Neurons form precise relationships with particular synaptic partners and these relationships give rise to the wiring diagram that enables cognitive function. Like other partnerships, neural connections need to…
Natural environments are rich with sensory stimuli. To make sense of the sensory clutter, animals must segregate objects of interest from ever varying backgrounds. Our visual system is…
When we sniff an odor, it is first detected by a set of specific odorant receptors expressed by olfactory receptor neurons in the nose. Olfactory receptor neurons then…
How many decisions did you have to make today? From the choice of breakfast, to the vigor of brushing our teeth, we can effortlessly make moment to moment…
Brain functions, such as language, are shaped by experience during windows of heightened plasticity in early life. For example, children raised in an English- speaking environment will easily…
"With the enormous advances made in the miniaturization of instruments, it is not unthinkable anymore that neuroethologists will, at one point in the future, be able to obtain…
Olfaction is a critical sense for many animals, guiding their foraging behavior, mate choice and predator avoidance. Mice use ~1000 odorant receptor types in the main olfactory system…
A moment’s introspection reveals that our perceptions and actions are strongly affected by our behavioral states. Whether you are sleepy, awake, distracted or vigilant will affect how you…
Our brains generally represent the outside world using ordered maps. For example, neighboring points in visual space activate neighboring points on the retina, and this relation is preserved…
(left panel) Monocular retinal innervation in a normal larval zebrafish. The right optic tectal lobe receives input solely from the contralateral (red) retina. (right panel) Following rewiring, the…
