Personnel

Principal Investigator

Davide Zoccolan, PhD

Davide Zoccolan obtained his Laurea (M.S. equiv) in Physics at the University of Torino (Italy) in 1997. He then joined the group of Prof. Vincent Torre at the International School for Advanced Studies (SISSA) of Trieste (Italy), where he studied sensory-motor integration, motor pattern generation, and decision-making in an invertebrate model system.

After obtaining his PhD in Biophysics at SISSA in 2002, he was awarded a Long Term HFSP Postdoctoral Fellowship to work as a post-doctoral fellow in the research groups of Prof. James DiCarlo and Prof. Tomaso Poggio, at the McGovern Institute for Brain Research of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), in Cambridge (USA). Here, he studied the neuronal mechanisms underlying visual object recognition, using a combination of computational modeling and single-unit neuronal recordings from primate inferotemporal cortex.

Starting from 2006, in collaboration with Dr. David Cox, he developed an independent line of research within the DiCarlo’s lab, with the goal of establishing rodent models for the study of higher-level visual functions. In 2008, he pursued this research by joining the recently established lab of Dr. David Cox at the Rowland Institute at Harvard (Harvard University), in Cambridge (USA).

In 2008, he has been awarded the Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei – Compagnia di San Paolo Grant to join SISSA Neurobiology and Cognitive Neuroscience Sectors and start, in 2009, a Visual Neuroscience Lab, where he studies the neuronal basis of visual object recognition using a combination of psychophysics and electrophysiology in rodents, and computational modeling. He is currently Full Professor in Neurophysiology.

[E-mail: zoccolan@sissa.it] [Curriculum Vitae] [Google Scholar]

Graduate Students

Anna Carboncino, Technical Assistant (2018-2021), next position: Technical Assistant Fellow, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Rose F. Kennedy Center, New York (USA)

Giulio Matteucci, Master student (2015-2016) and PhD student (2016-2020), next position: Postdoctoral Fellow, Department of Basic Neurosciences, University of Geneva (Switzerland)

Eis Annavini, PhD student (2013-2018) and Postdoctoral Fellow (2018-2019), next position: Postdoctoral Fellow, Institute of Basic Medical Sciences, University of Oslo (Norway)

Alessio Ansuini, Postdoctoral Fellow (2014-2019), next position: Research Scientist in Data Analytics and Artificial Intelligence, Area Science Park, Udine (Italy)

Liviu Soltuzu, PhD student (2013-2017) and Postdoctoral Fellow (2017-2018), next position: Data Scientist, Blue Brain Project, Membrane Systems Group, EPFL, Lausanne (Switzerland)

Natalia Grion, Postdoctoral Fellow (2014-2018), next position: Data Scientist, ProntoPro, Milan (Italy)

Benedetta Zattera, Master student (2017-2018), next position: PhD student, TamiettoLab, UniTO-UniPR Joint Program, University of Torino (Italy)

Ilaria Montano, Master student (2017-2018), next position: PhD student in Life Sciences, Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (Cina)

Marco Salluzzo, Master student (2016-2017), next position: PhD student in Neurosciences, Institute of Neurophysiology (CNR-Pisa), University of Firenze, Italy.

Alssandro DiFIlippo, PhD Student (2011-2014) and Postdoctoral Fellow (2015-2018), next position: Postdoctoral Fellow, University of Edinburgh (Scotland)

Mattia D’Andola, Postdoctoral Fellow (2016-2018), next position: Postdoctoral Fellow, Neuro-Electronics Research Flanders (NERF), Leuven, Belgium

Daniele Bertolini, Software/hardware developer & lab manager (2014-2018), next position: project manager, VIVISOL (SOL group), Milan, Italy

Rosilari Bellacosa Marotti, Postdoctoral Fellow (2015-2018)

Vladimir Djurdjevic, PhD Student (2014-2018)

Nelly Redolfi, Technical assistant (2016-2017)

Walter Vanzella, Software developer (2014-2017), next position: CEO, Glance Vision Technologies, Trieste, Italy

Federica Rosselli, PhD Student (2010-2013) and Postdoctoral Fellow (2014-2015), next position: Postdoctoral Fellow, Dept. of Behavior and Brain Organization, Center of Advanced European Studies and Research (Caesar), An Institute of the Max-Planck Society, Bonn (Germany)

Nader Nikbakht, PhD Student (2011-2015), next position: McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA

Luca Godenzini, Master student and research fellow (2013-2015), next position: PhD student, Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, University of Melbourne, Australia

Mattia Orru’, Master student (2014-2015)

Simone Vigano’, Master student (2014-2015), next position: PhD student, Center for Mind/Brain Sciences (CIMeC), University of Trento, Rovereto (Italy)

Federica Buffolo, Technical Assistant (2014-2015), next position: PhD student, Neuroscience and Brain Technologies department, Italian Institute of Technology, Genova (Italy)

Sina Tafazoli, PhD Student (2010-2013), next position: Postdoctoral Fellow, Princeton Neuroscience Institute, Princeton University (USA)

Alireza Alemi-Neissi, PhD Student (2010-2012), next position: Postdoctoral Fellow, Politecnico di Torino, Torino (Italy)

Houman Safaai, Postdoctoral Fellow (2011-2012), next position: Center for Neuroscience and Cognitive Systems, Italian Institute of Technology, Rovereto (Italy)

Sahitya Chetan Pandanaboina, Postdoctoral Fellow (2010-2014)

Gioia De Franceschi, M. Sc. Student (2013), next position: Ph.D. student, Faculty of Life Sciences, University College London (UK)

Laura Riontino, M. Sc. Student (2013), next position: PhD student in Neuroscience (University of Trieste, Italy)

Silvia Rossi, M. Sc. Student (2013), next position: Student at the Faculty of Medicine of Insubria University, Varese (Italy)

Dario Campagner, M. Sc. Student (2012), next position: PhD student, Faculty of Life Sciences, University of Manchester (UK)

Matilde Fiorini, M. Sc. Student (2012), next position: PhD student, Werner Reichardt Centre for Integrative Neuroscience, University of Tubingen (Germany)

Francesca Pulecchi, Technical Assistant (2011-2012), next position: Lab Manager, Tactile Perception and Learning Lab, SISSA (Italy)

Riccardo Caramellino