MIT Center for Minds, Brains and Machines

MIT Center for Minds, Brains and Machines. The MIT Center for Minds, Brains and Machines (CBMM) is a multi-institutional National Science Foundation Science and Technology Center headquartered at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Its mission is to develop a computationally based understanding of human intelligence and establish an engineering practice based on that understanding, integrating research across neuroscience, cognitive science, and computer science. The center fosters collaboration among leading institutions including Harvard University, Cornell University, University of California, Los Angeles, and Rockefeller University.

Overview

The CBMM operates as a nexus for interdisciplinary research, aiming to reverse-engineer the principles of intelligence. It is strategically situated within the rich ecosystem of MIT's research institutes, maintaining close ties with the McGovern Institute for Brain Research, the Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory, and the Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences. Funded primarily through a grant from the National Science Foundation, the center supports a wide array of projects, seminars, and training programs designed to bridge gaps between understanding the human brain and building intelligent machines.

Research and focus areas

The center's research is organized around several integrated thrusts that connect computational theory with empirical data. A core focus is on developmental intelligence, studying how learning and reasoning emerge in infants and children, with influential work led by researchers like Elizabeth Spelke. Another major thrust involves visual intelligence, seeking to understand the neural and computational basis of visual perception and scene understanding, often leveraging collaborations with the Allen Institute for Brain Science. Research in cognitive neuroscience utilizes tools from functional magnetic resonance imaging and computational modeling to dissect circuits underlying social cognition and decision-making. The integration of these areas informs the development of new architectures in artificial intelligence and machine learning.

Educational programs

CBMM places a strong emphasis on training the next generation of scientists through innovative educational initiatives. It runs a flagship summer course, the Brains, Minds and Machines summer school, held at the Marine Biological Laboratory in Woods Hole, Massachusetts. The center also oversees the NSF-funded Research Traineeship program in Computational Neuroscience. It supports postdoctoral fellows through the Simons Foundation and provides graduate training grants that enable students to work across laboratories at partner institutions like Harvard University and Cornell University.

History and founding

The center was founded in 2013 following the award of a prestigious Science and Technology Center grant from the National Science Foundation. Its creation was spearheaded by a consortium of scientists including Tomaso Poggio, James DiCarlo, and Joshua B. Tenenbaum, who sought to formalize long-standing interdisciplinary collaborations at MIT. The founding vision was deeply influenced by earlier pioneering work in cognitive science and neural networks conducted at MIT by figures such as Marvin Minsky and Seymour Papert. The CBMM has since evolved into a central hub within the national and global research landscape of intelligence science.

Affiliated faculty and researchers

The center brings together a distinguished and interdisciplinary group of investigators. Leadership includes director Joshua B. Tenenbaum and former director Tomaso Poggio. Core faculty encompass experts like Nancy Kanwisher, known for her work on the fusiform face area; Evelina Fedorenko, who studies the language network; and Gabriel Kreiman, who researches visual neuroscience. Affiliated researchers from partner institutions include Steven Zucker from Yale University and Michele Rucci from the University of Rochester. The center also hosts numerous postdoctoral fellows and visiting scientists from around the world.

Key contributions and impact

CBMM research has yielded significant scientific advances and influenced multiple fields. Its work has provided foundational insights into the computational principles of visual cortex organization, leading to more robust computer vision models. The center's theories of intuitive physics and psychology, developed by researchers like Joshua B. Tenenbaum, have shaped modern approaches to common-sense reasoning in artificial intelligence. Collaborations with the International Brain Laboratory have advanced standardized methods in systems neuroscience. These contributions are regularly disseminated through high-impact publications in journals such as *Science* and *Nature*, and at premier conferences including the Conference on Neural Information Processing Systems. Category:Research institutes in Massachusetts Category:Massachusetts Institute of Technology Category:Neuroscience research Category:Artificial intelligence organizations