Section I · The Programme

Schedule.

Live schedule for NM26. Times update in real time. If a talk is delayed, you will see it here first. All times in local Rome time (CEST, UTC+2).

Session Chairs
Dr Marine Schimel (Meta) · Dr Kris Jensen (UCL)
  1. 08:40
    → 09:40
    Main Entrance
    Registration
    Check-in & Registration
  2. 09:40
    → 10:00
    Main Hall
    Invited
    Introductory Remarks
    Dr Ruairidh Battleday & Prof. James Whittington
  3. 10:00
    → 10:40
    Main Hall
    Keynote
    Supervised and unsupervised learning in mouse visual cortex
    Dr Marius Pachitariu · Janelia
  4. 10:40
    → 11:20
    Break Area
    Interval
    Break
  5. 11:20
    → 12:00
    Main Hall
    Keynote
    Closing the discovery loop with low-dimensional models and causal perturbations
    Prof. Tatiana Engel · Princeton
  6. 12:00
    → 14:00
    Interval
    Lunch + Poster Setup (lunch not provided — see Map & Guide)
  7. 14:00
    → 14:20
    Main Hall
    Invited
    Invited Talk
    Dr Marine Schimel · Meta
  8. 14:20
    → 14:40
    Main Hall
    Invited
    Invited Talk
    Dr YoungJu Jo · Stanford
  9. 14:40
    → 15:00
    Main Hall
    Invited
    Adaptive modulation of theta sweeps in the brain's navigation circuit
    Dr Abraham Vollan · NTNU
  10. 15:00
    → 15:40
    Break Area
    Interval
    Break + Posters
  11. 15:40
    → 16:00
    Main Hall
    Invited
    Meta-learning is expressed through altered prefrontal cortical dynamics
    Dr Xulu Sun · UCSF
  12. 16:00
    → 16:05
    Main Hall
    Invited
    Emergent specialization of distributed networks in cortically-embedded RNNs with macroscopic gradients
    Eva Sevenster · Bristol
  13. 16:05
    → 16:10
    Main Hall
    Invited
    Comparing Neural Dynamics by Identifying Optimal Linearizing Embeddings
    Mitchell Ostrow · MIT
  14. 16:10
    → 16:15
    Main Hall
    Invited
    Unsupervised pretraining in biological neural networks
    Dr Lin Zhong · Janelia
  15. 16:15
    → 16:20
    Main Hall
    Invited
    Building higher-order invariance in mouse visual cortex
    Dr Miguel Angel Nunez-Ochoa · Janelia
  16. 16:25
    → 16:30
    Main Hall
    Invited
    Unbiased detection of neural sequences
    Katharina Bracher · Freiburg
  17. 16:40
    → 18:00
    Main Hall
    Reception
    Poster Session 1 & Welcome Reception

Please arrive at 8:45 AM each morning. It can take some time to clear security on the way in in the morning and after lunch. If you are speaking, arrive at the villa 20 minutes before your talk begins.

Marginalia · Tips for the Hall
  • I.Talks start promptly. Doors close ~5 minutes after start to minimise disruption.
  • II.Listen for the −10 and −5 minute break warnings to get back to the main hall.
  • III.Poster sessions are an excellent time to meet people; bring your questions.
  • IV.Lightning round and open-mic slots may be added; watch announcements.
Speakers
Session Chairs
Dr Ruairidh Battleday

Dr Ruairidh Battleday

Conference Chair
Harvard · MIT
Prof. James Whittington

Prof. James Whittington

Conference Chair
Oxford
Prof. Bill Thompson

Prof. Bill Thompson

Session Chair
Assistant Professor · UC Berkeley
Dr Chen Sun

Dr Chen Sun

Session Chair
Research Scientist · Google DeepMind
Dr Giovanni Pezzulo

Dr Giovanni Pezzulo

Session Chair
Research Director · CNR Rome
Dr Ivana Kajic

Dr Ivana Kajic

Session Chair
Research Scientist · Google DeepMind
Jesseba Fernando

Jesseba Fernando

Session Chair
PhD Student · Northeastern University
Dr Kris Jensen

Dr Kris Jensen

Session Chair
Senior Research Fellow · Sainsbury Wellcome Centre
Prof. Lucy Lai

Prof. Lucy Lai

Session Chair
Assistant Teaching Professor · UC San Diego
Dr Marine Schimel

Dr Marine Schimel

Session Chair
Research Scientist · Meta
Special Programme · Art Salon
The School of Athens by Raphael, visual reference for the Art Salon
Thursday Evening

Art Salon.

A gathering of art, science and conversation, hosted on the evening of Thursday 11 June at The Cross Hotel. Curated by Taylor Beck and Daniel Barabasi.

If you would like to perform, sing, share art, present, or read poetry, please reach out to taylor@thinkingaboutthinking.org with clare@thinkingaboutthinking.org and georgina@thinkingaboutthinking.org on cc.

  • WhenThursday, 11 June 2026 · 7:30 to 10:00pm
  • WhereThe Cross Hotel
  • AddressVia S. Croce in Gerusalemme, 40 · 00185 Roma
  • Curated byTaylor Beck & Daniel Barabasi
The Cross Hotel
Art Salon Curators
Taylor Beck

Taylor Beck

Art Salon Curator
Daniel Barabasi

Daniel Barabasi

Art Salon Curator