Last June, the 21st edition of the International Multisensory Research Forum (IMRF) took place in Brussels from 27 to 30 June. The main objective of the IMRF is to bring together researchers in the multidisciplinary field of multisensory research so that they can present and discuss their latest discoveries and foster exchanges for future development. This edition of IMRF welcomed 286 participants from all over the world, receiving 18 symposium submissions, 4 general discussion sessions, 3 poster sessions (hosting a total of 185 posters) and 3 plenary lectures presented by renowned scientists in the field (Drs. Tamar Makin, Pieter Roelfsema and John J. Foxe). The multidisciplinary nature of the conference is exemplified by the fact that the topics discussed at the conference varied from cognitive psychology to the development of sensory substitution devices, computational modeling, and altered perception in neurodiverse populations. Among the organizing committee of this forum, we find Prof. Olivier Collignon (Visiting Professor of the Institute of Health and Principal Investigator of the innovation and research center The Sense). “The quality of the event was exceptional, both from a scientific point of view and from a moment of informal interaction,” said Prof. Collignon.
A symposium marking a paradigm shift
The twelve selected symposia highlighted the scope and diversity of multisensory research, addressing topics such as neural mechanisms and cortical network dynamics underlying multisensory perception, multisensory interactions in three-dimensional space and the use of virtual reality, as well as interactions between smell and the other senses. The 8th and last of this forum was organized by Prof. Paul Matusz (Assistant Professor of the School of Health / coordinator of the PhysioLab / principal investigator of The Sense). This symposium entitled “Resolving old debates, posing new questions: Factors influencing the development of multisensory processes in typical and atypical populations” marked this edition of the IMRF. Indeed, this symposium has focused on the long-standing debate regarding the age at which the multisensory process develops and what are the key factors for the different types of multisensory processing. This observation is important because it marks the change of a debate. “With this symposium, we hope to usher a new era where factors determining the development of multisensory processes are studied more explicitly, compared to more general questions about the development of ‘multisensory processing’ pursued in the past. This focus on specific types of processes, tasks and contexts will also be important for practice – be it rehabilitation or other forms of learning, like education – by drawing clearer links between different functions and age of the participants and patients/”, observed the Prof. Paul Matusz. In addition, this symposium brought together world luminaries on the topic with Prof. Mark Wallace (Vanderbilt University / Chair of the Scientific Advisory Board of Sense), Prof. Milene Bonte (University of Maastricht) and Prof. Marko Nardini (Durham University).