Related papers: Synergy from Silence in a Combinatorial Neural Cod…
To evaluate the nature of the neural code in the cerebral cortex, we have used a combination of theory and experiment to assess how information is represented in a realistic cortical population response. We have shown how a sensory stimulus…
Understanding a neural code requires knowledge both of the elementary symbols that transmit information and of the algorithm for translating these symbols into sensory signals or motor actions. We show that these questions can be separated:…
Spike patterns have been reported to encode sensory information in several brain areas. Here we assess the role of specific patterns in the neural code, by comparing the amount of information transmitted with different choices of the…
The relationship between a neuron's complex inputs and its spiking output defines the neuron's coding strategy. This is frequently and effectively modeled phenomenologically by one or more linear filters that extract the components of the…
This paper proposes a neuronal circuitry layout and synaptic plasticity principles that allow the (pyramidal) neuron to act as a "combinatorial switch". Namely, the neuron learns to be more prone to generate spikes given those combinations…
Multielectrode arrays allow recording of the activity of many single neurons, from which correlations can be calculated. The functional roles of correlations can be revealed by the measures of the information conveyed by neuronal activity;…
Our knowledge of the sensory world is encoded by neurons in sequences of discrete, identical pulses termed action potentials or spikes. There is persistent controversy about the extent to which the precise timing of these spikes is relevant…
We study a network model of two conductance-based pacemaker neurons of differing natural frequency, coupled with either mutual excitation or inhibition, and receiving shared random inhibitory synaptic input. The networks may phase-lock…
We demonstrate that the information contained in the spike occurrence times of a population of neurons can be broken up into a series of terms, each of which reflect something about potential coding mechanisms. This is possible in the…
The problem of neural coding is to understand how sequences of action potentials (spikes) are related to sensory stimuli, motor outputs, or (ultimately) thoughts and intentions. One clear question is whether the same coding rules are used…
In natural scenes, objects generally appear together with other objects. Yet, theoretical studies of neural population coding typically focus on the encoding of single objects in isolation. Experimental studies suggest that neural responses…
We address the problem of finding patterns from multi-neuronal spike trains that give us insights into the multi-neuronal codes used in the brain and help us design better brain computer interfaces. We focus on the synchronous firings of…
At the single-neuron level, precisely timed spikes can either constitute firing-rate codes or spike-pattern codes that utilize the relative timing between consecutive spikes. There has been little experimental support for the hypothesis…
The principles of neural encoding and computations are inherently collective and usually involve large populations of interacting neurons with highly correlated activities. While theories of neural function have long recognized the…
Natural images follow statistics inherited by the structure of our physical (visual) environment. In particular, a prominent facet of this structure is that images can be described by a relatively sparse number of features. To investigate…
A population of firing neurons is expected to carry not only mean firing rate but also its fluctuation and synchrony among neurons. In order to examine this possibility, we have studied responses of neuronal ensembles to three kinds of…
A population of firing neurons is expected to carry information not only by mean firing rate but also by fluctuation and synchrony among neurons. In order to examine this possibility, we have studied responses of neuronal ensembles to three…
The efficient coding theory postulates that single cells in a neuronal population should be optimally configured to efficiently encode information about a stimulus subject to biophysical constraints. This poses the question of how multiple…
Over the brief time intervals available for processing retinal output, roughly 50 to 300 msec, the number of extra spikes generated by individual ganglion cells can be quite variable. Here, computer-generated spike trains were used to…
Neural coding is a field of study that concerns how sensory information is represented in the brain by networks of neurons. The link between external stimulus and neural response can be studied from two parallel points of view. The first,…