John Pearson
@jmxpearson.bsky.social
Computational neuroscience, neuroML, natural behavior. I charge more for miracles. PI @ pearsonlab.github.io. @dukemedschool.bsky.social.
Pinned
John Pearson
@jmxpearson.bsky.social
· Nov 11
Pearson Lab at Duke University
pearsonlab.github.io
Okay, long-overdue introduction. I’m a computational neuroscientist at Duke, where my lab (pearsonlab.github.io) does theory “bottom up”: we try to start by modeling data and build toward principles.
Reposted by John Pearson
Having a great time at the @flatironinstitute.org CCN software workshop in San Diego! Do check out their fantastic Python packages Pynapple @pynapple.bsky.social (for general neurophys analysis) and NeMoS (for GLM) github.com/flatironinstitute/nemos - they are an absolute pleasure to work with 🤩
November 14, 2025 at 6:12 PM
Having a great time at the @flatironinstitute.org CCN software workshop in San Diego! Do check out their fantastic Python packages Pynapple @pynapple.bsky.social (for general neurophys analysis) and NeMoS (for GLM) github.com/flatironinstitute/nemos - they are an absolute pleasure to work with 🤩
Reposted by John Pearson
Garrett Stanley and I are leading the recruitment of a senior faculty position in BME at Georgia Tech and Emory, focused on Neural Engineering. Come talk to us, we're looking for a leader in research and training, in areas with neurotranslation potential.
More details here:
lnkd.in/eusCqCSR
More details here:
lnkd.in/eusCqCSR
November 15, 2025 at 10:25 PM
Garrett Stanley and I are leading the recruitment of a senior faculty position in BME at Georgia Tech and Emory, focused on Neural Engineering. Come talk to us, we're looking for a leader in research and training, in areas with neurotranslation potential.
More details here:
lnkd.in/eusCqCSR
More details here:
lnkd.in/eusCqCSR
Reposted by John Pearson
I am very grateful for Steve's leadership and excited to step into this new role! www.neuro.duke.edu/news/lisberg...
Lisberger to step down as department chair; Bilbo named interim leader
Stephen Lisberger, PhD, George Barth Geller Distinguished Professor for Research in Neurobiology, will step down from his role as
www.neuro.duke.edu
November 15, 2025 at 7:41 PM
I am very grateful for Steve's leadership and excited to step into this new role! www.neuro.duke.edu/news/lisberg...
Reposted by John Pearson
Congrats to the @thetransmitter.bsky.social Rising Stars of Neuroscience, including our own @drnancypadilla.bsky.social and @megkirch.bsky.social! 🌟
www.thetransmitter.org/early-career...
www.thetransmitter.org/early-career...
The Transmitter’s Rising Stars of Neuroscience 2025
We recognize the outstanding achievements of 25 neuroscientists who stand to shape the field for years to come.
www.thetransmitter.org
November 15, 2025 at 5:32 PM
Congrats to the @thetransmitter.bsky.social Rising Stars of Neuroscience, including our own @drnancypadilla.bsky.social and @megkirch.bsky.social! 🌟
www.thetransmitter.org/early-career...
www.thetransmitter.org/early-career...
Reposted by John Pearson
JOB ALERT @ UNC Charlotte
Come be my newest colleague!
DM me if you have questions about the department, city, or University
jobs.charlotte.edu/postings/65031
Come be my newest colleague!
DM me if you have questions about the department, city, or University
jobs.charlotte.edu/postings/65031
Assistant Professor
The successful candidate will be expected to develop and maintain an externally funded research program involving Ph.D., Masters, and undergraduate students and to teach graduate and undergraduate cou...
jobs.charlotte.edu
November 11, 2025 at 3:50 PM
JOB ALERT @ UNC Charlotte
Come be my newest colleague!
DM me if you have questions about the department, city, or University
jobs.charlotte.edu/postings/65031
Come be my newest colleague!
DM me if you have questions about the department, city, or University
jobs.charlotte.edu/postings/65031
Reposted by John Pearson
Methods developers trying really hard for that perfect acronym...
November 14, 2025 at 9:20 PM
Methods developers trying really hard for that perfect acronym...
Reposted by John Pearson
Happy to share that we got an NIH R01 grant!
November 14, 2025 at 5:03 PM
Happy to share that we got an NIH R01 grant!
Reposted by John Pearson
Foraging as an ethological framework for neuroscience
From the amazing @lauragrima.bsky.social and colleagues - definitely looking forward to reading this!
#neuroskyence #psychscisky #cognition
From the amazing @lauragrima.bsky.social and colleagues - definitely looking forward to reading this!
#neuroskyence #psychscisky #cognition
Foraging as an ethological framework for neuroscience
The study of foraging is central to a renewed interest in naturalistic behavior in neuroscience. Applying a foraging framework grounded in behavioral …
www.sciencedirect.com
November 14, 2025 at 9:23 AM
Foraging as an ethological framework for neuroscience
From the amazing @lauragrima.bsky.social and colleagues - definitely looking forward to reading this!
#neuroskyence #psychscisky #cognition
From the amazing @lauragrima.bsky.social and colleagues - definitely looking forward to reading this!
#neuroskyence #psychscisky #cognition
Reposted by John Pearson
Thank you so much for the compliment! Indeed, we also think it aligns well with Gao&Ganguli's theory, while highlighting the role of state-feedback control in low-D dynamics. We have updated the preprint to include more comparisons with M1 recordings.
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
A model of neural population dynamics for flexible sensorimotor control
Modern large-scale recordings have revealed that motor cortex activity during reaching follows low-dimensional dynamics, thought to reflect sensorimotor computations underlying muscle activation. Howe...
www.biorxiv.org
November 14, 2025 at 10:24 AM
Thank you so much for the compliment! Indeed, we also think it aligns well with Gao&Ganguli's theory, while highlighting the role of state-feedback control in low-D dynamics. We have updated the preprint to include more comparisons with M1 recordings.
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Reposted by John Pearson
Just fyi if you are trying to get bridge funds from your
University they might offer them only for grants that got discussed (has been true at Duke). ND can be a death-knell for a program.
University they might offer them only for grants that got discussed (has been true at Duke). ND can be a death-knell for a program.
November 14, 2025 at 1:10 AM
Just fyi if you are trying to get bridge funds from your
University they might offer them only for grants that got discussed (has been true at Duke). ND can be a death-knell for a program.
University they might offer them only for grants that got discussed (has been true at Duke). ND can be a death-knell for a program.
Reposted by John Pearson
Agree. That said, "distinguish among" isn't a thing though because reviewers don't compare proposals to one another in study section.
I wonder if the policy is simply a response to an increased number of proposals and a sharply truncated time in which to review them all.
I wonder if the policy is simply a response to an increased number of proposals and a sharply truncated time in which to review them all.
November 14, 2025 at 1:06 AM
Agree. That said, "distinguish among" isn't a thing though because reviewers don't compare proposals to one another in study section.
I wonder if the policy is simply a response to an increased number of proposals and a sharply truncated time in which to review them all.
I wonder if the policy is simply a response to an increased number of proposals and a sharply truncated time in which to review them all.
Reposted by John Pearson
triaging 2/3 of NIH grants sounds terrible but if the funding line is to remain at ~5%, this may increase the time for more thoughtful discussion of grants with top scores so that, for example, the difference between 3% vs 6% scored grants is less arbitrary and/or scores are better spread??
Just got an email from my SRO for the study section that was missed in October. Good news is that they are trying to reschedule ASAP (Dec/Jan). The bad news is that CSR is mandating that only the the top third (not half) of applications will get discussed for the next 2 rounds.
November 14, 2025 at 12:23 AM
triaging 2/3 of NIH grants sounds terrible but if the funding line is to remain at ~5%, this may increase the time for more thoughtful discussion of grants with top scores so that, for example, the difference between 3% vs 6% scored grants is less arbitrary and/or scores are better spread??
I don’t get this, tbh. Not discussed applications still get reviews, and discussion is only barely reflected in the summary. How often is a grant in 50-66th percentile funded after discussion? I’d much rather reviewers have time to distinguish among top-scoring proposals.
Holy crap. They're triaging 2 out of 3 applications that are submitted. 2 out of every 3 applications will not even have a chance for discussion.
Just got an email from my SRO for the study section that was missed in October. Good news is that they are trying to reschedule ASAP (Dec/Jan). The bad news is that CSR is mandating that only the the top third (not half) of applications will get discussed for the next 2 rounds.
November 14, 2025 at 12:27 AM
I don’t get this, tbh. Not discussed applications still get reviews, and discussion is only barely reflected in the summary. How often is a grant in 50-66th percentile funded after discussion? I’d much rather reviewers have time to distinguish among top-scoring proposals.
Reposted by John Pearson
This work is so, so good. Really elegant demonstration of why low-dimensional neural dynamics in movement may follow from simple control principles. Highly complementary to arguments from Peiran Gao and @suryaganguli.bsky.social.
Fred Crevecoeur
@fredericcrevec1
🚨preprint time by @harikalidindi.bsky.social
for our work on neural population dynamics: we show that features of neural population activity during reaching emerge from a simple linear body-network system 🧵👇
biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
@fredericcrevec1
🚨preprint time by @harikalidindi.bsky.social
for our work on neural population dynamics: we show that features of neural population activity during reaching emerge from a simple linear body-network system 🧵👇
biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
November 13, 2025 at 7:35 PM
This work is so, so good. Really elegant demonstration of why low-dimensional neural dynamics in movement may follow from simple control principles. Highly complementary to arguments from Peiran Gao and @suryaganguli.bsky.social.
This work is so, so good. Really elegant demonstration of why low-dimensional neural dynamics in movement may follow from simple control principles. Highly complementary to arguments from Peiran Gao and @suryaganguli.bsky.social.
Fred Crevecoeur
@fredericcrevec1
🚨preprint time by @harikalidindi.bsky.social
for our work on neural population dynamics: we show that features of neural population activity during reaching emerge from a simple linear body-network system 🧵👇
biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
@fredericcrevec1
🚨preprint time by @harikalidindi.bsky.social
for our work on neural population dynamics: we show that features of neural population activity during reaching emerge from a simple linear body-network system 🧵👇
biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
November 13, 2025 at 7:35 PM
This work is so, so good. Really elegant demonstration of why low-dimensional neural dynamics in movement may follow from simple control principles. Highly complementary to arguments from Peiran Gao and @suryaganguli.bsky.social.
Reposted by John Pearson
Our work on training biophysical models with Jaxley is now out in @natmethods.nature.com. Led by @deismic.bsky.social, with @philipp.hertie.ai, @ppjgoncalves.bsky.social & @jakhmack.bsky.social et al.
Paper: www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Paper: www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Jaxley: differentiable simulation enables large-scale training of detailed biophysical models of neural dynamics - Nature Methods
Jaxley is a versatile platform for biophysical modeling in neuroscience. It allows efficiently simulating large-scale biophysical models on CPUs, GPUs and TPUs. Model parameters can be optimized with ...
www.nature.com
November 13, 2025 at 1:08 PM
Our work on training biophysical models with Jaxley is now out in @natmethods.nature.com. Led by @deismic.bsky.social, with @philipp.hertie.ai, @ppjgoncalves.bsky.social & @jakhmack.bsky.social et al.
Paper: www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Paper: www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Reposted by John Pearson
Amazing work!!!
Finally out! If you are interested in implementing closed loop experiments but need the flexibility to roll your own real-time algorithms, we can save you some serious time.
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 3:55 PM
Amazing work!!!
Reposted by John Pearson
Wow!
Finally out! If you are interested in implementing closed loop experiments but need the flexibility to roll your own real-time algorithms, we can save you some serious time.
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 5:20 PM
Wow!
Finally out! If you are interested in implementing closed loop experiments but need the flexibility to roll your own real-time algorithms, we can save you some serious time.
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 3:53 PM
Finally out! If you are interested in implementing closed loop experiments but need the flexibility to roll your own real-time algorithms, we can save you some serious time.
Reposted by John Pearson
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
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.
Reposted by John Pearson
I really enjoyed having this conversation with Andrew Huberman @hubermanlab.com and I hope y'all find it interesting: youtu.be/tb6ApBIXr1k?...
How Your Thoughts Are Built & How You Can Shape Them | Dr. Jennifer Groh
YouTube video by Andrew Huberman
youtu.be
November 11, 2025 at 3:32 PM
I really enjoyed having this conversation with Andrew Huberman @hubermanlab.com and I hope y'all find it interesting: youtu.be/tb6ApBIXr1k?...
Reposted by John Pearson
I think this is actually something the NIH gets right: the PO is there for you to run ideas and talk thru summary statement and strategy with. But they’re not the SRO or the panelists actually overseeing/carrying out review; contacting *those* guys about a submission is a big no no.
Is it just me, or is the grant awards process super shady?
eg., I once spoke with an academic who was really good at getting grants.
Their advice?
"Build a personal relationship with grant officers."
This was not the only time I've heard some version of this.
It seems super shady.
eg., I once spoke with an academic who was really good at getting grants.
Their advice?
"Build a personal relationship with grant officers."
This was not the only time I've heard some version of this.
It seems super shady.
November 11, 2025 at 12:38 AM
I think this is actually something the NIH gets right: the PO is there for you to run ideas and talk thru summary statement and strategy with. But they’re not the SRO or the panelists actually overseeing/carrying out review; contacting *those* guys about a submission is a big no no.
Reposted by John Pearson
We recently pushed Jupyter Book 2, which was a breaking change for many of our users! We considered publishing a completely different package (e.g., `jupyter-book2`) but decided against it. Here's a quick rationale why:
Why we made a major release for Jupyter Book 2 instead of creating a new package - Jupyter Book: Blog
Updates from the Jupyter Book subproject.
blog.jupyterbook.org
November 7, 2025 at 6:16 PM
We recently pushed Jupyter Book 2, which was a breaking change for many of our users! We considered publishing a completely different package (e.g., `jupyter-book2`) but decided against it. Here's a quick rationale why:
Reposted by John Pearson
Do you know someone qualified to be an Area Chair for #ICML2026?🤔
(...maybe yourself?)
If so, then nominate them to be an Area Chair! Nomination closes November 17, 2025, so don't delay!🚀🚀🚀
Nomination form: docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F...
(...maybe yourself?)
If so, then nominate them to be an Area Chair! Nomination closes November 17, 2025, so don't delay!🚀🚀🚀
Nomination form: docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F...
November 7, 2025 at 4:45 PM
Do you know someone qualified to be an Area Chair for #ICML2026?🤔
(...maybe yourself?)
If so, then nominate them to be an Area Chair! Nomination closes November 17, 2025, so don't delay!🚀🚀🚀
Nomination form: docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F...
(...maybe yourself?)
If so, then nominate them to be an Area Chair! Nomination closes November 17, 2025, so don't delay!🚀🚀🚀
Nomination form: docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F...