Training Opportunities in Olfaction and Computational Neuroscience

Urban Lab Projects: (e-mail Dr. Urban nurban@cmu.edu for more details)

Projects may involve in vitro whole cell recording, fluorescence imaging of calcium transients, multiunit recording from anaesthetized mice, MEG recording of human subjects, studies of olfactory behavior in mice, computer simulations. 

• Physiological investigations of the circuitry of the mammalian main and accessory olfactory bulb.
• Dendritic integration in the main and accessory olfactory bulb.
• Experience-dependent changes in olfactory bulb circuitry.
• Simulations of lateral inhibition in the olfactory bulb.
• Computational and physiological mechanisms of oscillations and synchrony in the olfactory system.
• Neural mechanisms of decision making.

Programs and Funding

Postdoctoral Training

I am currently looking for postdocs to work on computational projects and on MEG recording from human subjects.

Postdoc in high dimensional data analysis for sensory coding

A postdoctoral position is available in the lab of Nathan Urban at Carnegie Mellon University to work as part of a DARPA-funded project
(REALNOSE - http://www.darpa.mil/dso/solicitations/baa07-21mod11.htm) on analysis of data from arrays of biologically-based chemical sensors. This position is part of a large multi-investigator project involving collaboration with biologists, engineers and computer scientists at several institutions. The ideal candidate would posses a Ph.D. in computer science, statistics, engineering, physics, or neuroscience, and have experience with high-dimensional data, including the use of supervised and unsupervised learning techniques such as nonparametric regression, clustering, and visualization. The position offers an excellent training environment and excellent opportunities for collaboration with others in computational neuroscience, including those in the departments of statistics and machine learning at Carnegie Mellon University. Interested candidates should send a CV, statement of research experience and interests, and names and contact information for 3 references by e-mail to Dr. Nathan Urban, Department of Biological Sciences, Carnegie
Mellon University, 4400 Fifth Ave. Pittsburgh PA 15213.  e-mail nurban (at) cmu.edu.

Postdoc in MEG analysis of decision making

A postdoctoral position is available in the lab of Nathan Urban at Carnegie Mellon University to study the neural mechanisms of decision making using MEG. This position is part of a large multi-investigator project involving collaboration with psychologists, neurophysiologists and computational neuroscientists at several institutions which is directed by Jay McClelland of Stanford University. The ideal candidate would posses a Ph.D. in neuroscience or cognitive psychology, and have experience working with MEG or EEG. Candidates with strong backgrounds in signal processing and data analysis, and strong interest in neuroscience also would be considered. The position offers an excellent training environment and access to a state-of-the-art Elekta Neuromag MEG imaging facility. Interested candidates should send a CV, statement of research experience and interests, and names and contact information for 3 references by e-mail to Dr. Nathan Urban, Department of Biological Sciences, Carnegie Mellon University, 4400 Fifth Ave. Pittsburgh PA 15213.  e-mail nurban (at) cmu.edu.

Graduate students
I am affiliated with the following PhD programs

• CMU Department of Biological Sciences
• Center for Neuroscience at the University of Pittsburgh (CNUP)
• Program in Neural Computation (CMU)

Students in any of these graduate programs can rotate in or do PhD work in my lab. 

Undergrads
Undergrads wanting a summer research experience work in my lab through participating in the following summer programs, or just by contacting me.

• CMU Summer undergraduate research program (SURP), which is funded by:
  • NSF Research experience for undergraduates program
  • HHMI Undergraduate Science Education Program
• CNUP summer undergraduate research program
• Program in Neural Computation Undergraduate Program (Contact Nathan Urban)
  

Undergrads wanting information on neuroscience coursework can look at the biology department website

• Undergraduate Neuroscience at Carnegie Mellon
• Neuroscience Track in Biological Sciences Major

Collaborators

Our work involves interactions with a number of collaborators, including:

• Bard Ermentrout, University of Pittsburgh, Department of Mathematics
• Troy Margrie, University College London
• Pavel Osten, Northwestern University
• Jay McClelland, Stanford University