Learning new motor skills is a critical aspect of our lives. From playing the piano to riding a bike, it would be difficult to imagine life without it. But how does the brain do it? A new study published in the scientific journal Science Advances sheds light on a newly discovered brain circuit that may endow us with this remarkable ability.

What was your thesis question and what did you find?

My original thesis question was ‘How do we read mental states from facial expressions?’ However, a few months after presenting it, my PhD project changed 180 degrees and the final question ended up being ‘How can deep learning help to understand collective behaviour in zebrafish?’ We found that deep learning is a very po

But there’s more! During the interview, they also told us about great places to visit, cool music, fascinating podcasts and other discoveries they made this year. We couldn’t fit everything in the final cut, so we’ve listed their top recommendations below.

To view all 2021 individual episodes, tune in to the Zoom-In on Champalimaud YouTube playlist.

Smell has the power to transport us across time and space. It could be the sweet fragrance of jasmine, or the musty scent of algae. Suddenly, you are back at your childhood home, or under the burning sun of a distant shore.

This association between smells and places seems to be a deeply embedded aspect of human cognition. But how are the two linked in the brain? A study published today (December 22nd) in the scientific journal Nature presents a potential explanation.

The Ocean Campus will involve the redevelopment of a total of 64 hectares, in Lisbon and Oeiras. With an investment of 300 million euros, from mostly private funds, the campus will create multifunctional and environmentally sustainable spaces and teaching units, and will promote technological development and innovative research.

Once in a while, we hear that the Physics world is overjoyed with the discovery of a new elementary particle, often decades after theoretical models have predicted its existence. But Neuroscience news has a different stroke, with novel insight mainly emerging through experiments. Can theoretical approaches also provide testable predictions about how the brain works? 

A team of researchers from the Champalimaud Foundation partnered with a group of street artists and created a set of artistic-scientific workshops that will take place during the afternoon of Saturday, 27th November, at the Junta de Freguesia das Águas Livres, in Cova da Moura - Amadora, open to all children and teenagers from this neighbourhood.

In this episode of the Zoom-In series, meet Maria Inês Romano. Curious about her work? Check out the Histopathology platform.