Emma Lehmann is a master’s student in Cognitive and Integrative Systems Neuroscience at the University of Marburg, Germany. Having recently joined the Bernstein Network, she attended the Bernstein Conference in September 2026 — her first time participating in a scientific conference. In this article, she shares her personal impressions of the three days of the Main Conference.

What does it take for an emerging research field to thrive? In a recent article in Neuron, 2026 Valentin Braitenberg Award recipient Xiao-Jing Wang looks back at the funding initiatives, research centers, and collaborative programs that helped establish theoretical and computational neuroscience. His account highlights the Bernstein Network Computational Neuroscience, established in Germany in 2004, as one such initiative.

Researchers at the University of Cologne are heading a new collaborative project funded by the German Federal Ministry of Research, Technology and Space to investigate how technologies are changing our understanding of sadness, anxiety, and pain.

A study published in PNAS reveals a common principle underlying joint movement, and shows that ageing weakens the propulsive strength in all species studied. New open-source software enables movement patterns to be compared across species.

A research team led by the University of Bern has developed a novel learning mechanism for neural networks modeled after the human brain. “Spike-based Alignment Learning” uses random fluctuations in the activity of artificial neurons to reveal asymmetric connections, allowing synapses that are far apart to autonomously align with one another without communicating directly. This approach could help us better understand learning processes in the brain and develop robust, energy-efficient, brain-inspired computer systems.

From September 28 to October 1, 2026, more than 600 researchers from around the world will gather at Goethe University Frankfurt to discuss current questions in Computational Neuroscience. Highlights include the presentation of the Valentin Braitenberg Award to Xiao-Jing Wang and a special evening event celebrating the 100th birthday of the award’s namesake.

The European Research Council (ERC) is supporting scientists Prof. Dr. Elisa Oberbeckmann, Dr. Sophie de Vries and Dr. Tristan Manfred Stöber with ERC Starting Grants of €1.5 million each for a period of five years.

When mice and primates move, their visual perception changes in very different ways. LMU researchers show that the same principle underlies this difference.

Dopamine regulates our motivation, mood, and drive — and thus also our learning and decision-making abilities. In Parkinson's disease, a progressive dopamine deficiency plays a central role. In a new study, researchers from HMU Health and Medical University and TU Darmstadt have now examined the connection between decision-making processes and the administration of dopamine-enhancing medications in more detail. Their findings have been published in the renowned journal Science Advances.

Which neurons in the brain control movements, and how? This question was addressed by a team of researchers from the fields of neuroscience and artificial intelligence in a study conducted on an animal model at the interdisciplinary research centre BrainLinks-BrainTools at the University of Freiburg. The findings, now published in the journal Cell Reports, could help to improve the precision of mind-controlled prostheses.