Timescale localization and signal propagation in the large-scale cortical network
In the brain, while early sensory areas encode and process external inputs rapidly, higher-association areas are endowed with slow dynamics to benefit information accumulation over time. This property raises the question of why diverse timescales are well localized rather than being mixed up across the cortex, despite high connection density and an abundance of feedback loops that support reliable signal propagation. In this talk, we will address this question by analyzing a large-scale network model of the primate cortex, and we identify a novel dynamical regime termed "interference-free propagation". In this regime, the mean components of the synaptic currents to each downstream area are imbalanced to ensure signals to propagate reliably, while the temporally fluctuating components of the synaptic inputs governed by upstream areas' timescales are largely canceled out, leading to the localization of its own timescale in each downstream area. Our result provides new insights into the operational regime of the cortex, leading to the coexistence of hierarchical timescale localization and reliable signal propagation. Presented in the van Vreeswijk Theoretical Neuroscience Seminar series (formerly WWTNS) on 2025-02-26. Recording duration: 00:48:02.
Neural representation of pose and movement in parietal cortex and beyond
Jonathan Whitlock is an associate professor of neuroscience at the Kavli Institute for Systems Neuroscience in Trondheim, Norway. His group combines high-density single-unit recordings with silicone probes and sub-millimeter 3D tracking to study the cortical representation of pose and movement in freely behaving rats. The lecture will introduce his group’s work on neural tuning to pose and movement parietal and motor areas, and will include more recent findings from primary visual, auditory and somatosensory areas