IBACS Undergraduate Award Application is Open!

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IBACS is happy to announce another year of the undergraduate research grant program! 
 

Please note that our dates have changed from past cycles. The academic year application is open and Fall 2023 applications are due at 11:59 pm September 18, 2023. Spring 2024 applications are due on February 6, 2024. 

It is expected that applicants will be conducting research with IBACS faculty members, focusing on any research area associated with the IBACS mission.  Faculty sponsors will need to supply a letter of recommendation. Once the applicant lists the faculty advisor of the project in the form, an email will be sent to the faculty member with directions for how to submit the letter.  Applicants must fill out the online application, and also submit via the online application, a relatively short research plan (maximum of 6,000 characters, approximately 3 pages) and a budget that explains in detail how the funds will be spent. The application link is listed below. It is recommended that the student first compose the research plan and budget using a word processing program, and then upload the final versions on to the website.

This program is not meant to provide direct financial support to students. Instead, it is meant to provide support for the research. The account will be set up with the faculty sponsor after the award is given. The funding is meant to defray the research-related costs such as materials & supplies, software, animal or participant-related costs. The budget should reflect these expenditures.

Recipients cannot apply for another grant within the same academic year, however, are eligible for the summer research grant program, provided that they are still a UConn student at the time. Please note that the application period for the summer research grant program will open on December 1, 2023, and the deadline for applications will be 11:59 pm on January 30, 2024. 

The IBACS undergraduate award academic year applications are reviewed based on the following criteria:

  • The project description is well written and clearly explains the project.
  • The project clearly focuses on a research area associated with the IBACS mission.
  • The budget is itemized, appropriate to the project described, and reports the total cost of the project (even if it exceeds the funding requested).
  • The advisor is familiar with the student’s project and rates the student’s work to date highly. 
  • Where project applications are equally meritorious, the reviewers will take note of how the student’s project will contribute to the advisor’s research goals.
  • The student and his/her project meet the eligibility criteria.
  • The student has secured research compliance approval(s) if necessary for the project. No award will be issued until documentation of approval(s) is received.

      IBACS Fall 2023/Spring 2024 Application: https://quest.uconn.edu/prog/ibacs_undergraduate_research_grant_-_fall_2023_spring_2024/

      Please contact our Institute Coordinator, Crystal Mills at crystal.mills@uconn.edu or (860) 486-4937 if you have any questions or visit our information page.

      IBACS Fall 2023 Call for Seed Grant Applications

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      The Institute for the Brain and Cognitive Sciences (IBACS) is pleased to announce a new call for applications to its seed grant fund.  

      The seed grant program is intended to fund research consistent with the IBACS mission. Large Seed Grant applications (>$10,000 but <$25,000) are time-limited to accommodate GA assignment; the Fall deadline is October 2nd, 2023 (due to the 1st falling on a weekend). Please submit letters of intent as soon as possible, but at least 2 weeks prior to the seed grant application deadline (by 9/15/23), to allow time for review and feedback prior to submission of the full proposal. 

      A reminder that our Spring deadline will be April 1st, 2024. Small Seed Grant applications (<$10,000) are accepted on a rolling basis until funds are exhausted.

      Seed funding is intended to support direct research costs such as supplies, participant fees, animal costs, and student support. Review criteria seek innovative, novel, and collaborative projects in the field of brain and cognitive sciences.  Postdocs can also apply, with a faculty mentor as co-PI. Undergraduates are directed to separate academic/summer funding. Full details on the seed grant program, including applications (letter of intent and full seed app) and allowable costs, please check our website. 

      The Institute also invites applications for affiliate memberships.  

      Any questions should be directed to the Institute Coordinator, Crystal Mills at crystal.mills@uconn.edu or (860) 486-4937. 

      Welcome Back!

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      IBACS is pleased to welcome our affiliates back to the 2023/2024 academic year! We are excited to embark on yet another year of cross-disciplinary and collaborative research.   

      Please find below some very important Fall 2023 reminders and updates:  

      Fall 2023/Spring 2024 Large & Small IBACS Seed Grant Funding  

      Effective Sept 1, 2023, we call for Seed Grant applications from affiliates to fund interdisciplinary research consistent with the IBACS Mission. Large Seed Grant (>10K) applications are time-limited to accommodate GA assignment. Fall deadline is October 2nd 2023; Spring deadline is April 1st 2024. Small Seed Grant applications (<10K) are accepted on a rolling basis until funds are exhausted. Seed funding is intended to support direct research costs such as supplies, participant fees, animal costs, and student support. Review criteria seek innovative, novel, and collaborative projects in the field of brain and cognitive sciences. Postdocs can apply, with a faculty mentor as co-PI. Undergraduates are directed to separate academic/summer funding. For more information on the Seed Grant and other funding programs, including allowable costs, please check our website.

      IBACS Publication Awards   

      The IBACS Publication Award provides a lump-sum up to $1.5K to cover full publication costs, or up to 50% of the costs with a $3K cap on IBACS contribution. The application process is rolling and will close once funds are exhausted. Please visit our award page for more information, including eligibility requirements and the form to apply.     

      Summer Graduate Fellowships   

      IBACS Summer 2024 graduate fellowship application opens on December 1, 2023, and will close January 30, 2024. Details can be found on the webpage.   

      Undergraduate Research Awards 

      We will be offering IBACS Undergraduate Research Grants this academic year and during the summer. Please note that our dates have changed from past cycles. The academic year application is now open – the Fall application will close on September 18, 2023, and the Spring app will close on February 6, 2024. A separate email with more information will be sent out soon. Our Summer 2024 application will open on December 1, 2023 and close on January 30, 2024. Please visit our undergraduate fellowships page for more information, including deadlines and instructions, as they become available.  

      IBACS Meeting Support 

      Please note that our mechanism for applying for meeting support is changing. Instead of applying through our small seed grant application, please visit our meeting support page. IBACS offers meeting, workshop, or conference support (either one-time or recurring) to IBACS affiliates and external/non-profit organizations. The event must relate to the Institute’s mission. The deadline is rolling and funds are limited, so the application will close once funds are exhausted.  

      Travel Awards Program  

      The IBACS Travel Award Program funds up to ten $500 awards to be used for meeting/conference travel expenses where data will be presented that was directly supported by IBACS. These awards are available to undergraduate and graduate students, as well as post-docs. This program operates with a rolling deadline. Please visit the travel award webpage for more information.      

      Arjona Desks Available  

      There are desk spaces available for graduate students and sponsored undergraduates working in IBACS-affiliated labs in Arjona 311. Please contact Crystal to sign out a desk.  

      Arjona Meeting Space Available   

      IBACS has some Arjona meeting spaces available for use by affiliates, including OWL/hybrid support. Room booking requests and OWL reservations should go through Crystal.   

      IBACS Soapbox 

      Have something you want to share with our affiliates? Please submit to the IBACS soapbox at soapbox.uconn.edu. Anyone can submit on topics such as events, courses, talks, funding opportunities, and more. Our soapbox is sent out on our listserv every Monday at 2pm.  

      Refer a Colleague to IBACS  

      The Institute is always looking to expand our base of University affiliates, helping researchers network and connect to generate collaborative research.  If you know of others in your department that would like to be affiliated with the Institute, please forward this email or recommend they check out the benefits of affiliation on our IBACS website.  

         

      Best wishes for a safe and productive year ahead!  

        

      John Salamone, Director of Communication and Outreach, IBACS  

      Inge-Marie Eigsti, Director of Research, IBACS 

      Emily Myers, Director of Training, IBACS 

      Crystal Mills, Senior Institute Coordinator, IBACS  

      Hot off the Press: IBACS 2022/2023 Brain Digest

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      We are excited to share the recently finalized IBACS 22/23 Brain Digest that features the Cognitive Science Program. Thank you to all of the faculty, graduate students, and undergraduate students who have contributed- especially our graduate student editors, Cynthia Boo and Lee Drown! We hope you will enjoy reading it as much as we’ve enjoyed creating it. Please email Institute Coordinator, Crystal Mills, at crystal.mills@uconn.edu if you’d like physical copies mailed to you.

      IBACS-Brain-Digest_FY2023

       

      Announcing *NEW* IBACS Leadership

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      The IBACS executive committee is thrilled to announce the appointment of three new directors who will assume leadership of the Institute this fall. Their selection culminates from a major visioning process involving community feedback (2021-22), a University-wide request for nominations (fall 2022), a review of qualifications and candidates' willingness to serve, candidate interviews with the executive committee (winter 2023), and a final review of recommendations by the CLAS Dean Juli Wade. 

      New IBACS Directors

      Emily Myers, Director of Training
      Professor of Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences;
      Professor of Psychological Sciences; Perception, Action, and Cognition Research Program

      Photo of Emily Myers

      Our new Director of Training will work to connect and publicize UConn’s many outstanding training programs in the brain, cognitive, and neurosciences space. Myers will work with leadership of existing programs to build strengths and optimize use of shared resources. She will coordinate with departments to support and grow opportunities for cross-training (e.g., inter- disciplinary training programs that cross over traditional degree programs). She will also manage IBACS Graduate and Undergraduate Student Summer Award programs, and work with the Director of Research to support and coordinate graduate lines (RAs) for students working in our service cores.

      John Salamone, Director of Communication and Outreach
      Board of Trustees Distinguished Professor of Psychological Sciences; Behavioral Neuroscience Research Program

      Our new IBACS Director of Communication and Outreach will manage the outward face of IBACS, including the curation of our website/media presence – both inside and outside the University. John will work to enhance integration and cooperation among departments, programs, and centers critical to the thriving brain, cognitive, and neurosciences space at UConn. This will include improving the coordination of related talk and seminar series, ListServs, etc. Salamone will work to engage new IBACS stakeholders, and to build new interdisciplinary connections and breadth of representation within the Institute and its initiatives. 

      Photo of John Salamone

      Inge-Marie Eigsti, Director of Research
      Professor of Psychological Sciences; Clinical Research Program

      Photo of Inge-Marie Eigsti

      Our new Director of Research will work to support existing and promote new interdisciplinary research in the brain, cognitive and neurosciences space. Eigsti will strive to increase external funding and sustainability of IBACS-affiliated programs and service cores. She will manage the IBACS Seed Grant Programs and work with IBACS-affiliated service cores in support of their respective missions – including a newly refurbished EEG/eye-tracking lab, and our new Science Alliance Mobile (SAM), which will bring cutting-edge mobile research facilities to new off-campus test sites and outreach locations. She will organize speaker events, and work together with the Director of Training and Director of Communication/Outreach where missions overlap.

      All three directors will begin their positions in Fall 2023 and serve three-year terms.

      LangFest 2023

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      We are excited to announce that Language Fest is making an in-person return for 2023, and invite you to join us on the afternoon of Wednesday, April 26th (event times TBD).

       

      Language Fest is a University-wide research conference that welcomes the full cross-disciplinary community of language researchers at UConn for a day of sharing results, ideas, methodologies, and fostering future interdisciplinary collaborations. Researchers from all disciplines of the language sciences and at all career stages are welcome and encouraged to submit their work.  

       

      Further details about submissions and registration will be provided in early-March 2023.

       

      For any questions about Language Fest, please e-mail: langfest@uconn.edu and visit our website https://languagefest.uconn.edu/. 

        

      We look forward to your attendance and participation!

      IBACS Summer 2023 Call for Seed Grant Applications

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      IBACS Summer 2023 Undergraduate Research Grant Program 

      The application period for the summer research grant program opens TODAY, Monday February 20th, and the deadline for applications will be 11:59 pm on March 13th, 2023. It is expected that applicants will be conducting research with IBACS faculty members, focusing on any research area associated with the IBACS mission.  Faculty sponsors will need to supply a letter of recommendation. Once the applicant lists the faculty advisor of the project in the form, an email will be sent to the faculty member with directions for how to submit the letter. Applicants must fill out the online application, submit a relatively short research plan and a budget that explains in detail how the funds will be spent.

      The budget should be constructed in the following manner:  The total award will be for up to $5,000. $3,500 should go to providing the student with a summer stipend, and it is expected that the student will spend at least 10 weeks of the summer working on this project at UConn.  Up to $1,500 can be allocated for any supplies or materials that contribute to the research, including software, participant costs and any animal expenses. 

      Students who received a Fall 2022/Spring 2023 IBACS grant are eligible for the summer award. However, students cannot take the summer IBACS award in combination with any other major summer award (e.g. SURF). Thus, a student can apply for multiple awards, but can only accept one. The results of the grant review will be given to the student awardees in time for them to make a decision about which grant they will accept, in case they receive more than one. 

      The IBACS undergraduate award applications are reviewed based on the following criteria:

      • The project description is well written and clearly explains the project.
      • The project clearly focuses on a research area associated with the IBACS mission.
      • The budget is itemized, appropriate to the project described, and reports the total cost of the project (even if it exceeds the funding requested).
      • The advisor is familiar with the student’s project and rates the student’s work to date highly. 
      • Where project applications are equally meritorious, the reviewers will take note of how the student’s project will contribute to the advisor’s research goals.
      • The student and his/her project meet the eligibility criteria.
      • The student has secured research compliance approval(s) if necessary for the project. No award will be issued until documentation of approval(s) is received.
       

      Save the Date- IBACS Meet & Speak 2023

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      We are excited to invite you to Save the Date for the IBACS 2023 Meet & Speak Event on Friday, April 28th from 10AM-3PM. This event will be held in the Konover Auditorium at the Thomas J. Dodd Research Center. 
      The IBACS Meet & Speak will explore the diverse research of IBACS affiliated faculty and graduate students, and will provide an opportunity for cross-disciplinary networking. We hope you can join us; please check back here for updates!
      Event Flyer: Meet & Speak 2023

      Call for IBRAiN Applications

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      The Institute for the Brain and Cognitive Sciences (IBACS) is inviting graduate students to apply for theIBACS-BIRC Research Assistantships in Neuroimaging (IBRAiN) Program. These graduate assistantships are for 10 hours per week during the Fall (2023) and Spring (2024) semesters at the Brain Imaging Research Center (BIRC). During the first year, assistants will be trained in neuroimaging methods, data science, and reproducibility. Assistants will spend the remaining allocated hours at BIRC, supporting users of BIRC facilities. This could involve helping design and implement experimental procedures for fMRI, EEG, TMS etc., recruitment and prepping of participants, data analysis, or overseeing use of equipment by others. Applicants will be expected to commit to the full duration of the assistantship (Fall & Spring). Funds may be available during Summer 2024 to enable IBRAiN students to pursue their own research at BIRC. IBRAiN students also receive an allocation of 20 hours of resource time to be used at BIRC during the course of the fellowship. 

      Up to three students will be supported in the 2023-2024 cycle. Students will participate in common training activities, but will primarily specialize in one of three roles at BIRC. Applicants should indicate which role(s) they wish to be considered for. 

      1. Research software engineer. This role assists researchers in data analysis, particularly functional MRI, using existing software, and engineering and implementing new analytic tools when needed. Qualified candidates will have demonstrated proficiency in Python, MATLAB, or Julia, and Unix like computing environments. 

      2. User support. This role assists researchers in using BIRC facilities, including experimental design and setup, equipment training, data management, and maintaining documentation resources. Qualified candidates will have prior experience in designing and running in-person experiments. Familiarity with Python or MATLAB is preferred. 

      3. MR Operator. This role assists researchers in obtaining functional and structural MRI data by learning how to operate the Siemens Prisma 3T MRI Scanner to perform brain research studies. Qualified candidates will have demonstrated an understanding of MRI safety, a high level of reliability, and the ability to work with participants across the lifespan.

      The deadline for receipt of applications will be midnight on Friday, February 24, 2023

      Subject to funding constraints, these assistantships could be renewed for a further year. Please refer to the full details and access the application on our IBRAiN webpage. 

      If you have any questions, please contact the Institute Coordinator, Crystal Mills at crystal.mills@uconn.edu. 

      COGS Colloquium: Dr. Naselaris on 2/24

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      The Cognitive Science Program invites you to a talk on 2/24

       

      Speaker: Dr. Thomas Naselaris, an Associate Professor from Department of Neuroscience at the University of Minnesota.

      Time & Location: 4PM, Friday February 24th, 2023, in Oak Hall Room 117. Light refreshments will be provided. 

      RSVP Form 

      Talk Title: “Why Do We Have Mental Images?”

       

      Abstract: Everyone who experiences mental imagery is the world expert on the contents of their own mental images. We argue that this privileged perspective on one’s own mental images provides very limited understanding about the function of mental imagery, which can only be understood by proposing and testing hypotheses about the computational work that mental images do. We propose that mental imagery functions as a useful form of inference that is conditioned on visual beliefs. We implement this form of inference in a simple generative model of natural scenes, and show that it makes testable predictions about differences in tuning to seen and imagined features. We confirm these predictions with a large-scale fMRI experiment in which human brain activity was sampled while subjects generated hundreds of mental images. We speculate that ongoing mental imagery may impact the structure of noise correlations in the visual system, and present a preliminary analysis of the Natural Scenes Dataset that appears to be consistent with these speculations. 

      Bio: Thomas is an Associate Professor in the Department of Neuroscience at the University of Minnesota, and a member of the Medical Discovery Team on Optical Imaging and Brain Science at the Center for Magnetic Resonance Research. He is co-founder and currently Executive Chair of the Conference on Cognitive Computational Neuroscience.

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