With financial support of Shota Rustaveli National Science Foundation on 13-16 October 2010 International conference “Fundamental questions of Neuroscience” was held at I.Beritashvili Institute of Physiology.

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The opening ceremony of the conference was attended by: Director of I.Beritashvili Institute of Physiology, Prof. Nargiz Nachkebia, President of Georgian Society of Physiologists, Academician Vaja Okujava, Vice-President of the Georgian National Academy of Sciences, Fridon Todua, foreign and Georgian scientists.

The “Gagra Talks” was initiated in 1948 by a renowned neurophysiologist, academician Ivane Beritashvili. The goal of the “Gagra Talks” was to cover critical questions of neurophysiology. It was devoted to the advances in the research of the CNS activity and to the future research directions in the field. The forum used to involve worldwide known experts in neurophysiology from various European countries, from the US and from leading research Institutions of the Former Soviet Union. The reports presented on every symposium (including discussions) were published in special volumes. Seven volumes, which have been published up to date, still remain important handbooks for a wide community of neurophysiologists.

Under the leadership of Ivane Beritashvili, the “Gagra Talks” was organized once every 3-4 years, six times during his life and twice after his death. The name of the forum had been derived from the town Gagra, where the named conference was held. Since its establishment in 1948, the “Gagra Talks” became increasingly attractive for the neuroscientists all over the world, but due to the political events developed in Georgia in the 1990s, the forum stopped functioning.

January 10th of 2010 was the 125th anniversary of Ivane Beritashvili’s birth. To mark this date, Georgian neurophysiologists have decided to renew the “Gagra Talks”.

One of the aims of this meeting is to bring together Georgian, European and American scientists and, to contribute to the scientific progress of independent country of Georgia. Many distinguished speakers from all parts of the world have been invited to give a state of the art lectures on their recent achievements, both in basic and applied research.