[Bmi] Welcome to the BMI

[spearspa at msu.edu]

Brain-Mind Institute to launch with webinar by Distinguished Professor  
Jay McClelland, 24 October. www.brain-mind-institute.org

MSU contacts:  George Stockman, Prof. Emeritus of MSU/CSE (517-449-0342)
                              John Weng, Prof. of Computer Science and  
Engineering

(The following release should be put on the BMI website and should be  
released to appropriate channels in the MSU administration and  
publicity. )

?How does the brain work, and how does the mind emerge? Perhaps the  
answers are at hand given the current progress in several scientific  
fields? Researchers interested in brain-mind science are forming a  
Brain-Mind Institute to foster better understanding of how the brain  
works and ?creates the mind?.  Founding members of The Brain-Mind  
Institute are internationally known experts and invite others to join  
them in seeking a computational model of the brain consistent with  
knowledge from biology, neuroscience, psychology, but empowered by  
knowledge in computer science, electrical engineering, and  
mathematics. The BMI proposes to develop new interdisciplinary summer  
courses, hold summer workshops with panels, and prepare graduate  
students and researchers to understand foundational work in six  
fundamental disciplines ? biology , neuroscience, psychology, computer  
science, electrical engineering, and mathematics. (The BMI
is in formation and has the goal of being a global institute and not a  
local MSU unit.)

A Distinguished Speaker Series has been launched to begin BMI  
activities and will be broadcast live via webinars to those who  
register online. Webinars will begin October 24 with Prof. Jay  
McClelland, Director of The Center for Mind, Brain and Computation of  
Stanford University and following on October 31 with Mriganka Sur,  
Paul E. Newton Professor of Neuroscience at Massachusetts Institute of  
Technology. The live broadcast will be from Michigan State University  
between 5 PM and 7 PM with moderated questions from text or email.  
Presentations will be available for later viewing by those who cannot  
participate in the live webinar.  To follow the BMI on the web and to  
register for the webinars,  www.brain-mind-institute.org  gets you to  
the BMI web site with the current webinar schedule, talk abstracts,  
upcoming activities, and organization plans for the future.