Scientific Committee Bio Manohar Bance Professor of Otology and Skull Base Surgery, University of Cambridge. Honorary Consultant, Cambridge Universities Hospitals Foundation TrustManohar’s research interests include optimizing cochlear implants, technology development, surgical outcomes, automated image analysis, new diagnostics and developing new hearing and balance therapies. He runs a science lab at Addenbrookes Hospital and collaborates closely with the other researchers and surgeons in Cambridge, nationally and internationally. Dennis Barbour MD, PhD, Associate Professor, Biomedical Engineering, Washington University in St. Louis.Dennis’ research interests include auditory processing, cognitive neuroscience, machine learning and medical diagnostics. Most recently he has developed new machine learning methods for rapidly and thoroughly evaluating perception and cognition. These new tests are not only useful for exploring normal nervous system function, but also for diagnosing disorders. Bob Carlyon Deputy Director and Programme Leader, MRC Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit, University of CambridgeBob’s research spans a wide range of topics in human hearing, but has most recently focused on the problem of how we can listen to one voice in the presence of interfering sounds, such as other speakers. It incorporates behavioural and electrophysiological experiments with normal-hearing listeners, and studies of hearing by deaf patients fitted with a cochlear implant. Rob Eikelboom Research Manager, Ear Science Institute Australia; Adj Professor, University of Western Australia; Extra-ordinary Professor, University of Pretoria.Rob’s research focuses on epidemiology of ear disease and hearing loss, audiological service delivery (including telehealth) and assessing outcomes of HAs and implants. Johan Frijns Professor Otology and Physics of Hearing, Leiden University Medical Center.Within the focus field of (neuro-) otology / audiology of the department of Otorhinolaryngology, Johan’s research direction is otology and auditory physics with special emphasis on cochlear implants. These are electrical inner ear prostheses, which allow deaf and severely hearing-impaired children and adults to interact with the hearing and speaking world, again or for the first time in their lives. Yağmur Güçlütürk Assistant professor at Artificial Intelligence department, Radboud University.Yağmur uses various computational modeling and psychophysics techniques as well as utilizing new technologies such as deep learning and augmented/virtual reality to develop and test neuroprosthetics applications. Lorna Halliday MRC Senior Research Fellow and Principal Research Associate, MRC Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit, University of CambridgeLorna’s research focuses on auditory processing, speech, and language development in children. She uses behavioural, electrophysiological, and psychophysical techniques. Current research themes include understanding brain changes following hearing loss in children, auditory perception in children with hearing difficulties, and longitudinal predictors of language outcomes in children with hearing loss. Volker Hohmann Professor and Head of research group Auditory Signal Processing and Hearing Devices, University of OldenburgVolker received a PhD in Physics from the University of Göttingen in 1993 and is now professor at the Faculty for Medicine and Health Sciences at Oldenburg University, Germany. His research expertise is in psychoacoustics and digital signal processing with applications to signal processing in speech processing devices, e.g., hearing aids. Cris Lanting Medical Physicist/audiologist, Radboudumc.Cris’ current research is focussed on: Hearing and Genes: what are perceptual consequences of genetic mutations and how can we assess these?Middle ear implants: what is the output of newly developed implants and can we measure this? Cochlear Implants: preservation of residual hearing during cochlear implantation and how to measure this. Qinglin MengQinglin’s research focuses on technology of hearing devices (cochlear implants and hearing aids), hearing health care, and auditory neural coding mechanisms. Most recently, Qinglin is working on some fine structure enhancement algorithms, lexical tone perception, and acoustic simulations for auditory prostheses. De Wet Swanepoel Professor of Speech-Language Pathology & Audiology, University of Pretoria.De Wet’s research interests span the field of early identification and diagnosis of hearing loss, objective measures of auditory functioning and ear and hearing telehealth. The improvement of ear and hearing health care through translational research is consistently emphasized, in particular the improvement of access to, and the quality of ear and hearing health care. Deborah Vickers MRC Senior Research Fellow and Principal Research Associate, Clinical Neurosciences, University of CambridgeDeborah’s research focuses on understanding and optimising outcomes with auditory implants and hearing aids using techniques in electrophysiology, psychophysics and speech perception. Current research themes include understanding brain changes following implantation, maximising binaural processing, optimising cochlear implant fitting parameters, personalised training to improve listening skills and the development of sensitive real-life listening measures. Marc van Wanrooij Assistant professor – Biophysics, Radboud University.Marc’s research focuses on the question how information from our visual, auditory and vestibular senses is processed optimally by our brains. It specifically relates on how we deal with multiple sources of information that might be conflicting or ambiguous, and on how we cope if our senses become impaired. Astrid van Wieringen Professor at Experimental ORL, Dept Neurosciences, University of LeuvenAstrid’s interdisciplinary research focuses on understanding the neural consequences of deprived auditory input, and optimizing hearing in adults and children with hearing aids and/or cochlear implants through evidence-based rehabilitation. Fan-Gang Zeng Professor of Anatomy and Neurobiology, Biomedical Engineering, Cognitive Sciences, Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery and Director of the Center for Hearing Research at University of California Irvine.Fan-Gang is a leader in hearing science and technology, with 268 publications, 13071 citations and an h-index of 54 (Google Scholar, August 8, 2019). He led the development of the Nurotron 26-electrode cochlear implant (SFDA approval in 2011 and CE Mark in 2012) and SoundCure tinnitus suppressor (FDA clearance and CE Mark in 2011). 
