Society for Neuroscience

Announcing the Center for Visual Science’s 29th Symposium

Date: August 22 – August 24, 2014

Location: University of Rochester, Rochester, NY

Engineering the Eye IV:  Restoring Vision

The 29th Symposium of the Center for Visual Science will bring vision restoration researchers together with low vision specialists who study the importance for daily living of such visual capabilities as: foveal versus peripheral vision, motion versus form perception, and high luminance cone versus low luminance rod mediated vision.  It will examine vision restoration in light of the variety of disorders that damage vision and the type of information that partially or totally blind patients need to function normally. It will also consider the role played by central visual pathways in restoring vision, limitations to recovery resulting from alteration of early visual development, and the importance of cortical plasticity in refinement of visual perception as patients adapt to their visual prosthesis. The conference will also provide an opportunity for students and post-docs to present their work in poster sessions, and will make competitive travel fellowships available to the best of the students and post-docs who wish to attend and present their work.

Confirmed Speakers

Visual deficits

• Alan Bird (Univ. College London)
• Cynthia Owsley (Univ. of Alabama, Birmingham)
• Wilson Geisler (Univ. of Texas, Austin)
• Heidi Baseler (Univ. of York)

Evaluating Restored Vision

• E.J. Chichilnisky (Salk Institute, San Diego)
• William Merigan (Univ. of Rochester)
• Amy Nau (Univ. of Pittsburgh)
• Michael Bach (Univ. Freiburg)
• Donald MacLeod (UC San Diego)

Comparison of available methods

• Eberhart Zrenner (Univ. of Tubingen)
• Peter Blamey (Univ. of Melbourne)
• James Weiland (Univ. of Southern California)
• Bradley Greger (Arizona State Univ.)
• Deniz Dalkara (Inst. de la vision, Paris)
• Sally Temple (Neural Stem Cell Inst. Albany)
• Gustavo Aguirre (Univ. of Pennsylvania)
• Brian Wandell (Stanford)

Central Visual Pathways

• David Margolis (Rutgers Univ.)
• Lynn Kiorpes (New York Univ.)
• Jessy Dorn (Second Sight Medical Products, Los Angeles)
• David Williams (Univ. of Rochester)

Key Dates

• Poster abstract submission: June 30
• Travel fellowship application deadline: June 30
• Notification of poster abstract acceptance: July 11
• Notification of travel fellowship funding: July 11
• Registration closes: July 15
• Registration Fees
• Graduate students and postdocs: $100
• All others: $200

Program Committee

• Krystel Huxlin
• William Merigan
• David Williams
• Matthew McMahon

For queries about the meeting, contact 585-275-2459 or Debbie@cvs.rochester.edu.