Max Garagnani

Dr. Max Garagnani is a Senior Lecturer in Computer Science at Goldsmiths, University of London, and co-director of the MSc in Computational Cognitive Neuroscience. He holds dual PhDs from the University of Cambridge (Computational Cognitive Neuroscience, 2009) and the University of Durham (Artificial Intelligence, 1999). His primary research focuses on developing biologically realistic neural networks to model cognitive functions like language acquisition, decision-making, and perception-action integration.

Garagnani's work emphasizes neurocomputational models constrained by brain anatomy and physiology, particularly exploring how language emerges from neural activity in the cortex. He has collaborated with institutions like the Free University of Berlin’s Brain Language Lab and the MRC Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit. His research combines computational modeling with neuroimaging (MEG/fMRI) and robotics (e.g., iCub).

Key achievements include modeling semantic dementia breakdown, explaining visual cortex recruitment in blind individuals, and simulating prediction-error signals in cortical hierarchies. Awards include the EU Marie Curie Fellowship and EPSRC grants. He teaches courses in computational neuroscience and supervises projects in neural network modeling and cognitive systems.