Colloquium on AI and Neuroscience by Venkatesh Murthy, Harvard

Time 
Friday, November 3, 2023 - 11:00am
Speaker 
Venkatesh Murthy
Location 
3rd Floor See map
17 Hillhouse Ave
New Haven, CT
Event description 
Speaker 
 

Venkatesh Murthy, Raymond Leo Erikson Life Sciences Professor of Molecular and Cellular Biology and Director of the Center for Brain Science, Harvard University

 
 
Title: Connections between AI and Neuroscience: Lessons from a Classroom
 
Abstract:
One cannot escape discussions about AI and the brain, separately or linked, anywhere in society. This includes the classroom. As a practicing neuroscientist with an abiding interest in AI, I have designed a course to teach undergraduate students concepts of intelligence and computing, linking brains and machines. There is enormous appetite for this topic, and I have learned much from the challenges in communicating key ideas in fast-moving areas without assuming prior (technical) knowledge. I will share some thoughts gleaned from my teaching experience. Lessons learned from teaching are increasingly informing my research program, from which I will highlight some examples.
 
Speaker Bio:
Venki Murthy was born in India. After getting a B.Tech. in Mechanical Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology, Madras, he came to the United States with a vague idea of combining engineering and biology. A degree (M.S.E.) in Bioengineering from the University of Washington, Seattle led to his interest in neuroscience. A Ph.D. in Physiology & Biophysics at the University of Washington followed, and postdoctoral work at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies, La Jolla, solidified his path in neuroscience research. 

Venki came to Harvard University as an Assistant Professor in 1999 and is now the Raymond Leo Erikson Life Sciences Professor of Molecular & Cellular Biology, and the Paul J Finnegan Family Director of the Center for Brain Science. His research aims to shed light on how collections of neurons in the brain process information and give rise to behaviors, with a current emphasis on the sense of smell. He is also interested in the connections between artificial intelligence and brain science, and teaches an undergraduate course titled “Artificial and Natural Intelligence”. An older profile of Venki can be found in the Harvard Gazette. You can also learn a bit more about him in this Q & A in Current Biology. 

This is an in-person event and follows Yale University’s COVID-19 policy.

Admission 
Free
Open to 
General Public