Who We Are/History


OHBM Mission

The purpose of the Society shall be to advance the understanding of the anatomical and functional organization of the human brain, and promote its medical and societal applications.

OHBM Will…

  • Bring together researchers who are engaged in investigations relevant to human brain organization (MRI, fMRI, PET, EEG/MEG and other cutting edge approaches such as electrophysiology, preclinical imaging, neuroepidemiology, genetics); and
  • Engage in other activities to facilitate communication among these scientists and promote education in human brain organization.

OHBM HISTORY

It was 1995 when the first gathering of brain imagers convened in Paris, France to share science and discuss techniques and challenges in this newly emerging field. Organizers Bernard Mazoyer, Per Roland and Rudiger Seitz thought it would be a small meeting but this meeting resulted in over 800 people gathering in Paris to take part in the inaugural “International Conference on Human Brain Mapping”. The following year, a second event was held in Boston, Massachusetts, USA and was organized by Jack Belliveau, David Kennedy and Bruce Rosen. During a memorable Boston conference town hall meeting (chaired by Alan Evans), the attendees expressed their interest in having a formal organization created. OHBM was officially incorporated in 1997 during the Copenhagen, Denmark meeting, when the general assembly approved the newly created by-laws (written by an ad hoc committee chaired by David Van Essen) and elected its first officers. The Human Brain Map database workshops organized by Peter Fox in the early nineties, and the two early international conferences provided the foundation and served as a catalyst for organizing those working in this growing and quickly changing area of neuroscience. The Annual Meeting of OHBM has become the premiere event in the brain mapping community attracting leading researchers and students alike. Since its inception, OHBM has continued to evolve in response to the needs of our members and student post-doc group in the field of human functional neuroimaging and its movement into the scientific mainstream.

For more on the history of OHBM, you can download a free NeuroImage editorial written by Aina Puce and Bernard Mazoyer with this link.


The purpose of the Society shall be to advance the understanding of the anatomical and functional organization of the human brain, and promote its medical and societal applications.

OHBM Will…

  • Bring together scientists of various backgrounds who are engaged in investigations relevant to human brain organization (MRI, fMRI, PET, EEG/MEG and other cutting edge approaches such as electrophysiology, preclinical imaging, neuroepidemiology, genetics); and
  • Engage in other activities to facilitate communication among these scientists and promote education in human brain organization.

It was 1995 when the first gathering of brain imagers convened in Paris, France to share science and discuss techniques and challenges in this newly emerging field. Organizers Bernard Mazoyer, Per Roland and Rudiger Seitz thought it would be a small meeting but this meeting resulted in over 800 people gathering in Paris to take part in the inaugural“International Conference on Human Brain Mapping”. The following year, a second event was held in Boston, Massachusetts, USA and was organized by Jack Belliveau, David Kennedy and Bruce Rosen. During a memorable Boston conference town hall meeting (chaired by Alan Evans), the attendees expressed their interest in having a formal organization created. OHBM was officially incorporated in 1997 during the Copenhagen, Denmark meeting, when the general assembly approved the newly created by-laws (written by an ad hoc committee chaired by David Van Essen) and elected its first officers. The Human Brain Map database workshops organized by Peter Fox in the early nineties, and the two early international conferences provided the foundation and served as a catalyst for organizing those working in this growing and quickly changing area of neuroscience. The Annual Meeting of OHBM has become the premiere event in the brain mapping community attracting leading researchers and students alike. Since its inception, OHBM has continued to evolve in response to the needs of our members and student post-doc group in the field of human functional neuroimaging and its movement into the scientific mainstream.

In 2017, the OHBM Council asked the Communications Committee to begin collecting interviews with the founding members and luminaries within the OHBM Community. The initial list was developed and interviews began taking place at the 2017 Annual Meeting in Vancouver. The Committee continues to record interviews (in video and/or blog format) and Council in coordination with the Scientific Advisory Board will continue to identify additional OHBM luminaries to add to the Oral History Project over time.

Peter Bandettini

Peter Fox

David Kennedy

Alan Evans

Karen Berman

Bruce Rosen

Susan Bookheimer

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OHBM MEMBERS