit mechanisms for the chemical modulation of
cortex-wide network interactions and behavioral variability*. *Science
Advances 7: eabf5620



Valente, M., et al (2021), Correlations enhance the behavioral readout of
neural population activity in association cortex. Nature Neuroscience, 24,
975–986



Murphy P., et al (2021), Adaptive circuit dynamics across human cortex
during evidence accumulation in changing environments. Nature Neuroscience
7: 987-997.



Wilming N., et al (2020), Large-scale dynamics of decision information
across human cortex. Nature Communications 11: 5109.



Chong, E. et al (2020) Manipulating synthetic optogenetic odors reveals the
coding logic of olfactory perception. Science 368, 1329.



Runyan C. A., et al (2017) Distinct timescales of population coding across
cortex, Nature: 548: 92-96.



Stefano Panzeri, Professor of Neural Information Processing

Tobias H. Donner,  Professor of Integrative Neuroscience

University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf
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