Max Planck Florida’s Neurotransmissions Podcast

In this episode, hosts Lesley and Joe chat with the Max Planck Society President-elect, Dr. Patrick Cramer. Dr. Cramer is a chemist and molecular biologist currently serving as Managing Director at the Max Planck Institute for Multidisciplinary Sciences in Göttingen, Germany. In June 2023, he will become the next president of the 75-year-old Max Planck Society, the number one biomedical nonprofit...

In this episode, host Joe chats with Dr. Lukas Groschner, a Max Planck NeuroMEETS invited speaker, about his curiosity-driven research into the molecules and mechanisms that mediate information processing in flies. Don't miss Dr. Groschner's story of being inspired after listening to a past episode of the podcast. For more information about the NeuroMEETS seminar series, visit https://www.mpfi.org...

In this episode, hosts Joe and Jeremy catch up with Dr. Ed Boyden on the many applications of his neurotechnologies such as optogenetics and expansion microscopy, the power of combining these technologies to establish a computational model of a small organism, and Dr. Boyden's latest technology- signaling reporter islands. Do you enjoy listening to the podcast? Feel free to like this episode and f...

In this episode, hosts Joe Schumacher and Anant Jain chat with award-winning research scientist, educator, and advocate Erin Calipari about a new role for dopamine in the brain, drug addiction, and steps we can take to increase diversity and equity in academia. Podcast episode produced and edited by Kevin Guy Albertini - @KGAlbertini Do you enjoy listening to the podcast? Feel free to like this ep...

In this episode, hosts Jeremy and Ingo chat with Dr. Valentina Emiliani. Dr. Emiliani's lab has pioneered the use of wave-front shaping for neuroscience. In particular, they demonstrated a number of new techniques based on computer-generated holography to gain 3D optogenetic control of neural populations. Max Planck Florida's Neurotransmissions Podcast Website: https://www.mpfi.org/news-media/podc...

In this episode, hosts Misha and Ingo chat with Dr. Stephen Lammel. Dr. Lammel’s lab at UC Berkley explores the circuitry behind neuropsychiatric diseases with a focus on the dopamine reward system in the brain. Max Planck Florida's Neurotransmissions Podcast Website: https://www.mpfi.org/news-media/podcast Social Media: @MPFneuro Twitter: https://twitter.com/MPFNeuro Instagram: https://www.instag...

Dr. Yuki Oka is an assistant professor at CalTech where his research focuses on understanding the neural and molecular basis of motivated behaviors toward homeostatic regulation. The long-term goal of our research is to understand how the brain integrates internal body state and external sensory information to maintain homeostasis in the body. Listen to Misha, Ingo, and Ka as they ask Dr. Oka abou...

In this episode, Jeremy and Joe talk with Dr. Hillel Adesnik, Associate Professor at the Department of Molecular and Cell Biology at the University of California, Berkley. Together they explore Dr. Adesnik’s work understanding the neural basis of perception, the challenges facing this area of study, and the philosophy of how we understand the concept of perception. Do you enjoy listening to the po...

In this episode, Dr. Mark Churchland talks with MPFI postdocs Jeremy Chang and Alex Gribizis about his research into the function of the motor cortex. Dr. Churchland's lab at Columbia University studies the role of neural activity that affects movement. He takes us through a brief history of this field of study, the limitations of brain-machine interfaces, and talks about where he sees his researc...

In this episode, Joe and Misha talk to Dr. Mackenzie Mathis about deep learning with artificial neural networks. She takes us through her experience developing computer vision tools like DeepLabCut, as well as her research into adaptive motor control at Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, Lausanne (EPFL).

On this episode of Neurotransmissions, Dr Jeff Lichtman professor of Neuroscience at Harvard University and our guest from the 2nd episode of Neurotransmissions is back to visit during MPFI’s annual imaging course. We were lucky enough that Dr. Lichtman spared a bit of time to sit down with Misha and Alex to discuss recent progress that has been made in the field of connectomics. Learn about ongoi...

On this career-focused episode Joe, Audrey, and Jeremy catch up with friend of the podcast Dr. David Schneider. When Dr. Schneider was last on the podcast (Episode 15), he was a postdoctoral fellow newly on the job market looking for an independent position. Now he is running his own lab as an Assistant Professor of Neural Science at New York University. Hear about the factors Dr. Schneider consid...

As they say, “Better late than never!”. We've been digging back into our archive and found this once thought to be a lost interview with Dr. Indira Raman from 2018! Join Joe, Audrey, and Matt as they sit down with Dr. Raman, the Bill and Gayle Cook Professor in the Department of Neurobiology at Northwestern University, to discuss what we know and don’t know about cerebellum. Hear also about how Dr...

How can quantitative methods help us understand how the brain works? On this episode Joe, Jeremy, and Alex are joined by Dr. Peter Dayan the director of the Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics in Tubingen, Germany. They'll discuss the different computational approaches taken to understand how the brain works, Dr. Dayan's own work using models to understand reinforcement learning and th...

In this episode, Joe and Misha talk to Dr. Rodrigo Quian Quiroga, author of the new book “NeuroScience Fiction” and researcher who famously identified the Jennifer Aniston neuron. They dive into everything from Dr. Quiroga’s work with concept cells to his fascinating look at the convergence of neuroscience with futuristic sci-fi. They also explore the evolution of AI and what it means to have cons...

On this episode Jeremy and new guest co-host Alex Gribizis chat with Dr. W. Martin Usrey, Professor and Chair of the Department of Neurobiology, Physiology, and Behavior and the University of Davis. With Dr. Usrey we learn more about the structure of the visual system, the interactions between these different structures, and things Dr. Usrey has learned along the way about mentorship.

In this episode, Joe and Misha talk with Kaela Singleton, Postdoctoral Fellow in the Department of Cell Biology at Emory University and co-founder and president-elect of Black in Neuro. We learn about her research into Menkes Disease, how her career in science has evolved throughout the years, and the work she is doing to help raise visibility and cultivate opportunities for black neuroscientists...

How does the clinic influence the bench? Joe, Jeremy, and Audrey are joined by Dr. Peter Tsai Assistant Professor in the departments of Neurology and Neurotherapeutics, Neuroscience, Pediatrics, and Psychiatry at UT South Western. Learn how Dr. Tsai's experience in the clinic led him down a path of investigating the surprising role of the cerebellum in autism spectrum disorder and how Dr Tsai's fi...

How did an ancient virus help shape the human brain? In this episode, Joe and Jeremy sit down with Dr. Jason Shepherd, Assistant Professor of Neurobiology and Anatomy, Biochemistry and Opthalmology & Visual Sciences at the University of Utah School of Medicine, to discuss the role of Arc (activity-regulated cytoskeleton-associated protein) in the regulation of synaptic plasticity. Learn also how D...

Cells that fire together wire together. Hebbian mechanisms of plasticity, summarized by that simple phrase, have dominated the field of learning and memory for decades. However, they present limitations when applied to many behavioral paradigms. On this episode Jeremy, Audrey, and Andre sit down with Dr. Jeff Magee, Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator, The Cullen Foundation Distinguished...

On the final episode recorded live from the Society for Neuroscience Conference 2019, Jeremy sits down with Dr. Kurt Thoroughman, Associate Professor in the Department of Biomedical Engineering at Washing University in St. Louis, and Director of the National Science Foundation's (NSF) Cognitive Neuroscience program. Learn about how NSF is structured, the role of a program director, how a grant app...

At the 2019 Society for Neuroscience Conference in Chicago Misha catches up with an old friend of the podcast Dr. Lauren Ullrich (Ep #13), Scientific Program Manager at the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke. Learn about the process of applying for funding from the NIH and how Dr. Ullrich's new podcast 'Building up the Nerve' is giving a peek into the life cycle of a grant.

Our series of interviews at the Society for Neuroscience Conference 2019 in Chicago keeps on rolling as Jeremy sits down with Dr. Marina Picciotto Charles B.G . Murphy Professor of Psychiatry and Professor in the Child Study Center of Neuroscience and of Pharmacology, Deputy Chair for Basic Science Research in the Dept of Psychiatry, Deputy Director of the Kavli Institute for Neuroscience at Yale...

The neuro-revolution is coming. In this episode Jeremy sits down with Drs. Greg Gage and Etienne Serbe in Chicago from Backyard Brains. From an exciting challenge centered around the SfN conference to programs centered around designing new experiments, learn about how Backyard Brains is bringing new opportunities to learn about neuroscience to the next generation of scientists.

Once again Neurotransmissions traveled to the annual Society for Neuroscience conference to chat with some new and old friends. In the first episode of our five-part miniseries, Misha is joined by Tavita Garrett former MPFI post-baccalaureate and current graduate student at Oregon Health & Science University to chat about postbac programs, the path to graduate school, and the joys of electrophysio...