Open Lab Online workshops on Bonsai – Module I sessions now open

[Mateusz Kostecki]

Hello!

We are happy to announce the first Open Lab Online workshops on Bonsai.

Bonsai is an open-source reactive programming language that is particularly useful for modern behavioral neuroscience experiments. It allows users to synchronize multiple data streams, precisely deliver stimuli, and run experiments in closed-loop settings, while integrating signals and devices from different systems. From calcium imaging and sound recordings to sensors, feeders, motors, and stimulus delivery systems, Bonsai offers a flexible and powerful way to build experimental workflows.

These workshops correspond to Module I of a 3-module online course of increasing difficulty. In this first module, participants will be introduced to the basics of Bonsai — its logic, core principles, and potential applications. The workshop will also cover how to track animals during experiments, detect their presence in ROIs, run simple closed-loop paradigms, and perform basic logical operations.

To make participation easier across schedules and time zones, we are offering two alternative sessions of the same workshop:

Session 1: May 8, 2026, 10:00–12:00 CEST (UTC+2)
https://nenckiopenlab.org/event/introduction-to-bonsai-module-i/

Session 2: May 18, 2026, 16:00–18:00 CEST (UTC+2)
https://nenckiopenlab.org/event/introduction-to-bonsai-module-i-2/

Requirements: no prior programming experience is needed. A Windows computer and a webcam are required.

Workshop fee: EUR 10
Fee waivers are available upon request.

Instructor: Mateusz Kostecki, Heidelberg University

We also warmly invite you to join our Open Lab Online Discord, which is a space for discussion, exchange, and community around open tools and methods. All important workshop information and updates will also be shared there.

Discord: https://discord.gg/z7gvyj9yrV

If you would like to get involved in Open Lab Online, you can also fill out our surveys:
Organizer survey: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeRqICetBCRbKZnjM9HlmLp1RKql3nUqxgupUVsPoEsjvbm3Q/viewform
Instructor survey: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdDZioKGcDdsP7AFE6-mS6R_y7-kWTf6t2wUxqdf21eTSEOCQ/viewform

If you have any questions, feel free to contact us at ope...@nencki.edu.pl or reach out to us on Discord.

Best wishes,

Mateusz Kostecki