DAAD Letter of Motivation

Throughout my journey, I have developed a keen interest in the Master's program in Computational Neuroscience at Technische Universität Berlin. My background in software engineering and deep passion for neuroscience drive me to contribute to this interdisciplinary field that bridges technology and human cognition.

I have set two main goals for myself: short-term and long-term. In the short term, I aim to work at Neuralink on brain-computer interfaces. I think combining computational neuroscience with new technology can really help people with neurological disorders. Later on, I plan to get a Ph.D. and become a university teacher. I want to share my knowledge and help future scientists and engineers.

I am from Uzbekistan, a young and developing country that currently lacks adequate technological support for individuals with disabilities. There are very few experts in computational neuroscience. When I share my plans with Ph.D. students, they are surprised yet encouraging, affirming that I am on the right path. I am driven to make a positive impact in my country.

Many people in Uzbekistan live without the ability to enjoy life fully due to disabilities, whether from birth or acquired later. For example, both of my cousins are disabled-one since birth, the other during development. They can only lie down; they cannot talk or engage in activities. I know firsthand the challenges they face, as they often come to Tashkent for medical treatment. After gaining expertise in computational neuroscience, I aim to collaborate with organizations like Neuralink to make advanced technologies accessible in Uzbekistan. I want to improve their quality of life and help them reconnect with their families and friends.

I see myself as a research-oriented student, and my current professor shares this view, noting my dedication to thorough research before tackling any task. I have authored five research papers, one of which is indexed by Scopus and published by Springer; the others are under review. While exploring universities, the Master's program at Technische Universität Berlin stood out for its strong emphasis on interdisciplinary collaboration and research orientation. Courses like "Models of Neural Systems," "Machine Intelligence," and "Acquisition and Analysis of Neural Data" align perfectly with my interests and goals. The research-oriented phase in the third and fourth semesters attracted me, as it will allow me to delve deeper into advanced topics and ethical issues, complementing my expertise and aligning with my thesis work.

During my research, I discovered that engaging with the Bernstein Center for Computational Neuroscience Berlin is an incredible opportunity. Working with Prof. Dr. Klaus Obermayer's Neural Information Processing Group excites me because his work on models of neuronal systems, machine learning, and neural data analysis closely aligns with my interests. Collaborating with his team would provide invaluable experience in understanding how the brain computes and applying those strategies to machine learning applications.

And during my undergraduate studies, I undertook research projects to broaden my understanding. One project focused on making brain MRI diagnosis easier, cheaper, and faster. I developed a model combining Convolutional Neural Networks (CNN) and Natural Language Processing (NLP), achieving 95% accuracy as of October 2023. We are planning to conduct clinical trials under medical supervision. I have also studied AlphaFold and proposed accelerating protein 3D structure prediction using quantum computing.

I love teaching and sharing the knowledge and skills I've gained from inspiring leaders. Since February 2023, I've mentored over 200,000 young people, helping them with technical challenges. I've also worked on open-source projects like Anarchy Labs and Langflow. This inspired me to start Open Community, where over 150 developers collaborate on AI projects to help others. For me, teaching and open-source work go hand in hand because both are about sharing knowledge freely without expecting anything in return.

As a leader, I've learned to be creative, empathetic, and resilient. Challenges have shaped who I am today. Over the past two years, I've worked with people from diverse backgrounds, which helped me see things from new perspectives. For example, during the NASA International Space Apps Challenge in Tashkent, I led a team of four women from different fields. Even with limited time and differing ideas, we worked together and won the hackathon.