Jason Ritt is an Associate Professor of Brain Science (Research) and Scientific Director of Quantitative Neuroscience at the Robert J. and Nancy D. Carney Institute for Brain Science, Brown University. He holds affiliations with the Data Science Institute and collaborates across disciplines on quantitative research methods. Education : B.S., M.A., and Ph.D. in Neuroscience from Boston University (1997–2003). Research : Focuses on neural processing during active sensing and neuroengineering for neurostimulation. Combines electrophysiology, optogenetics, and theoretical approaches in rodent models. Develops closed-loop systems for studying sensory neural prosthetics and brain-machine interfaces. Key areas include synaptic diversity, neurocontrol algorithms, and sensory restoration. Teaching : Instructs NEUR 2100 NeuroPracticum, integrating hands-on neuroscience research training.
Noah J. Cowan is a Professor of Mechanical Engineering at Johns Hopkins University's Whiting School of Engineering, with secondary appointments in Computer Science, Electrical & Computer Engineering, and Neuroscience. He is the founder and director of the Locomotion in Mechanical and Biological Systems (LIMBS) Laboratory, part of the Laboratory for Computational Sensing and Robotics. His research focuses on neuromechanics, robotics, and control theory, bridging neuroscience, biomechanics, and engineering. Cowan's work investigates how organisms achieve precise locomotion and applies these insights to advance robotics, neuroprosthetics, and rehabilitation technologies. Education: B.S. Electrical Engineering (Ohio State, 1995), M.S. and Ph.D. Electrical Engineering & Computer Science (University of Michigan, 1997/2001). Postdoctoral fellowship at UC Berkeley (2001–2003) before joining Johns Hopkins. Research Interests: Neuromechanics of motion, bio-inspired robotics, multisensory integration in animals (e.g., electric fish, Drosophila), and sensorimotor control in clinical contexts like cerebellar ataxia. His lab studies how neural circuits interact with biomechanics to produce movement, with applications to robotic design and neurological disorder treatments. Awards & Recognition: Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (2010), IEEE Fellow, NSF CAREER Award (2009), and multiple teaching and research excellence awards at Johns Hopkins. His work has been published in top journals like Nature , Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences , and IEEE Transactions on Robotics . Outreach & Mentorship: Longtime mentor for high school and undergraduate students in STEM, leading programs like the Baltimore Ingenuity Project and WISE. Served as team leader for the STEM Achievement in Baltimore Elementary Schools (SABES) initiative. Key Projects: Development of the LIMBS Lab’s VR systems for animal studies, bioelectric navigation technologies for medical devices, and collaborations with clinicians on upper limb movement disorders. His team’s research on electric fish and fruit flies has revealed principles of adaptive control applicable to robotics and AI.
Univ-Prof. Dr. med. Malek Bajbouj serves as Director of the Institute for Affective Neuroscience and Emotion Modulation at Charité – University Medicine Berlin's Campus Benjamin Franklin (CBF), operating within the Department of Neurology, Neurosurgery and Psychiatry (CC 15). His position integrates clinical leadership with translational neuroscience research focused on severe mental illnesses. Dr. Bajbouj's research program centers on affective neuroscience and emotion dysregulation mechanisms in psychiatric disorders, particularly schizophrenia spectrum conditions and depression. He pioneers multimodal intervention approaches combining neuromodulation (tDCS), oxytocin augmentation, mindfulness therapies, and digital health tools. His work emphasizes translational biomarker development using neuroimaging, machine learning, and physiological stress parameter analysis to personalize treatment for treatment-resistant populations. Analysis of his 2023-2025 publications reveals three dominant research trajectories: (1) novel treatment combinations for negative symptoms in schizophrenia (oxytocin + mindfulness, yoga therapy); (2) real-world implementation of neuromodulation (at-home tDCS protocols, technical efficacy monitoring); and (3) global mental health responses to crises (pandemic impacts on vulnerable groups, culturally adapted refugee interventions). His methodology consistently employs rigorous randomized controlled trials with embedded biomarker studies. As director of his eponymous institute, Dr. Bajbouj leads a multidisciplinary team conducting neuroimaging studies, clinical trials, and international collaborations focused on emotion modulation pathways. The institute coordinates research across CC 15's clinical infrastructure at CBF Building V, with particular emphasis on bridging laboratory neuroscience with clinical psychiatry through the DepressionDC and OXYMIND trial frameworks.
Prof. Waldemar Kolanus leads the Molecular Immunology and Cell Biology department at the University of Bonn's Life & Medical Sciences Institute (LIMES) . His research bridges immunoregulation , stem cell dynamics , and metabolic stress responses in immune cells. Unit 2 member at LIMES Principal investigator in SFB 704 and ImmunoSensation Cluster Leads a multidisciplinary lab with postdocs, PhD students, and technical staff His work focuses on intracellular signaling pathways connecting immune activation to tissue homeostasis, particularly through: Cytohesin proteins in integrin-mediated adhesion and migration TRIM71 in stem cell regulation and congenital hydrocephalus High-salt environments affecting macrophage function Publication trends show expertise in immune cell migration , genetic models , and chemical inhibition , with frequent use of mice and zebrafish for in vivo studies. Key articles explore: TRIM71's dual role in auditory development and germ cell maintenance Cytohesin family's Golgi regulation and insulin signaling Ruxolitinib's off-target migration inhibition of dendritic cells Contact details: Address: LIMES Institute, Carl-Troll-Straße 31, Bonn Email: kolanus.sekretariat@uni-bonn.de Phone: +49 228 73-62788
Anna Choromanska is an Associate Professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at NYU Tandon School of Engineering, with affiliations to NYU Center for Data Science (CDS), NYU Center for Urban Science and Progress (CUSP), NYU Center for Advanced Technology in Communications (CATT), and the C2SMART Center. Her research focuses on deep learning optimization, generalization, and applications in autonomous driving and large-scale data analysis. She holds an Alfred P. Sloan Fellowship and NSF CAREER Award, and her work impacts industries like NVIDIA and Facebook. She directs the Learning Systems Laboratory (LSL), emphasizing interdisciplinary experimental/theoretical work. Research Interests: Machine Learning fundamentals, DL optimization, continual learning, autonomous vehicle systems, large data analysis. Her lab explores DNN learning dynamics, training architecture design, and scalable algorithms. Professional Impact: Over 50 invited talks, workshop organization for top ML conferences, and contributions to open-source projects like Vowpal Wabbit. Her algorithms are deployed in production systems at Facebook and Baidu. Awards: NSF CAREER Award Alfred P. Sloan Fellowship IBM Global University Program Academic Award (2x) Columbia University Presidential Fellowship Advising & Labs: Leads LSL, supervising interdisciplinary projects in optimization and autonomy. Actively involved in NYU's Modern AI seminar series and industry partnerships through CATT. Personal Interests: Accomplished pianist, salsa dancer, and fashion design enthusiast with notable performances and certifications in dance and music.
Professor Thomas Blumensath is a Professor of Signal and Image Processing at the University of Southampton and a Fellow at the Alan Turing Institute. He is the Academic Lead in Image Processing and Reconstruction at the University's μ-VIS X-ray Imaging Centre and Director of Research at the Institute of Sound and Vibration Research (ISVR). His research focuses on advanced algorithms for solving inverse problems in tomographic imaging, combining machine learning, optimization, and statistical methods. Key areas include X-ray tomography strategies, GPU-accelerated reconstruction, and multimodal imaging applications. Education: B.Sc. (Hons) Music Technology and Audio System Design, University of Derby (2002) PhD in Electronic Engineering (Bayesian Signal Processing), University of London (2006) Research Interests: Professor Blumensath's work spans theoretical and applied signal/image processing, with emphasis on tomographic imaging techniques. His current projects address efficient reconstruction methods, spectral X-ray CT, and applications in manufacturing and plant science. He collaborates with advanced imaging facilities like Diamond Light Source and ISIS neutron imaging beamline. Key Contributions: His research bridges computational methods (e.g., compressed sensing) with practical imaging challenges, including limited-angle tomography and stereo imaging strategies. He leads the National Research Facility for Lab X-ray CT and has developed the TIGRE reconstruction toolbox. Grants & Projects: Active funding includes EPSRC projects on tomographic sensitivity monitoring and CT-based manufacturing inspections. Completed projects cover constrained reconstruction, AM process verification, and industrial CT metrology. Awards: Alan Turing Institute Fellowship Teaching & Leadership: He teaches modules on machine learning, biomedical image processing, and robotics. Leads the BEng Control Engineering program at the Joint Education Institute with Harbin Engineering University. Labs/Teams: Active in the Signal Processing, Audio and Hearing research group (SPAH) and the Institute for Life Sciences. Oversees the μ-VIS X-ray Imaging Centre's research initiatives.
Kevin M. Franks is an Associate Professor of Neurobiology at Duke University, where he investigates how the olfactory system forms neural representations of sensory environments. His work focuses on functional neural circuits in the olfactory bulb and piriform cortex, using techniques like in vivo recordings, optogenetics, and behavioral assays. His research explores Neural circuit dynamics and plasticity Odor coding mechanisms Role of recurrent circuitry Integration of sensory modalities Recent publications highlight his contributions to understanding cortical odor representations, developmental neural connectivity, and cross-modal interactions. Awards include the 2024 Don Tucker Finalist recognition. He teaches advanced neuroscience courses at Duke, including Neurobiology research and concepts in neuronal systems.
David Melcher is Professor of Psychology and Program Head in Psychology at New York University Abu Dhabi (NYUAD), where he also serves as a Global Network Professor. He is affiliated with the Division of Science and leads the Perception and Active Cognition Lab, focusing on the integration of perception, attention, memory, and action within a cognitive neuroscience framework. PhD in Psychology and Cognitive Science, Rutgers University (2001) Former researcher and professor in Italy and the UK Current leadership: Program Head, Psychology, NYUAD David Melcher's research centers on cognitive neuroscience , particularly how perception, attention, working memory, eye movements, and self-motion interact to shape cognition and behavior. His lab emphasizes active cognition —the idea that perception is not passive but dynamically shaped by action, context, and goals. He investigates how temporal dynamics in neural processing organize perceptual experiences and guide decision-making. His work spans both healthy and clinical populations, exploring individual differences in spatial and temporal processing across the lifespan. The 15 most recent publications reflect a consistent focus on temporal organization in cognition , perception-action coupling , and neural mechanisms of attention and memory . Keywords across these works include cognitive neuroscience, perception, and neuroimaging, with subfields ranging from eye movement research and neural synchrony to computational modeling and clinical neuropsychology. Collectively, they demonstrate a trajectory toward integrative models of brain function that bridge behavioral, neuroimaging, and computational approaches. Among his notable recognitions is the Distinguished Scientific Award for Early Career Contribution to Psychology from the American Psychological Association (2011), highlighting the early impact of his work in cognitive neuroscience. Distinguished Scientific Award for Early Career Contribution to Psychology, APA (2011) David Melcher has advised numerous students through capstone projects in psychology and computer science, fostering interdisciplinary research at the intersection of cognitive science and technology. His research has been generously supported by major funding agencies including the European Research Council , the US National Institutes of Health , the Italian Ministry of Research and Education , and the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Expert Affairs . He also contributes to the academic community as a member of the editorial boards of Journal of Vision , Psychonomic Bulletin & Review , Perception , and iPerception . He leads the Perception and Active Cognition Lab at NYUAD, which employs a multidisciplinary approach combining behavioral experiments, neuroimaging (fMRI, EEG, MEG), eye-tracking, computational modeling, and clinical assessments. The lab’s research aims to understand how the brain constructs stable percepts from dynamic sensory input, particularly during active engagement with the environment.
Minghao Qi is a Professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Purdue University's College of Engineering, West Lafayette. His research focuses on integrated photonics systems for optical communications, quantum information, and precision metrology applications. Professor Qi's work spans several critical photonics domains: Design and application of microresonator-based optical frequency combs (Kerr combs) Silicon and silicon nitride integrated photonic circuits Thin-film lithium niobate devices for nonlinear optics Quantum information processing using frequency-bin entangled photons Photonic neuromorphic computing with machine learning co-design Optical sensors and time-of-flight ranging systems Analysis of his 2022-2025 publications reveals three dominant research vectors: (1) Vernier microcombs for optical atomic clocks and RF stabilization, (2) Trident edge coupler architectures for octave-spanning nonlinear processes on lithium niobate, and (3) Physics-informed neural networks applied to photonic device design and signal processing. His recent work demonstrates strong convergence between integrated photonics, quantum technologies, and machine learning.
Tobi Delbruck is a titular professor of physics and electrical engineering at ETH Zurich, where he leads the Sensors Group at the Institute for Neuroinformatics (INI) in Zurich, Switzerland. He collaborates closely with Shih-Chii Liu and Giacomo Indiveri as part of the 'hardware groups' at INI. Delbruck has also served as visiting faculty at Caltech and is a Fellow of the IEEE. His work focuses on bio-inspired and neuromorphic event-based sensory processing systems. Professor Delbruck's research spans multiple areas of neuromorphic engineering, with particular emphasis on event-based vision systems and low-power analog VLSI circuits. His work has significantly advanced the field of Dynamic Vision Sensors (DVS), which mimic the human retina's response to changes in brightness rather than capturing full frames. This approach enables extremely low-latency vision processing with minimal power consumption, making it ideal for high-speed applications and robotics. His research has applications in robotics, autonomous systems, and low-power embedded vision. Delbruck is an active contributor to the neuromorphic engineering community, co-organizing the annual Telluride Workshop on Neuromorphic Engineering and serving in leadership roles with IEEE. He has authored numerous influential publications and co-authored books including "Event-Based Neuromorphic Systems" and "Analog VLSI: Circuits and Principles." His jAER (Java Address-Event Representation) project provides open-source tools for real-time event-based sensory processing. Analysis of his recent publications shows a clear trend toward integrating event-based vision with deep learning techniques and applying these systems to practical robotics problems. His scientific achievements have been recognized with multiple awards including: IEEE Fellow Winner of Best Live Demonstration award at ISCAS 2012 Honorable Mention Award from Sensory Systems Technical Committee at ISCAS 2012 Overall Best Student Paper Award and Best Paper Award from Sensory Systems Technical Committee at ISCAS 2010 Winner of the 2006 ISSCC Jan Van Vessem Outstanding European Paper Award Professor Delbruck actively mentors students and has supervised numerous PhD and Master's theses in the areas of neuromorphic engineering and event-based vision systems. His group has secured significant research funding from various sources to support their innovative work in bio-inspired sensory processing. He teaches courses on "Electronics for Physicists II (Digital)" and "Neuromorphic Engineering," helping to train the next generation of researchers in this field. The Sensors Group at INI, which Delbruck leads, operates state-of-the-art facilities for designing and testing neuromorphic vision systems. The group maintains close collaborations with researchers worldwide and has developed several important open-source resources including the jAER project and bias generator design kits. Their work continues to push the boundaries of what's possible with event-based sensory processing, with applications ranging from high-speed robotics to low-power embedded vision systems.
Nam Sung Kim is the W. J. "Jerry" Sanders III-Advanced Micro Devices Inc. Endowed Chair and holds a Professorship in Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of Illinois. He is also affiliated with the Siebel School of Computing and Data Science, Coordinated Science Lab, and National Center for Supercomputing Applications (NCSA). His research focuses on computer architecture, memory systems, chiplet integration, and hardware security. Key areas include energy-efficient computing, processing-in-memory (PIM), and mitigating hardware vulnerabilities like rowhammer attacks. Kim has received prestigious awards including IEEE Fellow (2016), MICRO Hall of Fame (2018), NAI Fellow (2023), and NSF CAREER Award (2015). His work spans publications in top venues like ASPLOS and IEEE journals, addressing topics such as CXL-based memory systems, DRAM module optimization, and GPU architecture improvements. Collaborations emphasize interdisciplinary research in hardware-software co-design and emerging technologies. His labs and teams at Coordinated Science Lab and NCSA drive innovations in scalable computing, near-memory processing, and cloud infrastructure for AI workloads. Ongoing projects include developing resilient memory hierarchies and accelerating large-scale machine learning models through novel architecture designs.
Suresh Krishna is an Associate Professor in the Department of Physiology at McGill University's Faculty of Medicine. His research focuses on the neurophysiological and computational basis of sensory processing, attention, and eye movements, with applications to brain-machine interfaces and human health. He works with human subjects, non-human primates, and open datasets using in-vivo electrophysiology, eye-tracking, and computational modeling. Research interests include visual attention mechanisms, saccadic eye movement control, neural coding of motion perception, and the interplay between attention and decision-making. His work bridges basic neuroscience with translational applications such as improving neural prosthetics and understanding perceptual disorders. Recent work highlights how neural remapping processes during saccades underlie spatial perception, and how attention modulates neural activity patterns in visual cortex. The lab's publications reveal critical insights into the temporal dynamics of attentional shifts and their neural substrates, particularly in areas MT and MST. Dr. Krishna's team also investigates auditory temporal processing in the inferior colliculus, exploring correlations between neuronal responses to sound modulation. Their findings contribute to understanding how sensory systems encode temporal information across modalities. Research is conducted in the M2B3 Lab (http://m2b3.lab.mcgill.ca), which integrates experimental and computational approaches to study brain mechanisms underlying perception and action. No specific awards are listed, but ongoing work involves major contributions to primate neurophysiology and translational neuroscience.
Milos Popovic is a Professor and Director at the Institute of Biomedical Engineering, University of Toronto, and serves as Senior Scientist and Director of Research at the Toronto Rehabilitation Institute (KITE), University Health Network. He holds the Toronto Rehab Chair in Spinal Cord Injury Research and Neural Engineering and co-leads the Centre for Research in Advanced Neural Implant Applications (CRANIA). His leadership spans academic, clinical, and translational research domains in neuroengineering and rehabilitation. His research focuses on neurorehabilitation, neuroprosthetics, functional electrical stimulation (FES), brain-machine interfaces, and assistive technologies . He develops physiological control systems and therapeutic robotics to restore motor function after spinal cord injury and stroke. His work integrates biomechanics, signal processing, and human-machine interfaces to innovate rehabilitative solutions. Dr. Popovic's recent publications emphasize electrical neuromodulation, FES therapy for motor recovery, deep brain stimulation for cognitive deficits, and wearable/implantable technologies . The articles reflect a strong trend toward closed-loop systems, translational research, and interdisciplinary innovation in neuroengineering and rehabilitation. Swiss National Science Foundation Technology Transfer Award - 1st place (1997) Engineering Medal for Research and Development, Professional Engineers of Ontario (2008) Elected to the College of Fellows, American Institute of Medical and Biological Engineering (2011) 1st Prize and Best Intellectual Property Award, TiEQuest Business Venture Competition (2012) Morris (Mickey) Milner Award for Assistive Technologies (2013) University of Toronto Inventor of the Year Award (2013) University Health Network’s Inventor of the Year Award (2015) Dr. Popovic has secured significant research funding and leads the Neural Engineering and Therapeutics team at KITE. He co-founded MyndTec Inc. and the Canadian National Spinal Cord Injury Conference, demonstrating strong mentorship, innovation, and national impact. He advises graduate students and postdoctoral fellows in biomedical engineering and rehabilitation sciences. He leads the Rehabilitation Engineering Laboratory and the Neural Engineering and Therapeutics Team at KITE, fostering collaboration across engineering, neuroscience, and clinical rehabilitation. His lab develops advanced neurotechnologies with a focus on clinical translation and commercialization.
Jonny Kohl is a Group Leader at the Francis Crick Institute , where he established the State-dependent Neural Processing Laboratory in 2019. His work bridges neural circuits and internal physiological states (e.g., hunger, pregnancy) to decode instinctive behaviors like parenting and aggression in mice. PhD: MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Cambridge (2013) Postdoc: Harvard University (2014–2019) with support from EMBO, HFSP, and Wellcome Trust fellowships Research Interests : Kohl investigates how hormonal and metabolic states dynamically rewire neural circuits to drive adaptive behaviors. His lab combines circuit neuroscience , molecular biology , and behavioral profiling to study: State-dependent neural processing in parental behavior Chemosensory dominance hierarchies in mice Plasticity mechanisms in aggression circuits Development of ultrafast tissue labeling and cryoanesthesia tools Scientific Trends : His recent publications highlight hormone-mediated synaptic remodeling (2023), cost-effective lab tools (2023), and brain-wide activity mapping (2016). Collaborative work spans computational biology , metabolism , and imaging disciplines. Honors: NARSAD Young Investigator Award (2019), ERC Starting Grant (2019), Wellcome Trust Discovery Award (2025) Grants: BBSRC Research Grant (2025), BBSRC Pioneer Grant (2023) His lab mentors PhD and MSc students and has developed open-source neuroscience tools (e.g., cryoanesthesia device, 2023). Kohl's research has been featured in Nature , Science , and Cell .
Azita Emami serves as the Andrew and Peggy Cherng Professor of Electrical Engineering and Medical Engineering at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech), where she concurrently holds leadership roles as Executive Officer for Electrical Engineering and Director of the Center for Sensing to Intelligence. Appointed to Caltech's faculty in 2007, she progressed from Assistant Professor to her current endowed professorship through demonstrated scholarly excellence. Her academic foundation includes: B.S. in Electrical Engineering from Sharif University of Technology (1996) M.S. in Electrical Engineering from Stanford University (1999) Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering from Stanford University (2004) Professor Emami pioneers mixed-mode integrated circuit systems that bridge theoretical innovation with practical applications. Her research emphasizes ultra-low power consumption and high reliability in scalable semiconductor technologies, targeting transformative solutions across multiple domains. Key thrusts include: Biomedical implantables for neural recording/stimulation and gastrointestinal monitoring Photonics-electronics co-design for energy-efficient optical interconnects Machine learning-enhanced signal processing for brain-computer interfaces Miniaturized magnetic sensors with unprecedented noise performance Her work consistently demonstrates how circuit-level innovations enable breakthrough capabilities in medical diagnostics and high-speed computing. Analysis of her 2021-2024 publications reveals a strategic convergence of biomedical sensing and intelligent signal processing . While maintaining strong contributions to optical interconnects (accounting for ~40% of recent output), her lab increasingly focuses on closed-loop medical systems where low-power analog neural networks interpret physiological signals. This evolution reflects growing NIH and industry interest in implantable/wearable health technologies, with her group leading in CMOS-based sensor miniaturization and energy efficiency. Her professional recognition includes: IEEE Solid-State Circuits Society Distinguished Lecturer appointment Mentorship excellence is evidenced by students receiving prestigious awards including the Jakob van Zyl Predoctoral Research Award (Saransh Sharma, Ryoto Sekine) and Charles Wilts Prize (Kuan-Chang Chen). Her research program leverages strategic partnerships with Heritage Medical Research Institute and industry collaborators, supported through center-based funding like the Center for Sensing to Intelligence. Administrative leadership spans departmental governance (as Executive Officer) and conference organization (ISSCC technical committees). She directs Caltech's Mixed-mode Integrated Circuits and Systems Lab (MICS) , which operates as a nexus for cross-disciplinary innovation between electrical engineering and medical applications. The lab's industry-collaborative framework accelerates translation of circuit concepts into real-world biomedical solutions through the Center for Sensing to Intelligence.
