Postdoctoral Positions

Prof. Christof Koch is seeking a postdoctoral scholar to carry out detailed biophysical modeling at the cellular and sub-cellular level. The objective in this project is to solve the forward problem of modeling the extracellular field in cerebral cortex based on the underlying electrical activity of individual neurons. In particular, we wish to describe how the local field potential (LFP) is constituted by the synaptic and spiking activity of thousands of neurons within a cortical column. This requires (i) a conceptual understanding of how groups of simple model neurons contribute to the LFP and (ii) numerically solving the cable equations for a few million synaptic, dendritic and axonal compartments and to evaluate these contributions at an arbitrary location in the extracellular matrix. The second part of the project will be done in collaboration with the group of Prof. Henry Markram at the EPFL in Lausanne, Switzerland. In connection to their Blue Brain project, they have amassed a database of 30,000 anatomically reconstructed and electrophysiologically characterized neurons that make up a column in the rat somatosensory cortex and have modeled the activity of these neurons on an IBM Roadrunner Supercomputer. Applicants should have a PhD in physics, engineering or applied mathematics. Familiarity with biophysical modeling of the type described in the textbook Biophysics of Computation: Information Processing in Single Neurons would be useful, but is not required. Funding would be provided via a Fellowship from The Swartz Foundation. The California Institute of Technology is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer. Women, minorities, veterans, and disabled persons are encouraged to apply. Send applications and any queries to koch at klab dot caltech dot edu.

Graduate Student Openings

We are looking for a Caltech graduate student in CNS, EE, CS, Applied Physics or some other such field, who is interested in carrying out reseach in the area of visual selective attention as applied to machine vision. This project involves studying the extent to which movement of people in natural environments (motion or optical flow) can be detected and classified using a computer vision algorithms. This could be a Master or, potentially, a PhD thesis research topic.

Volunteers

We are always eager to hear from potential volunteers interested in participating in psychophysical and functional imaging experiments. You will be reimbursed for your time and can find out more by emailing Moran Surf at moranklab.caltech.edu.

We are currently looking for subjects to participate in an experiment involving learning and memory. Subjects will be paid 15 dollars per hour for a single session which should last approximately one hour. If you are interested please contact Moran Surf.

Graduate Student Openings

Graduate and Undergraduate Student Openings

Research projects with funding are available for graduate and undergraduate students interested in computational and theoretical neuroscience. These projects can be short enough for rotations or long enough to turn into Masters or Ph.D. theses. Broadly speaking, projects will involve modeling the dynamics of activity and learning in networks that underlie complex behaviors such as singing in songbirds and navigation in rodents and ants. Some projects might involve working closely with data in collaboration with the Laurent group or with other systems neuroscience labs at Caltech, depending on student interest. Students will be mentored jointly by Christof Koch and Broad fellow Dr. Ila Fiete. Some quantitative training in Physics, Mathematics, Engineering, or Computer Science is strongly desired. Ability to program in C and Matlab, and some knowledge of neuroscience a plus, but not necessary. If interested, please contact Christof Koch (koch @ klab.caltech.edu) or Ila Fiete (ilafiete @ caltech.edu) with a copy of your cv or resume.