in process: symposium 2026

(submitted as FENS satellite event)

Trajectories and drivers of brain evolution through deep time (Jul 10-12, 2026)

description and purpose
Brains are among the most complex systems constructed by biological evolution. Understanding the principles of their design as versatile and efficient computational devices, reconstructing the paths through which the enormous diversity of animal nervous systems has emerged and uncovering how the evolution of brains and behavior impacts animal speciation itself are ultimate goals of biological intelligence research. Recent years have witnessed spectacular advances in our ability to uncover these fundamental evolutionary processes and principles.
The symposium "Trajectories and drivers of brain evolution through deep time" will present exciting lines of research into neural circuit evolution. Organized by the German Research Foundation Priority Program "Evolutionary optimization of neuronal processing", the symposium is designed to highlight recent fundamental advances in our ability to reconstruct and understand the emergence of large and complex brains over evolutionary time. Presentations will cover both comparative and paleoneurological approaches to elucidate modes and patterns of brain evolution in mammals, fish and insects. The symposium will provide a platform to discuss computational challenges in big-data paleoneurology and establish connections to study core problems in brain evolution from ecological and computational perspectives. Addressing a wide neuroscience audience, we aim to foster the emergence of a comprehensive conceptual framework for studies of neural circuit evolution.

planned sessions

session I: Palaeoneurology of mosaic and correlated brain evolution
session II: Inferring trajectories of encephalization
session III: Evolution of body, brain and lifestyle in ecological context
session IV: Neural circuit evolution through encephalization bursts
furthermore: poster session and featured talks

program committee

Prof. Dr. Jan Benda, University of Tübingen, Germany
Dr. Ornella Bertrand, Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Spain
Prof. Dr. Kerstin Schmidt, Brain Institute, Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte, Natal, Brazil
Prof. Dr. Marion Silies, iDN - Neural Circuits Lab, Johannes-Gutenberg-Universität Mainz, Germany
Prof. Dr. Fred Wolf, University of Göttingen & MPI-DS, Germany

venue
Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Edifici ICTA-ICP, c/ Columnes s/n, Campus de la UAB, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain