While the technology behind amazing advances in neuroscience is still often hard to discern in the conference at the Society for Neuroscience (SfN) annual meeting, two things have recently helped bring it out of the shadows: the U.S.'s Brain Research through Advancing Innovative Neurotechnologies (BRAIN) Initiative and a trend toward interdisciplinary research.
At the 2015 event (October 17-21)—which attracted approximately 30,000—optogenetics was a star as the focus of nearly 30 dedicated conference sessions and even an SfN-sponsored an Optogenetics Social. (Optogenetics was mentioned as well in sessions dedicated to other topics.) Optical imaging was another hot topic, as several sessions specifically discussed approaches such as two-photon and light-sheet microscopy (and others discussed optical imaging-enabled discoveries), and super-resolution pioneer and Nobel Laureate Stefan Hell was one of seven luminaries to deliver Special Lectures.
Barbara Gefvert | Editor-in-Chief, BioOptics World (2008-2020)
Barbara G. Gefvert has been a science and technology editor and writer since 1987, and served as editor in chief on multiple publications, including Sensors magazine for nearly a decade.