On September 2, 2024, The Sense held the inaugural edition of its Symposium, dedicated to presenting research projects in the field of sensory systems. From 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM, around sixty participants gathered at the Palais de Rumine in Lausanne for a day filled with scientific exchanges and discoveries.
This day, structured around a rigorous program, highlighted projects funded by Sense in 2022 and 2023. Project leaders presented the current progress of their respective work in detail, including Brain-TRACE, Dream Detector, Attentive Slippers, ARBORELE, Flavor, KiCk fMRI, MVO, and WildCom. A panel of experts in innovation, entrepreneurship, and law then gathered to discuss the journey of revolutionary ideas, from discovery to realization. These captivating talks provided valuable insights into the innovation process for all Sense affiliates.
“We are thrilled to have brought together Sense affiliates and to have addressed so many topics related to innovation and research,” said Prof. Olivier Lorentz, Executive Director of the Sense.
A Captivating Poster Session
In addition to the projects funded by the Sense, the poster session also drew significant interest. Thirty posters, created by students and postdoctoral researchers, were displayed at the Palais de Rumine. To reward the best work, the Sense organized a competition. The first prize went to Yiwei Jia, a member of the Neurodevices unit under Prof. Benedetta Franceschiello, for the poster titled “A High-Resolution Motion-Resolved MRI Protocol for Anatomical Imaging of the Human EyeZ.” This work offers an innovative solution to issues related to eye movements, paving the way for more precise diagnostics in ophthalmology. Naomi K. Middelmann and Matthew J. Vowels won second place for their poster titled “ADVANCE: Automated Diagnostic Video Annotation of Naturalistic Child Environments”. The third and final prize was awarded to Aimie Chiron for her poster entitled “Medical Hypnosis for Chronic Pain: An Observational Study in a Hospital Setting”.
Prof. Micah Murray, Scientific and Academic Director of the Sense, commented on the poster session: “We are very pleased with the number and quality of posters presented at this first edition. The jury, composed of Prof. Monica Gori, Dr. Astrid Kaltenböck, and Prof. David Sander, was impressed by the diversity and applicability of the projects showcased.”