Alex Williams
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itsneuronal.bsky.social
Alex Williams
@itsneuronal.bsky.social
1.5K followers 540 following 67 posts
Asst Prof at NYU + Flatiron Institute
Computational + Statistical Neuroscience
https://neurostatslab.org/
Posts Replies Media Videos
Reposted by Alex Williams
memming.bsky.social
Highlights of 2025

Ayesha Vermani defended her PhD thesis this year. She helped jump start a new direction in integrative neuroscience:

Vermani et al. (2025), Meta-dynamical state space models for integrative neural data analysis. ICLR
👉 openreview.net/forum?id=SRp...
👉 youtu.be/SiXxPmkpYF8
December 30, 2025 at 5:12 PM
Reposted by Alex Williams
nsaphra.bsky.social
I keep telling this to students. If you really want to do SAE research, just find a great classic paper on topic modeling and reimplement it using SAEs. I don’t think anyone would really notice.
Interpretable Embeddings with Sparse Autoencoders: A Data Analysis Toolkit
Analyzing large-scale text corpora is a core challenge in machine learning, crucial for tasks like identifying undesirable model behaviors or biases in training data. Current methods often rely on cos...
arxiv.org
December 15, 2025 at 10:28 PM
Reposted by Alex Williams
mickbonner.bsky.social
Dimensionality reduction may be the wrong approach to understanding neural representations. Our new paper shows that across human visual cortex, dimensionality is unbounded and scales with dataset size—we show this across nearly four orders of magnitude. journals.plos.org/ploscompbiol...
December 11, 2025 at 3:32 PM
Reposted by Alex Williams
simonsfoundation.org
Applications are due in one month for our Workshop on Canonical Cortical Computations: https://www.simonsfoundation.org/2025/11/13/simons-foundation-now-accepting-applications-for-workshop-on-canonical-cortical-computations/ #science #neuroscience
Simons Foundation Now Accepting Applications for Workshop on Canonical Cortical Computations
Simons Foundation Now Accepting Applications for Workshop on Canonical Cortical Computations on Simons Foundation
www.simonsfoundation.org
December 5, 2025 at 4:13 PM
Reposted by Alex Williams
vgeadah.bsky.social
At #NeurIPS2025!

🎉 Excited to present Conditionally Linear Dynamical Systems (CLDS). We leverage the dependence of neural dynamics on task covariates to yield an interpretable, flexible model of dynamics.

Come meet and check it out!
📍: Poster #2209, Hall C,D,E on Thu Dec 4, 11 am–2 pm, PST.

🧵/6
December 3, 2025 at 5:44 PM
Reposted by Alex Williams
vgeadah.bsky.social
This is joint work with amazing collaborators: Amin Nejatbakhsh (@aminejat.bsky.social), David Lipshutz (
@lipshutz.bsky.social), Jonathan Pillow (@jpillowtime.bsky.social), and Alex Williams (@itsneuronal.bsky.social).

🔗 OpenReview: openreview.net/forum?id=xgm...
🖥️ Code: github.com/neurostatsla...
Modeling Neural Activity with Conditionally Linear Dynamical Systems
Neural population activity exhibits complex, nonlinear dynamics, varying in time, over trials, and across experimental conditions. Here, we develop *Conditionally Linear Dynamical System* (CLDS)...
openreview.net
December 3, 2025 at 5:44 PM
Reposted by Alex Williams
cogcompneuro.bsky.social
We are excited to announce that the Cognitive Computational Neuroscience meeting (CCN 2026) will be held at New York University from August 3–6, 2026.
2026.ccneuro.org
December 3, 2025 at 10:01 AM
Reposted by Alex Williams
timothyoleary.bsky.social
We are opening a FACULTY POSITION (tenure track, permanent) in the University of Cambridge at the interface of control and biology, interpreted broadly. Theorists and wet lab quantitative biologists with backgrounds in control, EE, applied math, ... apply by Jan 28!

www.cam.ac.uk/jobs/univers...
University Assistant/Associate Professor in Control Theory and Systems Biology
Applications are invited for a University Assistant/Associate Professorship in the broad area of Control Theory and Systems Biology. The successful candidate will join the Control Group
www.cam.ac.uk
December 3, 2025 at 12:19 PM
Reposted by Alex Williams
rbreich.bsky.social
Under Trump, the NIH is giving fewer grants to fewer scientists. The grants awarded are smaller and scientists have less time to spend them.

Projects in cancer, diabetes, aging, neurological disorder, and more are going unfunded.

“Make America Healthy Again.”
The U.S. Is Funding Fewer Grants in Every Area of Science and Medicine
A quiet policy change means the government is making fewer bets on long-term science.
www.nytimes.com
December 2, 2025 at 10:01 PM
Reposted by Alex Williams
andpru.bsky.social
The latest superlab journal club: @hritz.bsky.social discussing his latest preprint investigating task switching in brains and machines. youtu.be/MdOkOjSa7JA
Harrison Ritz (Princeton)
YouTube video by Andrew Pruszynski
youtu.be
November 29, 2025 at 2:18 AM
Reposted by Alex Williams
thetransmitter.bsky.social
@thetransmitter.bsky.social’s “New Lab Directory” features a list of new neuroscience labs that opened in 2024-2025, and some set to launch in 2026. Check out the list to learn about the work of more than 50 new neuroscience labs. www.thetransmitter.org/community/th...

#StateOfNeuroscience
The Transmitter’s New Lab Directory
Learn about neuroscience labs launched in the past two years, plus a few opening their doors in 2026.
www.thetransmitter.org
November 26, 2025 at 9:28 PM
Reposted by Alex Williams
goldenneurons.bsky.social
Thank you for the great summary, @thetransmitter.bsky.social, and the shout-outs from scientists we admire. There is so much we don’t know about how sex hormones modulate behavior and we’ll keep exploring!
November 26, 2025 at 3:25 PM
Reposted by Alex Williams
profdata.bsky.social
Intuitive cell types don't necessarily play the ascribed functional role in the overall computation. This is not a message the field wants to hear as it suggests better baselines, controls, and some reflection. elifesciences.org/reviewed-pre... 2/2
elifesciences.org
November 25, 2025 at 7:29 PM
Reposted by Alex Williams
markhisted.org
This week the Trump CDC attacked science — and our health, and our kids’ health — by twisting the truth on the CDC website.

There’s things to say about the playbook they used, and that’s helped by a little explanation about scientific truth in practice.

New vid explainer from me:
🧪 part 1/
November 22, 2025 at 12:04 AM
Reposted by Alex Williams
briandepasquale.bsky.social
🔔 NEW PREPRINT FROM THE LAB ‼️
We introduce a new ML model, LoRAX, for predicting olfactory responses from chemical features, a tricky problem that benefits from progress in ML for biochem. We combine LoRA fine-tuning with protein and chemical foundation models, www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Low rank adaptation of chemical foundation models generate effective odorant representations
Featurizing odorants to enable robust prediction of their properties is difficult due to the complex activation patterns that odorants evoke in the olfactory system. Structurally similar odorants can ...
www.biorxiv.org
November 20, 2025 at 1:38 PM
Reposted by Alex Williams
arkarupbanerjee.bsky.social
As a longtime fan of cool papers in @currentbiology.bsky.social, I am really thrilled to see this out!

This study sets the stage for understanding the origins of novel (vocal) behaviors.

Big shout out to the main architects of this work @xmikezheng20.bsky.social and @cliffscience.bsky.social
November 19, 2025 at 6:42 PM
Reposted by Alex Williams
schoppik.com
Like most animals, fish move less at night. Underwater, stable posture requires movement. Find out how fish don't fall down at night in: Lighting and circadian cues shape locomotor strategies for balance and navigation in larval zebrafish from @yunluzhu.bsky.social
doi.org/10.1101/2025...
Lighting and circadian cues shape locomotor strategies for balance and navigation in larval zebrafish
Most fish are inherently unstable and must swim to stabilize posture. How diurnal fish reduce activity at night while maintaining postural control remains unclear. We defined distinct locomotor strate...
doi.org
November 19, 2025 at 3:24 AM
Reposted by Alex Williams
yunluzhu.bsky.social
Excited to share this work where we found how fish swim differently to keep balance in the dark / explore more in the light.

Spoiler: ever wonder what they do during “little pauses” between swims? They are counting!
November 19, 2025 at 4:11 AM
Reposted by Alex Williams
unireps.bsky.social
The UniReps Workshop accepted papers are out! 🎉
Huge thanks to the authors, reviewers, and incredible AC committee for their dedication and effort in making this happen. 🙏 openreview.net/group?id=Neu...
NeurIPS 2025 Workshop UniReps
Welcome to the OpenReview homepage for NeurIPS 2025 Workshop UniReps
openreview.net
November 17, 2025 at 9:27 PM
Reposted by Alex Williams
jmxpearson.bsky.social
Note: this has a computational scientist track! It’s for you, too, math nerds!
simonsfoundation.org Simons Foundation @simonsfoundation.org · Oct 31
Applications for our Fellows-to-Faculty Award are now open! This program supports early career scientists in #autism or #neuroscience research by facilitating their transition into tenure-track faculty positions. Apply by 1/14/2026: www.simonsfoundation.org/2025/10/31/a... #science
Applications for Fellows-to-Faculty Awards Now Open
Applications for Fellows-to-Faculty Awards Now Open on Simons Foundation
www.simonsfoundation.org
October 31, 2025 at 4:30 PM
Reposted by Alex Williams
markhisted.org
Hearing a rumor that NIH/HHS may now plan to retaliate against other Bethesda Declaration signers.

I am one, but it’s not about me: we have been speaking out because of the ongoing damage to US medical research, cancer and Alzheimer’s research.

As @jenna-m-norton.bsky.social put well: 1/
November 14, 2025 at 4:17 PM
Reposted by Alex Williams
annedraelos.bsky.social
Our new paper in @natcomms.nature.com introduces improv, a flexible software platform that integrates models with experiments in real-time. Traditional experiments collect all data first, then analyze it later. With improv, models analyze data as it streams in and actively guide what to do next.
November 13, 2025 at 3:45 PM
Reposted by Alex Williams
jeanlaurens.bsky.social
I entirely agree.

Research in rodents has enabled remarkable technical advances and deepened our understanding of brainstem circuits and general brain physiology.

However, only NHPs possess cognitive, visual, and motor faculties necessary to advance human-relevant systems neuroscience.
thetransmitter.bsky.social The Transmitter @thetransmitter.bsky.social · Nov 10
Research in primate brains has been essential for the development of brain-computer interfaces and artificial neural networks. New funding and policy changes put future such advances at risk, write Cory Miller, @movshon.bsky.social and Doris Tsao.

#neuroskyence

bit.ly/47MXYLH
Without monkeys, neuroscience has no future
Research in primate brains has been essential for the development of BCIs, ANNs. New funding and policy changes put future such advances at risk.
bit.ly
November 11, 2025 at 1:53 PM
Reposted by Alex Williams
goldenneurons.bsky.social
Thrilled to share our new paper, out now in @natneuro.nature.com, uncovering how estradiol, the most potent estrogen, modulates reinforcement learning and reward prediction errors across biological levels. www.nature.com/articles/s41...

#blueprint 1/7
Estrogen modulates reward prediction errors and reinforcement learning - Nature Neuroscience
Dopamine encoding of reward prediction errors naturally fluctuates over females’ reproductive cycles with estrogenic signaling due to reduced expression of dopamine reuptake proteins.
www.nature.com
November 11, 2025 at 2:41 PM
Reposted by Alex Williams
neurostrow.bsky.social
Our next paper on comparing dynamical systems (with special interest to artificial and biological neural networks) is out!! Joint work with @annhuang42.bsky.social , as well as @satpreetsingh.bsky.social , @leokoz8.bsky.social , Ila Fiete, and @kanakarajanphd.bsky.social : arxiv.org/pdf/2510.25943
November 10, 2025 at 4:16 PM