How external and internal sensory information is processed to produce proper behavioral responses has recently been actively explored. By bringing together outstanding researchers working on different sensory modalities (including visual, auditory, somatosensory, olfactory and gustatory), the forum will be focused on two general questions about sensory information processing in the brain: first, the neural circuitry mechanisms underlying the processing of behaviorally important sensory information; and second, how valence of sensory signals is assigned, encoded and transformed to produce different emotional motivations including reward seeking and avoidance. The forum will serve as a platform for exchanging the latest research progress and ideas, and aims at stimulating substantial discussions between researchers working on different sensory modalities to identify key general questions and principles as well as to foster future collaborations. The forum is sponsored by Tianqiao & Chrissy Chen Institute (TCCI) and held by the Center for Neural Circuits and Sensory Processing Disorders in Zilkha Neurogenetic Institute of USC.

The two-day meeting will be structured with a series of short talks and workshops for discussion. The forum aims to stimulate discussions between researchers working on different sensory modalities to exchange ideas, identify general questions, and foster future collaborations.

Speakers:

Xiaoke Chen (Stanford)

Maria Geffen (UPenn)

Michael Halassa (MIT)

Weizhe Hong (UCLA)

Jennifer Hoy (UN Reno)

Robert Liu (Emory)

Yuki Oka (Caltech)

James Poulet (Charite University, Berlin)

Lisa Stowers (Scripps)

Whit Huizhong Tao (USC)

Sachiko Yamanaka (UC Riverside)

Li Zhang (USC)