Thread by @ChrisCurrin

So a few of us (@unhlangothi, @adantro, PeterLatham, @TPVogels, @JosephRaimondo) wrote a perspective piece for #PLOSCompBio entitled "Think: Theory for Africa" dx.plos.org/10.1371/journa…
here are some of the points

"we call for greater efforts to empower Africans to join the global neuroscience community and argue that the subfield of computational neuroscience is the ideal vehicle to do so"

neurotheory is super accessible!
just need #data and #expertise

Data:
open (neuroscience) data for collaboration + open access publishing
Find some data using these:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_n…
I really like openneuro.org
Support @openeuroscience #openscience by reading results on @PLOSCompBiol, @biorxiv_neursci, and @Sci_Hub

Expertise:
growing quantitative fields in Africa: @AIMS_Next, @SKA_telescope, @H3Africa

growing neuro in Africa
@TReNDinAfrica, @ibroSecretariat
By country: osf.io/ahv2t/
By species: doi.org/10.1016/j.neur…
By teaching/outreach: doi.org/10.1371/journa…

let's not forget the @ibroSecretariat @SimonsFdn @isiCNI "Imbizo" and the @DeepIndaba which has spawned many "IndabaX" events (27 in 2019 e.g. @DeepIndabaX_ZA)
many machine learning summer schools, conferences, and initiatives cropping up! @aiexpoafrica fair2019.org.za

connections and confluence of interests can drive the growth of #neurotheory in Africa.
Neurotheory is accessible and interdisciplinary!
Example: #MachineLearning is continually influenced by engagement with neuroscience [doi.org/10.1016/j.neur… @DeepMindAI], and vice versa!

"Entering the field of computational neuroscience can be a daunting prospect"
Here's a quickstart (links in the pdf)
journals.plos.org/ploscompbiol/a…
Please suggest more below!
And podcasts (my fav is @USTpodcast)

What about costs!?
Free online textbooks + courses (see above for e.g.)
Computers are cheap (relative to $$$ experimental equipment)
High-performance computing? nsgportal.org
"African governments and academic institutions must also be willing to support projects"

"In addition to increasing focus on the field for African scientists, we provide several recommendations for the global computational neuroscience community to enhance the field in Africa:"

1. Make funding available for Africans to attend international computational neuroscience conferences, workshops, and summer schools by providing cheaper (or free) registration and travel grants.
and hosting an international conference in Africa too! #visaissues #smallsteps

2. Support or organise computational neuroscience schools and workshops in Africa.
e.g. @isiCNI

3. Provide exchange opportunities for African students to visit world-class research labs, and, on the other side of the exchange, bring foreign researchers to experience and enhance an African research environment.

[my exchanges to @UniofOxford and @TUBerlin were invaluable]

4. Make available and accessible teaching material and computational resources.

5. Collaborate with African theoretical and experimental researchers

6. Promote the incorporation of computational neuroscience research groups into African academic institutions

[I would love to see more formalised groups rather than sparse researchers]

"In the century of the brain, African scientists and educators are poised to make important contributions to global neuroscience research. We believe that theoretical sciences, and specifically computational neuroscience, are the ideal discipline for the African continent."
/end