- NEST Users - NEST Initiative Mail

Test NEST performance
by 512491013＠qq.com 30 May '22

30 May '22

Dear all, Recently, I've been trying to test NEST's performance(with and without MPI). But with PyNEST, it's hard to do more detailed testing with tools like Gprof. Only some print-time and memory methods can be inserted into the C++ source code for testing. Is there a C++ front-end interface that can call NEST C++ source code for testing? Of course, I used some of Python's performance testing tools, but only to the interface, not C++ in action. I'd appreciate any tips on how to test NEST's performance! Cong

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Open NEST Developer Video Conference Monday May 23 2022 11:30 CEST (UTC+2)
by Dennis Terhorst 22 May '22

22 May '22

Dear NEST Users & Developers! I would like to invite you to our next fortnightly Open NEST Developer Video Conference, tomorrow Monday May 23, 11.30-12.30 CEST (UTC+2). Feel free to join the meeting also if it's just to bring your own questions for direct discussion in the in-depth section. As usual, in the Project team round, a contact person of each team will give a short statement summarizing ongoing work in the team and cross-cutting points that need discussion among the teams. The remainder of the meeting we would go into a more in-depth discussion of topics that came up on the mailing list or that are suggested by the teams. Agenda * Welcome * Review of NEST User Mailing List * Project team round * In-depth discussion The agenda for this meeting is also available online, see https://github.com/nest/nest-simulator/wiki/2022-05-23-Open-NEST-Developer-… Since I will not be available for the meeting, Hans Ekkehard Plesser has kindly agreed to chair the meeting. Looking forward to seeing you again soon! Cheers, Dennis Terhorst ------------------ Log-in information ------------------ We use a virtual conference room provided by DFN (Deutsches Forschungsnetz). You can use the web client to connect. We however encourage everyone to use a headset for better audio quality or even a proper video conferencing system (see below) or software when available. Web client * Visit https://conf.dfn.de/webapp/conference/97938800 * Enter your name and allow your browser to use camera and microphone * The conference does not need a PIN to join, just click join and you're in. In case you see a dfnconf logo and the phrase "Auf den Meetingveranstalter warten", just be patient, the meeting host needs to join first (a voice will tell you). VC system/software How to log in with a video conferencing system, depends on you VC system or software. - Using the H.323 protocol (eg Polycom): vc.dfn.net##97938800 or 194.95.240.2##97938800 - Using the SIP protocol:97938800@vc.dfn.de - By telephone: +49-30-200-97938800 For those who do not have a video conference system or suitable software, Polycom provides a pretty good free app for iOS and Android, so you can join from your tablet (Polycom RealPresence Mobile, available from AppStore/PlayStore). Note that firewalls may interfere with videoconferencing in various and sometimes confusing ways. For more technical information on logging in from various VC systems, please see http://vcc.zih.tu-dresden.de/index.php?linkid=1.1.3.4

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NEST Conference 2022 - Extension of abstract submission deadline
by Hans Ekkehard Plesser 10 May '22

10 May '22

Dear all, The abstract submission deadline for the (virtual) NEST Conference 2022 has been extended to Wednesday, 25 May. We are looking forward to your contributions! The NEST Conference provides an opportunity for the NEST Community to meet, exchange success stories, swap advice, learn about current developments in and around NEST spiking network simulation and its application. This year's conference will again take place as a virtual conference on Thursday/Friday 23/24 June 2022. We are inviting contributions to the conference, including talks, "posters" and workshops on specific topics. Important dates 25 May 2022 — Deadline for submission of contributions 03 June 2022 — Notification of acceptance 17 June 2022 — Registration deadline 23 June 2022 — NEST Conference 2022 starts For more information on how to submit your contribution, register and participate, please visit the conference website https://nest-simulator.org/conference We are looking forward to seeing you all in June! Hans Ekkehard Plesser and the conference organizing committee -- Prof. Dr. Hans Ekkehard Plesser Head, Department of Data Science Faculty of Science and Technology Norwegian University of Life Sciences PO Box 5003, 1432 Aas, Norway Phone +47 6723 1560 Email hans.ekkehard.plesser(a)nmbu.no<mailto:hans.ekkehard.plesser@nmbu.no> Home http://arken.nmbu.no/~plesser

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NEST Conference 2022 - Extension of abstract submission deadline
by Hans Ekkehard Plesser 10 May '22

10 May '22

Dear all, The abstract submission deadline for the (virtual) NEST Conference 2022 has been extended to Wednesday, 25 May. We are looking forward to your contributions! The NEST Conference provides an opportunity for the NEST Community to meet, exchange success stories, swap advice, learn about current developments in and around NEST spiking network simulation and its application. This year's conference will again take place as a virtual conference on Thursday/Friday 23/24 June 2022. We are inviting contributions to the conference, including talks, "posters" and workshops on specific topics. Important dates 25 May 2022 — Deadline for submission of contributions 03 June 2022 — Notification of acceptance 17 June 2022 — Registration deadline 23 June 2022 — NEST Conference 2022 starts For more information on how to submit your contribution, register and participate, please visit the conference website https://nest-simulator.org/conference We are looking forward to seeing you all in June! Hans Ekkehard Plesser and the conference organizing committee -- Prof. Dr. Hans Ekkehard Plesser Head, Department of Data Science Faculty of Science and Technology Norwegian University of Life Sciences PO Box 5003, 1432 Aas, Norway Phone +47 6723 1560 Email hans.ekkehard.plesser(a)nmbu.no<mailto:hans.ekkehard.plesser@nmbu.no> Home http://arken.nmbu.no/~plesser

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Job opportunity
by Elena Pastorelli 09 May '22

09 May '22

Dear NEST developers, I would like to share with you a job opportunity that could be of interest for the community. APE Lab (Rome, Italy) is looking for a motivated and enthusiast candidate for activities aimed at system software development and application porting on advanced HPC platforms, in the framework of the RED-SEA <https://jobs.dsi.infn.it/borseassegni/pdf/getfile.php?filename=24338.pdf> project. Application submission details <https://jobs.dsi.infn.it/borseassegni/pdf/getfile.php?filename=24338.pdf> here (English version in the second part of the document), deadline: 20/05/2022 APE Lab is a INFN (National Institute of Nuclear Physic) initiative started in 1984 with the goal of connecting theoretical physics and technology through the development of custom distributed and parallel computing systems. Since then, APE Lab has generated unique know-how, enabling cutting-edge research in HPC (High Performance Computing) with leading roles in the HPC community. APE Lab has participated in several EU-funded projects, the last of which being RED-SEA. The RED-SEA project prepares a new-generation European Network Interconnect, capable of powering the EU Exascale systems to come, leveraging efficient European interconnect technology (BXI) associated with a standard and mature technology (Ethernet), in full coordination with other EU-funded initiatives. The INFN task in RED-SEA is two-fold: 1. to design and implement the network interface card (APEnetX) based on PCIe interface to communicate with CPU and GPU accelerators, and prototyped exploiting Xilinx Alveo FPGAs. 2. to support the co-design approach for network design activities focusing in particular on NEST application as a benchmark. Job Details Task: contribution to development of scalable network simulator based on Omnet++ framework as well as to the Linux Kernel Driver of the Network Interface Card. Requirements: 24 months of demonstrated experience in software development and knowledge/development of linux kernel driver. Knowledge of simulator architectures, coding and use of MPI framework would be an advantage. Best, Elena Pastorelli -- This email has been checked for viruses by Avast antivirus software. https://www.avast.com/antivirus

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Open NEST Developer Video Conference Monday May 9 2022 11:30 CEST (UTC+2)
by Dennis Terhorst 09 May '22

09 May '22

Dear NEST Users & Developers! I would like to invite you to our next fortnightly Open NEST Developer Video Conference, today Monday May 9, 11.30-12.30 CEST (UTC+2). Feel free to join the meeting also just to bring your own questions for direct discussion in the in-depth section. As usual, in the Project team round, a contact person of each team will give a short statement summarizing ongoing work in the team and cross-cutting points that need discussion among the teams. The remainder of the meeting we would go into a more in-depth discussion of topics that came up on the mailing list or that are suggested by the teams. Agenda * Welcome * Review of NEST User Mailing List * Project team round * In-depth discussion The agenda for this meeting is also available online, see https://github.com/nest/nest-simulator/wiki/2022-05-09-Open-NEST-Developer-… Looking forward to seeing you soon! Cheers, Dennis Terhorst ------------------ Log-in information ------------------ We use a virtual conference room provided by DFN (Deutsches Forschungsnetz). You can use the web client to connect. We however encourage everyone to use a headset for better audio quality or even a proper video conferencing system (see below) or software when available. Web client * Visit https://conf.dfn.de/webapp/conference/97938800 * Enter your name and allow your browser to use camera and microphone * The conference does not need a PIN to join, just click join and you're in. In case you see a dfnconf logo and the phrase "Auf den Meetingveranstalter warten", just be patient, the meeting host needs to join first (a voice will tell you). VC system/software How to log in with a video conferencing system, depends on you VC system or software. - Using the H.323 protocol (eg Polycom): vc.dfn.net##97938800 or 194.95.240.2##97938800 - Using the SIP protocol:97938800@vc.dfn.de - By telephone: +49-30-200-97938800 For those who do not have a video conference system or suitable software, Polycom provides a pretty good free app for iOS and Android, so you can join from your tablet (Polycom RealPresence Mobile, available from AppStore/PlayStore). Note that firewalls may interfere with videoconferencing in various and sometimes confusing ways. For more technical information on logging in from various VC systems, please see http://vcc.zih.tu-dresden.de/index.php?linkid=1.1.3.4

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NEST Conference 2022 — Abstract submission deadline Wednesday 11 May
by Hans Ekkehard Plesser 04 May '22

04 May '22

Dear Colleagues, I would like to remind you that the deadline for abstract submission to the virtual NEST Conference 2022 is approaching fast: You have until next Wednesday, 11 May 2022, to submit your contribution (talk, "poster", or workshop) via the conference website https://nest-simulator.org/conference. The NEST Conference provides an opportunity for the NEST Community to meet, exchange success stories, swap advice, learn about current developments in and around NEST spiking network simulation and its application. We explicitly encourage young scientists to participate in the conference! This year's conference will again take place as a virtual conference on Thursday/Friday 23/24 June 2022. Important dates 11 May 2022 - Deadline for submission of contributions 03 June 2022 - Notification of acceptance 17 June 2022 - Registration deadline 23 June 2022 - NEST Conference 2022 starts We are looking forward to seeing you all in June! Hans Ekkehard Plesser and the conference organizing committee -- Prof. Dr. Hans Ekkehard Plesser Head, Department of Data Science Faculty of Science and Technology Norwegian University of Life Sciences PO Box 5003, 1432 Aas, Norway Phone +47 6723 1560 Email hans.ekkehard.plesser(a)nmbu.no<mailto:hans.ekkehard.plesser@nmbu.no> Home http://arken.nmbu.no/~plesser

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problems with step_current_generator parallelization
by Jan Střeleček 28 Apr '22

28 Apr '22

Dear NEST developers, In our group, we're working on a model of the primary visual cortex and use step_current_source generators to simulate the input current of the LGN neurons. We noticed that the simulation time of our model was very sensitive to the number of step_current_sources. When trying to narrow down the cause, we found out that this might be due to an issue with the parallelization of the step_current_source_generators. The resulting simple system in which the problem can be observed is attached below, simple_example.py. It essentially creates NSstep_current_generators and injects them into NLneurons with fixed indegree. The iaf_cond_exp neuron model is used here. The increment in the number of step_current sources does not benefit from a multithreading performance boost as one would expect. This is compared to the performance boost for the number of neurons; see the technical details below. Our estimated guess is that the difference between 1 and 32 threads is 10 to 20 times slower than the parallelization suggests. Technical details: The relative slowdown due to the parallelization of step_current_sources was measured using linear regression over simulation time = a NL + b NS. See slowdown_example.png. The ratio b/a was then calculated. This ratio was then measured in dependence on the number of threads. A bigger difference between the ratio for 1 thread and 32 threads means a greater problem in parallelization in step_current_generators. Some additional results: - interval_dependence.png - the slowdown does not depend on amplitude_times in the step_current_source function - indegree_dependence.png - the slowdown depends on the indegree of nest.Connect(source, neurons). Specifically, the slowdown is worse for low indegree values. This shows the slowdown depends on the number of step_current_sources created, not on the injections themselves. Are you aware of some lack of parallelization of the step_current_source or current the injection itself? If so, are there any plans for improving it? best regards, Jan Střeleček

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Tsodyks model, examples, burst generation
by Dennis Terhorst 28 Apr '22

28 Apr '22

Dear all, in the past weeks there was some on- and off-list discussion around the Tsodyks models and examples in NEST and I want to put some files out here that might be interesting for more people. Around 2019 we were trying to port some old scripts to more recent versions of NEST and did some basic plots. There are descriptions and PyNEST examples available in the docs Model Directory [1, 2, 3], and the example Notebook in the docs runs with NEST 3.x. Additionally the short-term burst behavior can be reproduced with the attached scripts (taken from the pre-3.x repository and updated to 3.x syntax, still a bit untidy), but to my knowledge this was not yet transferred into a PyNEST version. There has also been some discussion on the mailing list some time ago [4], but I couldn't find any results that have surfaced on the list here, though I know of some work going on in this direction in different groups. It would be interesting to hear about your perspective and see where we can combine experience! best, Dennis [1]: https://nest-simulator.readthedocs.io/en/v3.3/models/index.html#short-term-… [2]: https://nest-simulator.readthedocs.io/en/v3.3/models/tsodyks_synapse.html [3]: https://nest-simulator.readthedocs.io/en/v3.3/models/tsodyks2_synapse.html [4]: https://nest-simulator.org/mailinglist/hyperkitty/list/users@nest-simulator… -- Dipl.-Phys. Dennis Terhorst Coordinator Software Development Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine (INM-6) Computational and Systems Neuroscience & Theoretical Neuroscience, Institute for Advanced Simulation (IAS-6) Jülich Research Centre, Member of the Helmholz Association and JARA 52425 Jülich, Germany Building 15.22 Room 4004 Phone +49 2461 61-85062 Fax +49 2461 61- 9460 d.terhorst(a)fz-juelich.de

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Any objections to renaming hh_cond_*_traub models?
by Hans Ekkehard Plesser 25 Apr '22

25 Apr '22

Dear NEST Users, As discussed a long time ago (see towards the end of the discussion in https://github.com/nest/nest-simulator/issues/329), the hh_cond_exp_traub model included in NEST is far from the model by Traub and Miles (1991) which inspired it. The model in NEST was implemented as part of the work on the Brette et al (2007) review paper. I am considering to create a pull request that will 1. rename the models to hh_brette_2007* in keeping with NEST naming guidelines for paper-specific models 2. change the threshold parameter V_T to be the actual threshold for spike emission (currently the criterium is V_m >= V_T + 30 and falling V_m) I was therefore wondering if anyone of you 1. uses the hh_cond_* models at all 2. would object to those changes? Depending on whether the models are being used or not, I'd either implement the renaming via deprecation or directly. Best, Hans Ekkehard -- Prof. Dr. Hans Ekkehard Plesser Head, Department of Data Science Faculty of Science and Technology Norwegian University of Life Sciences PO Box 5003, 1432 Aas, Norway Phone +47 6723 1560 Email hans.ekkehard.plesser(a)nmbu.no<mailto:hans.ekkehard.plesser@nmbu.no> Home http://arken.nmbu.no/~plesser

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Open NEST Developer Video Conference Monday April 25 2022 11:30 CEST (UTC+2)
by Dennis Terhorst 25 Apr '22

25 Apr '22

Dear NEST Users & Developers! I would like to invite you to our next fortnightly Open NEST Developer Video Conference, today Monday April 25, 11.30-12.30 CEST (UTC+2). Special feature today will be a discussion of the available, but maybe not so widely known astrocyte model implementation in NEST. Feel free to join the meeting also just to bring your own questions for direct discussion in the in-depth section. As usual, in the Project team round, a contact person of each team will give a short statement summarizing ongoing work in the team and cross-cutting points that need discussion among the teams. The remainder of the meeting we would go into a more in-depth discussion of topics that came up on the mailing list or that are suggested by the teams. Agenda * Welcome * Review of NEST User Mailing List * Project team round * In-depth discussion * Astrocyte models in NEST The agenda for this meeting is also available online, see https://github.com/nest/nest-simulator/wiki/2022-04-25-Open-NEST-Developer-… Looking forward to seeing you soon! Cheers, Dennis Terhorst ------------------ Log-in information ------------------ We use a virtual conference room provided by DFN (Deutsches Forschungsnetz). You can use the web client to connect. We however encourage everyone to use a headset for better audio quality or even a proper video conferencing system (see below) or software when available. Web client * Visit https://conf.dfn.de/webapp/conference/97938800 * Enter your name and allow your browser to use camera and microphone * The conference does not need a PIN to join, just click join and you're in. In case you see a dfnconf logo and the phrase "Auf den Meetingveranstalter warten", just be patient, the meeting host needs to join first (a voice will tell you). VC system/software How to log in with a video conferencing system, depends on you VC system or software. - Using the H.323 protocol (eg Polycom): vc.dfn.net##97938800 or 194.95.240.2##97938800 - Using the SIP protocol:97938800@vc.dfn.de - By telephone: +49-30-200-97938800 For those who do not have a video conference system or suitable software, Polycom provides a pretty good free app for iOS and Android, so you can join from your tablet (Polycom RealPresence Mobile, available from AppStore/PlayStore). Note that firewalls may interfere with videoconferencing in various and sometimes confusing ways. For more technical information on logging in from various VC systems, please see http://vcc.zih.tu-dresden.de/index.php?linkid=1.1.3.4

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Developer info: calibrate() is now called pre_run_hook()
by Hans Ekkehard Plesser 21 Apr '22

21 Apr '22

Dear NEST Developers! If you are just using NEST, you can ignore this message. If you are coding models at the C++ level, I just want to share this information to reduce the risk of confusion: The good old calibrate() method found in all neuron models has now been renamed to pre_run_hook(), see https://github.com/nest/nest-simulator/pull/2336. Thanks to Pooja for implementing this. I'd suggest that you merge the master branch into any open development branches to bring them up to date on this change. Best, Hans Ekkehard -- Prof. Dr. Hans Ekkehard Plesser Head, Department of Data Science Faculty of Science and Technology Norwegian University of Life Sciences PO Box 5003, 1432 Aas, Norway Phone +47 6723 1560 Email hans.ekkehard.plesser(a)nmbu.no<mailto:hans.ekkehard.plesser@nmbu.no> Home http://arken.nmbu.no/~plesser

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Re: Kernel death when recording from 300+ cells for 2mins+
by Hans Ekkehard Plesser 19 Apr '22

19 Apr '22

Hello Rachael, Could you post a minimal script or Jupyter notebook reproducing the problem? Does the problem only occur on the Neurorobotics platform or can you reproduce it locally on your computer as well? Best regards, Hans Ekkehard -- Prof. Dr. Hans Ekkehard Plesser Head, Department of Data Science Faculty of Science and Technology Norwegian University of Life Sciences PO Box 5003, 1432 Aas, Norway Phone +47 6723 1560 Email hans.ekkehard.plesser(a)nmbu.no<mailto:hans.ekkehard.plesser@nmbu.no> Home http://arken.nmbu.no/~plesser On 13/04/2022, 13:20, "Rachael Stentiford" <rachael.stentiford(a)brl.ac.uk<mailto:rachael.stentiford@brl.ac.uk>> wrote: Some people who received this message don't often get email from rachael.stentiford(a)brl.ac.uk. Learn why this is important<http://aka.ms/LearnAboutSenderIdentification> Apologies for so many emails. Looks like i jumped the gun a little and i am still having this issue. So if anyone does have any ideas, I would welcome the help. Cheers, Rachael ________________________________ From: Rachael Stentiford <rachael.stentiford(a)brl.ac.uk> Sent: Wednesday, April 13, 2022 11:46 AM To: users(a)nest-simulator.org <users(a)nest-simulator.org> Subject: Re: Kernel death when recording from 300+ cells for 2mins+ Looks like i have solved this issue now. For those interested in the solution, i have switched from using the efficient method for splitting a simulation into multiple intervals described in the docs, which has the clean up functions outside of the loop, to just using nest.Simulate() in the loop so the clean up functions are called each time. Cheers, Rachael ________________________________ From: Rachael Stentiford <rachael.stentiford(a)brl.ac.uk> Sent: Tuesday, April 12, 2022 6:32 PM To: users(a)nest-simulator.org <users(a)nest-simulator.org> Subject: [NEST Users] Kernel death when recording from 300+ cells for 2mins+ Dear all, I hope you are doing well. I am having an issue using pyNEST which i haven't come across before and have been unable to find answer to elsewhere. I am working with Python 3.8 and Nest 2.18 (which is the version currently used by the Neurorobotics platform). I have a network of 6 x 360 neurons, and i am trying to record spikes from 360 of these. However, I am finding that if i try to simulate for more than ~2 mins i run into problems. In jupyter notebooks I get a kernel death error, but even just running a standard python script NEST dies. I can simulate for longer if i only record from a single neuron. Previously I have used networks of 4 x 180 neurons and recorded from 180 for 10+ minutes without an issue. I have tried splitting up the simulation into multiple intervals, as explained in the docs, and saving spikes in between. This would mean there are fewer spikes to save each time, but this doesn't appear to help. Ideally i would like to record from 360 cells for around 30 mins. Have any of you come across a similar issue in the past, or have any suggestions for how I could fix this issue? Thanks for your help! Rachael ------------------------- Dr Rachael Stentiford (she/her) Research Associate in Neurobotics Bristol Robotics Laboratory University of the West of England Bristol BS16 1QY

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Kernel death when recording from 300+ cells for 2mins+
by Rachael Stentiford 13 Apr '22

13 Apr '22

Dear all, I hope you are doing well. I am having an issue using pyNEST which i haven't come across before and have been unable to find answer to elsewhere. I am working with Python 3.8 and Nest 2.18 (which is the version currently used by the Neurorobotics platform). I have a network of 6 x 360 neurons, and i am trying to record spikes from 360 of these. However, I am finding that if i try to simulate for more than ~2 mins i run into problems. In jupyter notebooks I get a kernel death error, but even just running a standard python script NEST dies. I can simulate for longer if i only record from a single neuron. Previously I have used networks of 4 x 180 neurons and recorded from 180 for 10+ minutes without an issue. I have tried splitting up the simulation into multiple intervals, as explained in the docs, and saving spikes in between. This would mean there are fewer spikes to save each time, but this doesn't appear to help. Ideally i would like to record from 360 cells for around 30 mins. Have any of you come across a similar issue in the past, or have any suggestions for how I could fix this issue? Thanks for your help! Rachael ------------------------- Dr Rachael Stentiford (she/her) Research Associate in Neurobotics Bristol Robotics Laboratory University of the West of England Bristol BS16 1QY

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Nest 3.0 conda installation issue using source code
by Maryada Maryada 13 Apr '22

13 Apr '22

Dear NEST users, After trying multiple ideas, I am still facing the issue where my installation is successful with an error message: -- Configuring done CMake Warning at cmake/UseCython.cmake:100 (add_library): Cannot generate a safe runtime search path for target pynestkernel because files in some directories may conflict with libraries in implicit directories: runtime library [libgomp.so.1] in /usr/lib/gcc/x86_64-linux-gnu/9 may be hidden by files in: /home/<user>/miniconda3/envs/nestConda/lib Some of these libraries may not be found correctly. Call Stack (most recent call first): cmake/UseCython.cmake:283 (python_add_module) pynest/CMakeLists.txt:28 (cython_add_module) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ This leads to the failure of multiple tests. The summary of the tests and logs for the failed tests is attached. I must mention that I tested the installation by creating a neuron and it works fine. It would be nice to get rid of the error, please see error_msg file to see where it fails. -- Thanks and Regards *Maryada*

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Open NEST Developer Video Conference Monday April 11 11:30 CEST (UTC+2 !!!)
by Jessica Mitchell 11 Apr '22

11 Apr '22

Dear NEST Users & Developers! I would like to invite you to our next fortnightly Open NEST Developer Video Conference, today Monday April 11, 11.30-12.30 CEST (UTC+2). Feel free to join the meeting also just to bring your own questions for direct discussion in the in-depth section. As usual, in the Project team round, a contact person of each team will give a short statement summarizing ongoing work in the team and cross-cutting points that need discussion among the teams. The remainder of the meeting we would go into a more in-depth discussion of topics that came up on the mailing list or that are suggested by the teams. Agenda * Welcome * Review of NEST User Mailing List * Project team round * In-depth discussion The agenda for this meeting is also available online, see https://github.com/nest/nest-simulator/wiki/2022-04-11-Open-NEST-Developer-… Looking forward to seeing you soon! Cheers, Jessica Mitchell Dennis Terhorst ------------------ Log-in information ------------------ We use a virtual conference room provided by DFN (Deutsches Forschungsnetz). You can use the web client to connect. We however encourage everyone to use a headset for better audio quality or even a proper video conferencing system (see below) or software when available. Web client * Visit https://conf.dfn.de/webapp/conference/97938800 * Enter your name and allow your browser to use camera and microphone * The conference does not need a PIN to join, just click join and you're in. In case you see a dfnconf logo and the phrase "Auf den Meetingveranstalter warten", just be patient, the meeting host needs to join first (a voice will tell you). VC system/software How to log in with a video conferencing system, depends on you VC system or software. - Using the H.323 protocol (eg Polycom): vc.dfn.net##97938800 or 194.95.240.2##97938800 - Using the SIP protocol:97938800@vc.dfn.de - By telephone: +49-30-200-97938800 For those who do not have a video conference system or suitable software, Polycom provides a pretty good free app for iOS and Android, so you can join from your tablet (Polycom RealPresence Mobile, available from AppStore/PlayStore). Note that firewalls may interfere with videoconferencing in various and sometimes confusing ways. For more technical information on logging in from various VC systems, please see http://vcc.zih.tu-dresden.de/index.php?linkid=1.1.3.4 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Forschungszentrum Juelich GmbH 52425 Juelich Sitz der Gesellschaft: Juelich Eingetragen im Handelsregister des Amtsgerichts Dueren Nr. HR B 3498 Vorsitzender des Aufsichtsrats: MinDir Volker Rieke Geschaeftsfuehrung: Prof. Dr.-Ing. Wolfgang Marquardt (Vorsitzender), Karsten Beneke (stellv. Vorsitzender), Prof. Dr. Astrid Lambrecht, Prof. Dr. Frauke Melchior ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Neugierige sind herzlich willkommen am Sonntag, den 21. August 2022, von 10:00 bis 17:00 Uhr. Mehr unter: https://www.tagderneugier.de

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NEST Conference 2022 - call for contributions is open
by Hans Ekkehard Plesser 07 Apr '22

07 Apr '22

Dear Colleagues, The NEST Initiative is excited to invite everyone interested in Neural Simulation Technology and the NEST Simulator to the NEST Conference 2022. The NEST Conference provides an opportunity for the NEST Community to meet, exchange success stories, swap advice, learn about current developments in and around NEST spiking network simulation and its application. We explicitly encourage young scientists to participate in the conference! This year's conference will again take place as a virtual conference on Thursday/Friday 23/24 June 2022. Submission of contributions is now open! We are inviting contributions to the conference, including talks, "posters" and workshops on specific topics. Please register and submit your contribution(s) via the conference website https://nest-simulator.org/conference. Important dates 30 April 2022 - Deadline for NEST Initiative membership applications eligible for fee reduction 11 May 2022 - Deadline for submission of contributions 03 June 2022 - Notification of acceptance 17 June 2022 - Registration deadline 23 June 2022 - NEST Conference 2022 starts We are looking forward to seeing you all in June! Hans Ekkehard Plesser and the conference organizing committee -- Prof. Dr. Hans Ekkehard Plesser Head, Department of Data Science Faculty of Science and Technology Norwegian University of Life Sciences PO Box 5003, 1432 Aas, Norway Phone +47 6723 1560 Email hans.ekkehard.plesser(a)nmbu.no<mailto:hans.ekkehard.plesser@nmbu.no> Home http://arken.nmbu.no/~plesser

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Reproducing "Synchrony generation in recurrent networks with frequency-dependent synapses"
by Sebastian Schmitt 07 Apr '22

07 Apr '22

Dear NEST users! I've found an implementation of "Synchrony generation in recurrent networks with frequency-dependent synapses" Tsodyks, Uziel, Markram 2000 in https://github.com/uahic/Nest_2_10_release/blob/d3a7b0b8105622b40ef87d8a5ba… but it's missing in the latest versions of NEST. Is there a comparable implementation in a recent NEST release? Preferably in Python? Thanks in advance, Sebastian

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Position as NEST Developer at NMBU / Deadline 26 April 2022
by Hans Ekkehard Plesser 05 Apr '22

05 Apr '22

Dear colleagues, We are looking for a new NEST developer to join the NEST team at NMBU in Ås, Norway, as head engineer or senior engineer. The position is funded by the Human Brain Project, available immediately and limited to 30 September 2023. Application deadline is 26 April 2023. For details, please see https://www.jobbnorge.no/en/available-jobs/job/224028/head-engineer-senior-… or get in touch with me. Best regards, Hans Ekkehard -- Prof. Dr. Hans Ekkehard Plesser Head, Department of Data Science Faculty of Science and Technology Norwegian University of Life Sciences PO Box 5003, 1432 Aas, Norway Phone +47 6723 1560 Email hans.ekkehard.plesser(a)nmbu.no<mailto:hans.ekkehard.plesser@nmbu.no> Home http://arken.nmbu.no/~plesser

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Open NEST Developer Video Conference Monday March 28 2022 11:30 CEST (UTC+2 !!!)
by Dennis Terhorst 28 Mar '22

28 Mar '22

Dear NEST Users & Developers! I would like to invite you to our next fortnightly Open NEST Developer Video Conference, today Monday March 14, 11.30-12.30 CEST (UTC+2). /Note/ that we changed to daylight savings time (aka "summer time") and are now UTC+2. Feel free to join the meeting also just to bring your own questions for direct discussion in the in-depth section. As usual, in the Project team round, a contact person of each team will give a short statement summarizing ongoing work in the team and cross-cutting points that need discussion among the teams. The remainder of the meeting we would go into a more in-depth discussion of topics that came up on the mailing list or that are suggested by the teams. Agenda * Welcome * Review of NEST User Mailing List * Project team round * In-depth discussion * Inclusion of NEST-GPU by Golosio et al. The agenda for this meeting is also available online, see https://github.com/nest/nest-simulator/wiki/2022-03-28-Open-NEST-Developer-… Looking forward to seeing you soon! Cheers, Dennis Terhorst ------------------ Log-in information ------------------ We use a virtual conference room provided by DFN (Deutsches Forschungsnetz). You can use the web client to connect. We however encourage everyone to use a headset for better audio quality or even a proper video conferencing system (see below) or software when available. Web client * Visit https://conf.dfn.de/webapp/conference/97938800 * Enter your name and allow your browser to use camera and microphone * The conference does not need a PIN to join, just click join and you're in. In case you see a dfnconf logo and the phrase "Auf den Meetingveranstalter warten", just be patient, the meeting host needs to join first (a voice will tell you). VC system/software How to log in with a video conferencing system, depends on you VC system or software. - Using the H.323 protocol (eg Polycom): vc.dfn.net##97938800 or 194.95.240.2##97938800 - Using the SIP protocol:97938800@vc.dfn.de - By telephone: +49-30-200-97938800 For those who do not have a video conference system or suitable software, Polycom provides a pretty good free app for iOS and Android, so you can join from your tablet (Polycom RealPresence Mobile, available from AppStore/PlayStore). Note that firewalls may interfere with videoconferencing in various and sometimes confusing ways. For more technical information on logging in from various VC systems, please see http://vcc.zih.tu-dresden.de/index.php?linkid=1.1.3.4

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Creating a new NodeCollection from Mask or by global_ids
by Kempter, Miriam 22 Mar '22

22 Mar '22

Dear Nest Team, working with Python 3.8 and Nest 3.2 my goal is, after creating a spatial NodeCollection "neurons", to create a new NodeCollection containing a selection of the node from "neurons". To achieve this I tried two different approaches: 1. Create a Mask object and use nest.SelectNodesByMask() nodes_in_mask = nest.SelectNodesByMask(neurons, ctr_position, mask_obj) 2. Transform the NodeCollection into a list of node ids, pick 3 random ids, and create a new NodeCollection containing those 3 Nodes neurons_list = neurons.tolist() for x in range(0, 3): center = random.choice(neurons_list) node_ids.append(center) node_ids.sort() new_collection = nest.NodeCollection(node_ids) But with both approaches I get the same problems that some Information (of the positions) seems to go missing. This shows in different ways. First the new NodeCollections are no longer spatial (nodes_in_mask.spatial and new_collection.spatial return none). Second trying to get the node Positions results in an Error: nest.GetPosition(nodes_in_mask) -> Error #1 nest.lib.hl_api_exceptions.LayerExpected: LayerExpected in SLI function GetPosition_g: And last, trying to Plot the Layer also results in an Error: fig = nest.PlotLayer(nodes_in_mask) -> Error #2 TypeError: 'NoneType' object is not subscriptable I attached a .txt file containing py code showing the problems. Why do those Problems occur and what can I do to solve them? Is there a way to create an empty NodeCollection s.t. I can add the wished nodes one by one? What exactly does the metadata of a Nodecollection represent? Is there a way to set it manually for example to spatial? Thank you in advance for your Answers, Miriam

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NESTML, 'UnknownNode' model
by Alexander Kozlov 14 Mar '22

14 Mar '22

Hi, Any neuron model built with NESTML and installed via nest.Install('mymodule') receives 'UnknownNode' as the value for 'model': > nrn.get('model') > 'UnknownNode' Can this be ignored by users? Is it possible to set the value in .nestml file for compatibility with standard models? Best regards, Alex.

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Open NEST Developer Video Conference Monday March 14 2022 11:30 CET (UTC+1)
by Dennis Terhorst 14 Mar '22

14 Mar '22

Dear NEST Users & Developers! I would like to invite you to our next fortnightly Open NEST Developer Video Conference, today Monday March 14, 11.30-12.30 CET (UTC+1). Feel free to join the meeting also just to bring your own questions for direct discussion in the in-depth section. As usual, in the Project team round, a contact person of each team will give a short statement summarizing ongoing work in the team and cross-cutting points that need discussion among the teams. The remainder of the meeting we would go into a more in-depth discussion of topics that came up on the mailing list or that are suggested by the teams. Agenda * Welcome * Review of NEST User Mailing List * Project team round * In-depth discussion The agenda for this meeting is also available online, see https://github.com/nest/nest-simulator/wiki/2022-03-14-Open-NEST-Developer-… Looking forward to seeing you soon! Cheers, Dennis Terhorst ------------------ Log-in information ------------------ We use a virtual conference room provided by DFN (Deutsches Forschungsnetz). You can use the web client to connect. We however encourage everyone to use a headset for better audio quality or even a proper video conferencing system (see below) or software when available. Web client * Visit https://conf.dfn.de/webapp/conference/97938800 * Enter your name and allow your browser to use camera and microphone * The conference does not need a PIN to join, just click join and you're in. In case you see a dfnconf logo and the phrase "Auf den Meetingveranstalter warten", just be patient, the meeting host needs to join first (a voice will tell you). VC system/software How to log in with a video conferencing system, depends on you VC system or software. - Using the H.323 protocol (eg Polycom): vc.dfn.net##97938800 or 194.95.240.2##97938800 - Using the SIP protocol:97938800@vc.dfn.de - By telephone: +49-30-200-97938800 For those who do not have a video conference system or suitable software, Polycom provides a pretty good free app for iOS and Android, so you can join from your tablet (Polycom RealPresence Mobile, available from AppStore/PlayStore). Note that firewalls may interfere with videoconferencing in various and sometimes confusing ways. For more technical information on logging in from various VC systems, please see http://vcc.zih.tu-dresden.de/index.php?linkid=1.1.3.4

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INCF/OCNS Software working group survey on software usage
by Ankur Sinha 11 Mar '22

11 Mar '22

Dear all, Apologies for the cross-posts. We, the INCF/OCNS Software working group, are conducting a short anonymous survey to collect information on the usage of common software tools in comp-neuro. Could we please request you to spend 2 minutes of your time to fill it out here: https://forms.gle/NXWv2CwtWBSB9BXv9 The information gathered in the survey will be used to organise sessions/workshops related to the software, and improve awareness about them and their maintenance. On behalf of the Software WG, -- Thanks, Regards, Ankur Sinha (He / Him / His) Research Fellow at the Silver Lab | http://silverlab.org/ Department of Neuroscience, Physiology, & Pharmacology University College London, London, UK Time zone: Europe/London

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NESTML, error in the generate_nest_target function
by Salvo T 03 Mar '22

03 Mar '22

Dear NESTML Users, when I try the NESTML Izhikevich tutorial, I have a problem in the generate_nest_target function. The output in the terminal is the following: *** -- N E S T -- Copyright (C) 2004 The NEST Initiative Version: UNKNOWN Built: Jan 18 2022 13:53:41 This program is provided AS IS and comes with NO WARRANTY. See the file LICENSE for details. Problems or suggestions? Visit https://www.nest-simulator.org Type 'nest.help()' to find out more about NEST. -- The CXX compiler identification is GNU 9.3.0 -- Detecting CXX compiler ABI info -- Detecting CXX compiler ABI info - done -- Check for working CXX compiler: /usr/bin/c++ - skipped -- Detecting CXX compile features -- Detecting CXX compile features - done ------------------------------------------------------- nestml_izhikevich_module Configuration Summary ------------------------------------------------------- C++ compiler : /usr/bin/c++ Build static libs : OFF C++ compiler flags : NEST compiler flags : -std=c++11 -O2 -Wall -fopenmp -pthread -fdiagnostics-color=auto NEST include dirs : -I/opt/nest/include/nest -I/usr/include -I/usr/include -I/usr/include -I/opt/music-install/include -I/usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/openmpi/include/openmpi -I/usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/openmpi/include -I/usr/include NEST libraries flags : -L/opt/nest/lib/nest -lnestutil -lnest -lsli -lnestkernel -fopenmp /usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/libltdl.so /usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/libreadline.so /usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/libncurses.so /usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/libgsl.so /usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/libgslcblas.so /opt/music-install/lib/libmusic.so /usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/openmpi/lib/libmpi_cxx.so /usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/openmpi/lib/libmpi.so ------------------------------------------------------- You can now build and install 'nestml_izhikevich_module' using make make install The library file libnestml_izhikevich_module.so will be installed to /opt/nest/lib/nest The module can be loaded into NEST using (nestml_izhikevich_module) Install (in SLI) nest.Install(nestml_izhikevich_module) (in PyNEST) CMake Warning (dev) in CMakeLists.txt: No cmake_minimum_required command is present. A line of code such as cmake_minimum_required(VERSION 3.22) should be added at the top of the file. The version specified may be lower if you wish to support older CMake versions for this project. For more information run "cmake --help-policy CMP0000". This warning is for project developers. Use -Wno-dev to suppress it. -- Configuring done -- Generating done -- Build files have been written to: /tmp/nestml-component [ 16%] Building CXX object CMakeFiles/nestml_izhikevich_module_module.dir/nestml_izhikevich_module.o In file included from /opt/nest/include/nest/connector_base.h:35, from /opt/nest/include/nest/connection_manager.h:36, from /opt/nest/include/nest/connection_manager_impl.h:26, from /tmp/nestml-component/nestml_izhikevich_module.cpp:26: /opt/nest/include/nest/sort.h:36:10: fatal error: boost/sort/spreadsort/spreadsort.hpp: No such file or directory 36 | #include <boost/sort/spreadsort/spreadsort.hpp> | ^~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ compilation terminated. make[2]: *** [CMakeFiles/nestml_izhikevich_module_module.dir/build.make:76: CMakeFiles/nestml_izhikevich_module_module.dir/nestml_izhikevich_module.o] Error 1 make[1]: *** [CMakeFiles/Makefile2:112: CMakeFiles/nestml_izhikevich_module_module.dir/all] Error 2 make: *** [Makefile:156: all] Error 2 *** While the Jupyter notebook output is the following: *** Warning: PyGSL is not available. The stiffness test will be skipped. Warning: No module named 'pygsl' Option "nest_path" does not exist in builder --------------------------------------------------------------------------- CalledProcessError Traceback (most recent call last) /opt/data/nestml/pynestml/codegeneration/nest_builder.py in build(self) 149 try: --> 150 subprocess.check_call(make_all_cmd, stderr=subprocess.STDOUT, shell=shell, 151 cwd=str(os.path.join(target_path))) /usr/lib/python3.8/subprocess.py in check_call(*popenargs, **kwargs) 363 cmd = popenargs[0] --> 364 raise CalledProcessError(retcode, cmd) 365 return 0 CalledProcessError: Command '['make', 'all']' returned non-zero exit status 2. During handling of the above exception, another exception occurred: GeneratedCodeBuildException Traceback (most recent call last) <ipython-input-2-f7696df63255> in <module> ----> 1 generate_nest_target(input_path="izhikevich_solution.nestml", 2 target_path="/tmp/nestml-component", 3 module_name="nestml_izhikevich_module", 4 suffix="_nestml", 5 logging_level="ERROR", /opt/data/nestml/pynestml/frontend/pynestml_frontend.py in generate_nest_target(input_path, target_path, install_path, logging_level, module_name, store_log, suffix, dev, codegen_opts) 181 A dictionary containing additional options for the target code generator. 182 """ --> 183 generate_target(input_path, target_platform="NEST", target_path=target_path, logging_level=logging_level, 184 module_name=module_name, store_log=store_log, suffix=suffix, install_path=install_path, 185 dev=dev, codegen_opts=codegen_opts) /opt/data/nestml/pynestml/frontend/pynestml_frontend.py in generate_target(input_path, target_platform, target_path, install_path, logging_level, module_name, store_log, suffix, dev, codegen_opts) 150 FrontendConfiguration.set_codegen_opts(codegen_opts) 151 --> 152 if not process() == 0: 153 raise Exception("Error(s) occurred while processing the model") 154 /opt/data/nestml/pynestml/frontend/pynestml_frontend.py in process() 278 options=FrontendConfiguration.get_codegen_opts()) 279 if _builder is not None: --> 280 _builder.build() 281 282 if FrontendConfiguration.store_log: /opt/data/nestml/pynestml/codegeneration/nest_builder.py in build(self) 151 cwd=str(os.path.join(target_path))) 152 except subprocess.CalledProcessError as e: --> 153 raise GeneratedCodeBuildException('Error occurred during \'make all\'! More detailed error messages can be found in stdout.') 154 155 # finally execute make install GeneratedCodeBuildException: Error occurred during 'make all'! More detailed error messages can be found in stdout. *** I installed Boost with 'sudo apt-get install libboost-all-dev' from the terminal. Can you help me? Best, Salvo

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