Dipartimento di Ingegneria informatica, automatica e gestionale

In ottemperanza ai requisiti previsti dalla procedura valutativa ai fini della chiamata a Professore di I Fascia ai sensi dell’art. 24, commi 5 e 6 L. 240/2010 per il Settore Concorsuale 09/G2 – Settore Scientifico Disciplinare ING-INF/06 presso il Dipartimento di Ingegneria informatica, automatica e gestionale Antonio Ruberti, codice concorso 2023POR025, D.R. n. 1926/2023 del 19.07.2023, 

Laura Astolfi, a seguito dell’esito positivo ottenuto nella procedura, terrà presso questo dipartimento un seminario sulle attività di ricerca svolte e in corso di svolgimento, in modalità mista:

 

Decoding the Brain as a Complex System: Network Neuroscience, an Integrative Approach

 

Network neuroscience integrates empirical and computational advancements to examine the dynamics of neurobiological systems and their interactions across spatiotemporal domains. In this seminar, the speaker will discuss her contributions to this field and her future research directions, highlighting the interdisciplinary nature of her work and the integration of complex systems theory, neuroengineering, and biomedical engineering within the broader scope of neuroscience. She will first detail her work in developing computational methods and models to study brain activity and functional connectivity using non-invasive techniques such as electroencephalography (EEG) and functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI), along with their integration. She will then introduce her current work in the framework of an EU-European Innovation Council project, which aims to create a radically new diagnostic and therapeutic device. This device will combines innovative ultrasound technology for brain imaging and focused stimulation with advanced electrophysiological measurements. The second part of the seminar will outline her investigation of neuroscientific questions related to the physiology of the healthy brain, the changes induced by neurological disorders, and neural plasticity. Her work has mainly focused on two areas: neurorehabilitation and social neuroscience, the latter through the advanced use of hyperscanning—a technique she has pioneered—to study social interactions and neural synchronization. Her upcoming research on social interactions will unfold within several funded projects, aiming to explore social neurocognitive mechanisms in individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) during motor coordination and empathic tasks. Additionally, she will investigate the use of hyperscanning with students and teachers in classrooms, aiming to enhance STEM teaching in Italian middle and high schools with a novel AI-based educational tool. This work will not only advance the field of network neuroscience but also showcase its practical application in addressing complex, interdisciplinary challenges in clinical and real-life scenarios.

 

Laura Astolfi is an Associate Professor of Biomedical Engineering at Sapienza University of Rome. She holds a degree in Electronic Engineering from the same institution and a PhD in Bioengineering from the University Alma Mater Studiorum of Bologna. Her research focuses on the development and application of computational methods and models to study brain activity and functional connectivity in humans and is conducted in collaboration with major international research institutes, including, among others, the Fraunhofer Institute and the Harvard Medical School. She authored 178 scientific articles indexed on Scopus, 2 books, and over 100 contributions to international conferences, with an h-index of 40, more than 7000 citations (source: Scopus), and a total Impact Factor of 276.356 (source: Thomson Reuters JCR). She has received several national and international research awards and has secured funding for 34 research projects, 14 of which as Principal Investigator. She has been a Junior Fellow at the Sapienza School for Advanced Studies and a member of Sapienza’s Research Commission. She served as Chair of the Technical Committee on Biomedical Signal Processing and as a member of the Administrative Committee of the IEEE Engineering in Medicine and Biology Society (EMBS). She is a member of the Scientific Board of the International Society for Brain Electromagnetic Topography (ISBET) and a Fellow of the European Alliance for Medical and Biological Engineering and Science (EAMBES). She has been a tutor for numerous PhD students, an opponent in PhD dissertations, a keynote speaker and an invited lecturer at more than 40 international conferences and schools.