2026 ICoN Center Symposium: Self-Organization and Emergence in Development

• Date: Thursday, May 21, 2026

• Time: 9:00am - 5:00pm with poster session & reception to follow 

• Location: Singleton Auditorium (46-3002, Third Floor of MIT Building 46) This is an in-person event 

• Event is free and open to the public 

• Registration is coming soon 

This event brings together leading researchers to explore how neural structure and function emerge during development. Speakers will discuss key theoretical and empirical challenges in explaining how complex neural systems arise across molecular, cellular, and circuit levels.

The K. Lisa Yang Integrative Computational Neuroscience (ICoN) Center at MIT pioneers computational models of brain function that unify multiple levels of biological data, from molecules to circuits to behavior. The center is part of the Yang Tan Collective, a multi-university effort dedicated to accelerating collaborations in basic science, research, and engineering to improve human health and well-being at a global scale. Learn more about the Collective at yangtan.mit.edu.

Speakers Include: 

• Paola Arlotta, Harvard University

• Peter Robin Hiesinger, Freie Universitat Berlin

• Matthias Kaschube, FIAS Frankfurt Institute for Advanced Studies

• Fenna Krienan, Princeton University

• Yerbol Kurmanagliyev, Brandeis University

• Stanislav Shvartsman, Princeton University

• Gordon Smith, University of Minnesota

• Brady Weissbourd, Massachusetts Institute of Technology