Recent News

Conference Homepage: https://predcommlab.github.io/symposium-2026/#about
Upcoming Events
<i>Philosophy</i> <br>Lukas Kob (Czech Academy of Sciences) <br><b>Holistic Representations in Large Language Models</b>
Workshop:<br><b>Perception-Thought Transitions</b>
<i>Psychology</i> <br>Michael Levin (Tufts University) <br><b>Model systems for diverse intelligence research: technological approach to minds everywhere</b>
<i>Biopsychology</i> <br>Merel Jager (RUB) <br><b>Reality, survivorship bias, smooth sailing & the paradox of individuality</b>
<i>Psychology</i> <br>Katja Langer (RUB) <br><b>Accute stress effects on flexible emotion regulation choices: The moderation of working memory capacity </b>
<i>Philosophy</i> <br>Gualtiero Piccinini (University of Missouri) <br><b>Thought as an Inner Navigation: A Neurocognitive Architecture for Propositional Thought</b>
Relevant Publications
For full list of selected publications, see the publications page
The role of episodic memory in causal reasoning with counterfactuals: A perspective from predictive processing and trace minimalism
Remembering without (representational) memory: a neuro-computational study on regaining categoricity and compositionality from minimal traces
Animal empathy reconsidered: a multidimensional profile account
From Gut Feeling to Gray Matter: Mapping Defecation Urgency in Irritable Bowel Syndrome
The impact of contingency awareness on the neurocircuitry underlying pain-related fear and safety learning
Selective spatial attention to competing speakers in azimuth and depth: Evidence from real and virtual environments
The effects of pre-extinction stress vs. physical exercise on contextual retrieval and generalization
Learning What to Remember: Semantic Attention in Generative Episodic Memory Model. In Proceedings of the International Joint Conference on Neural Networks (IJCNN).
Fayyaz, Z., Rathjens, J., Cheng, S., & Wiskott, L.. (2026). Learning What to Remember: Semantic Attention in Generative Episodic Memory Model. In Proceedings of the International Joint Conference on Neural Networks (IJCNN).
Accuracy of self-control judgments by informants: can others tell where and how much we care, struggle, and succeed?
Predictive acoustical processing in human cortical layers
Reference in memories from perceptual and non-perceptual experiences: a non-disjunctivist account including vicarious, oneiric and fictional remembering
Abstract The paper argues for a non-disjunctivist account of reference in episodic memory. Our account provides a uniform theory of reference for episodic memories that root in veridical and non-veridical experiences. It is independent from the particular mechanisms that subserve …
Representational dynamics during extinction of fear memories in the human brain
Abstract Extinction learning—the suppression of a previously acquired fear response—is critical for adaptive behaviour and core for understanding the aetiology and treatment of anxiety disorders. Electrophysiological studies in rodents have revealed critical roles of theta (4–12 Hz) oscillations in amygdala and …
Regional prefrontal and hippocampal differences in gray matter volume are linked to the propensity for renewal in extinction learning
Introduction The renewal effect of extinction describes the reoccurrence of an extinguished response if recall is performed in a context that is not the same as the extinction context. This learning phenomenon is clinically relevant, since it potentially interferes with …
Posttraining noradrenergic stimulation maintains hippocampal engram reactivation and episodic-like specificity of remote memory
Abstract Recent findings indicate that noradrenergic arousal maintains long-term episodic-like specificity of memory. However, the neural mechanism of how norepinephrine can alter the temporal dynamics of systems consolidation to maintain hippocampus dependency of remote memory is currently unknown. Memories are …
When is learning “effortful”? Scrutinizing the concept of mental effort in cognitively-oriented research from a motivational perspective
Interindividual Variability in Memory Performance Is Related to Corticothalamic Networks during Memory Encoding and Retrieval
Encoding new memories relies on functional connections between the medial temporal lobe and the frontoparietal cortices. Multiscan fMRI showed changes in these functional connections before and after memory encoding, potentially influenced by the thalamus. As different thalamic nuclei are interconnected …
Extinction context is learned by pigeons, not given by the environment
Abstract The saying “context is everything” underscores the importance of interpreting things, be they quotes, events, actions, or stimuli, not in isolation but in the light of a bigger picture – their context. This is evident even in fundamental forms …

