Cortical state and attention: How cognitive variables and neuromodulators shape neural communication and conscious perception  Applications are invited for a BBSRC funded post-doc position  in the Biosciences Institute, Newcastle University, UK The position will start in 2022 and is funded for 4 years. Attention coordinates local and global brain states, allowing information, such as external stimuli, to be represented by specific neural activity patterns across cortical processing stages. These are mediated by feed-forward and feedback interactions within and between areas. It has been proposed that specific coordination of these interactions (and activity patterns) give rise to conscious perception, but how this is achieved remains unknown. To address this knowledge gap, monkeys will perform a difficult attention (change detection) task, where they report (and often fail to report) subtle stimulus changes. This allows comparison of neural activity related to trials of conscious report, with activity on trials of failed report (but identical stimulus conditions). Recordings from high density Neuropixels probes across cortical layers in areas V1, V4, and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, along with EEG recordings, will reveal how attention affects the regulation and coordination of local and global cortical brain states. Combining local and systemic drug challenge with optogenetic stimulation during task performance will reveal how local and global brain states, and information exchange in the cortex, depends on specific acetylcholine or noradrenaline receptors. The study will reveal the communication patterns within and between cortical columns that give rise to conscious report and how they are regulated by the neuromodulators acetylcholine and noradrenaline. Neuropharmacology of decision-making: causal brain network modelling across species Applications are invited for a NHMRC funded PhD/post-doc position  in the Biosciences Institute, Newcastle University, UK The position will start in 2022 and is funded for 4 years. Location(s): Newcastle University, UK, Supervisors: Prof A. Thiele Decision-making deficits are a prominent feature of a number of clinical disorders, including attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)[1], schizophrenia [2], depression [3] and Parkinson’s disease (PD)[4]. These disorders implicate a range of neurochemical systems such as catecholamines (dopamine and noradrenaline) and glutamate, acting across both fronto-parietal (FP) and cortical-basal ganglia-thalamic (CBGT) networks [5]. Although decision neuroscience has made great strides in identifying neural metrics of decision-making that are comparable across species and time scales, critical knowledge gaps remain. These gaps include an incomplete understanding of: (i) how different brain regions communicate with one another to support decision-making processes and (ii) how neurochemicals modulate these decision-making communications. Here, we investigate the neurochemical modulation of decision-making in both humans and macaques. The position at Newcastle University will investigate the macaque related aspects of the project. email: Alex Thiele