Call for new Transfer Projects at the BCCN Munich

The Bernstein Center Munich invites applications for Transfer Projects to commence in spring 2015. Bernstein Transfer Projects are intended to foster collaborative research that addresses core questions within the Center’s scientific focus, i.e., “Neuronal Representation of Space and Time”. Bernstein Transfer Projects are to be carried out by research groups from the Munich area. Ideally, at least one of the collaboration partners is already a member of the Bernstein Center Munich but we are also open to proposals of research teams without previous links to the Center. Projects should not simply continue previous or ongoing work but aim at new high-risk/high-gain problems that would benefit from collaborative investigations involving the Center.

Typically, a transfer project runs for two years and involves Bernstein funding for one postdoctoral researcher, including some support for consumables, equipment and travel. For some projects, however, a three-year funding for a PhD student might also be an option.

Project proposals will undergo a two-stage selection process: All proposals will be screened for general suitability by representatives of the Bernstein Center Munich and the Center’s Advisory Board. At a second stage, applicants will be invited to present their proposal with a short talk. Within this competitive two-stage process, particular emphasis will be given to theory-oriented projects that strengthen experimental research, and/or transfer basic research in computational neuroscience into technological and biomedical applications, and/or apply concepts and methods from other scientific domains to our own research field.

For the first stage, proposals of at most five pages should contain the names, affiliations and brief CVs of the principal investigators, the project title and abstract, state of the art, previous related research of the PIs, a description of the project including methods to be used, and a
list of key publications in the particular field with up to five own papers per PI.

Deadlines and Schedule: Proposals are to be sent by November 24, 2014 to the Center’s Coordinator, Andreas Herz. The proposals that pass the first stage will be presented in a symposium taking place on December 15, 2014 at 2 p.m. at the LMU Biocenter in Martinsried. Afterwards, the successful proposals need to be formalized (in German) according to specific BMBF regulations (by January 07, 2015), and undergo a final formal check by DLR/BMBF.

The Center’s Coordinator will be happy to discuss any open questions, both regarding scientific and organizational manner.