Carney Institute for Brain Science
Center for Computational Brain Science

Center for Computational Brain Science

A world-class center focused on computational approaches to solve the big questions of our time.

The Center for Computational Brain Science within the Carney Institute for Brain Science harnesses Brown University’s expertise in computation, cognition and systems neuroscience toward new brain health solutions.

The human brain is a computational organ. It stores a lifetime of memories, recognizes faces in the blink of an eye, learns from experience, plans for the future and communicates fluidly. To demystify how the brain accomplishes such complex tasks with precision and speed, the Center for Computational Brain Science (CCBS) fosters collaborations between basic brain science researchers and engineers, mathematicians and computer scientists, and brings computational neuroscience innovations to clinical applications and commercialization. 

  • CCBS catalyzes new collaborations across campus, engaging mathematicians, computer scientists, biologists, behavioral economists and cognitive neuroscientists.
  • The center allows for integration across levels of computational analysis, which is critical for understanding the brain.
  • Building on Brown’s Open Curriculum, the center provides cross-training in computational methods for students, basic scientists and physician-scientists. The center also enhances community engagement in computational brain science through hackathons, modeling challenges and scientific symposiums.
  • CCBS invests in high-risk, high-gain research with the potential for conversion to startups, thereby accelerating the translation of computational approaches to clinical applications and commercialization.