Press Release:

Connecting Network Architecture and Network Computation

The Banff International Research Station will host the "Connecting Network Architecture and Network Computation" workshop from December 6th to December 11th, 2015.

The brain solves an astonishing array of computational tasks -- from representing multifaceted sensory inputs, to making decisions based on these inputs, to the expression and control of motor outputs in response -- with a speed and precision that easily exceeds the most powerful computers to date. How do the circuits of neurons that perform these tasks do so despite severe constraints on energy consumption, volume, and communication speed?

A variety of new experimental techniques are maturing that allow an unprecedented ability to view large populations of neurons simultaneously, to map the detailed connectivity in such populations, and to manipulate the activity in these populations. These experimental methods generate a huge amount of data from a system of almost unimaginable size and complexity, but also give us a unique opportunity to learn how the architecture of the neural networks underlie and serve their functions. The size and scope of this problem challenge the current capabilities of mathematical modeling: advances in the mathematical fields of dynamical systems, stochastic processes, and network computation are needed to meet the challenge that these exciting new experimental advances present.

The Banff International Research Station for Mathematical Innovation and Discovery (BIRS) is a collaborative Canada-US-Mexico venture that provides an environment for creative interaction as well as the exchange of ideas, knowledge, and methods within the Mathematical Sciences, with related disciplines and with industry. The research station is located at The Banff Centre in Alberta and is supported by Canada's Natural Science and Engineering Research Council (NSERC), the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF), Alberta's Advanced Education and Technology, and Mexico's Consejo Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnología (CONACYT).

BIRS Scientific Director, Nassif Ghoussoub
E-mail: birs-director[@]birs.ca
http://www.birs.ca/~nassif