[Seminar] MLDS Unit Seminar 2025-2 by Dr. Gregory Schwartzman (JAIST)

Speaker: Dr. Gregory Schwartzman, Associate Professor, Japan Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (JAIST)

Title:  Can Synaptic Connectivity Alone Reveal Neuron Types?

Abstract: Recent advances in electron microscopy and computer vision have enabled the mapping of complete wiring diagrams—called connectomes—of brain regions and even entire brains. The emergence of these increasingly large-scale datasets have intensified the need for efficient and accurate neuronal cell type identification. Traditional approaches rely on labor-intensive analyses of molecular, anatomical, and physiological features. As a step toward fully automated neuronal cell type classification, we present NTAC (Neuronal Type Assignment from Connectivity)—a method for grouping neurons into cell types based solely on synaptic connectivity. Our approach is grounded in the hypothesis that synaptic connectivity is key to determining neuronal cell types, and our results provide the strongest evidence to date supporting its validity.

This talk will be self contained, and is based on the following paper: https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.06.11.659184v1

Bio: Gregory Schwartzman is an Associate Professor at the Japan Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (JAIST). His research focuses on algorithm design in environments with uncertainty, addressing challenges in large-scale data and distributed systems. He earned his PhD in Computer Science from the Technion and previously held a postdoctoral position at the National Institute of Informatics in Tokyo. His work has received multiple awards: Best Paper at SODA 2017 and Best Student Paper PODC 2016.