A group photo of participants of the first Young Scientists Forum on Neural Biophysics in Xi'an, capital city of northwest China's Shaanxi province

The 1st Young Scientists Forum on Neural Biophysics, co-hosted by the Neurobiophysics Academic Subgroup of the Biophysical Society of China (BSC) and the School of Life Science and Technology of Xi'an Jiaotong University (XJTU), was held from Dec 18 to 20 in the Western China Science and Technology Innovation Harbour Uni-Town in Xi'an, capital city of northwest China's Shaanxi province.

More than 30 outstanding young scientists including national young talents and up-and-coming principal investigators in the fields of brain science and neuroscience were invited to give a report on the theme of "synaptic transmission - neural circuit - behavior and disease". Nearly 400 guests from universities, institutes and enterprises all over the country attended the event.

Nowadays, as brain science is on the rise around the world and brain-inspired intelligence and artificial intelligence are rapidly developing, it is of great scientific and social significance to explore the working principles of the brain and effective measures for the prevention and early treatment of brain diseases.

During the opening ceremony, leaders of the BSC and the XJTU introduced the history and mission of the BSC's Neurobiophysics Academic Subgroup, and described the theme and keynote of this year's meeting. They all extended a warm welcome to attendees.

Young researchers gave excellent academic presentations on trending topics and cutting-edge neuroscience technologies, which will enlighten further study and discussion in the field.

Concurrent activities such as technique lectures and poster exchanges added more vitality to the event and intensified communication between the scientists, pushing the academic atmosphere to a climax. Ten young students across the country won the Best Posters Award for the forum in 2020.

Zhang Xiaohui, vice-chairman of the BSC's Neurobiophysics Academic Subgroup, summarized the spirit and mission of this year's event at the closing ceremony on Dec 20, and expressed his congratulations on the success of the forum along with his expectations of the next session.

A closing ceremony and prize-awarding ceremony for the best posters are held on Dec 20 in the Western China Science and Technology Innovation Harbour Uni-Town in Xi'an.

The forum brought together renowned young experts, scholars and graduate students in the field of neuroscience, provided a platform for academic exchanges and multidisciplinary collaboration, and facilitated youths in China to explore the basic issues and technical problems of brain science and neuroscience and solutions in brain diseases.