Systems neuroscience

Recent articles

Illustration of cranes attempting to assemble a structure out of very small black squares.

Reconstructing dopamine’s link to reward

The field is grappling with whether to modify the long-standing theory of reward prediction error—or abandon it entirely.

By Angie Voyles Askham
13 September 2024 | 18 min read
Illustration of a fly with its life cycle represented on its left and a technological background on its right.

Computational and systems neuroscience needs development

Embracing recent advances in developmental biology can drive a new wave of innovation.

By Ben Scott
2 July 2024 | 6 min read
Illustration of a series of squares containing distinct patterns.

Can an emerging field called ‘neural systems understanding’ explain the brain?

This mashup of neuroscience, artificial intelligence and even linguistics and philosophy of mind aims to crack the deep question of what "understanding" is, however un-brain-like its models may be.

By George Musser
5 June 2024 | 21 min listen
Computer-generated illustration of disgusting green food.

‘It must be something I ate’ is hard-wired into the brain

Feeling sick reactivates “novel flavor” neurons, according to a new study in mice, and points to a dedicated circuit for learning to avoid unsafe food.

By Angie Voyles Askham
29 March 2024 | 6 min read
Scientists collaborating in an imagined lab space, with tiny skiers on slopes in the distance.

The origins of COSYNE: Building a community

Thirty years ago, theoretical and experimental neuroscientists rarely went to the same conferences. So I helped launch a meeting to get them talking.

By Anthony Zador
27 February 2024 | 7 min read
Illustration of a yellow brain and a pink brain

Monkey studies throw wrench into decade-old idea about movement’s effect on visual cortex

Movements that boost activity in the visual cortex of mice have the opposite or no effect in marmosets and macaques, prompting questions about whether mice are a suitable model for the primate visual system.

By Angie Voyles Askham
20 February 2024 | 9 min read
Illustrated portrait of André Fenton.
Synaptic Microphone

Being uncomfortable and PKMzeta with André Fenton

The director of the Center for Neural Science shares a ghost story and talks about his collaboration with Todd Sacktor.

By Brady Huggett
1 February 2024 | 80 min listen
A photograph of Peter Schiller

Remembering Peter Schiller, principled pioneer of vision research

Schiller, best known for his research on how the superior colliculus controls eye movements, died last month at the age of 92.

By Angie Voyles Askham
16 January 2024 | 8 min read
An abstract illustration of boxes connected by lines

Name this network: Addressing huge inconsistencies across studies

Entrenched practices have stymied efforts to build a universal taxonomy of functional brain networks. But a new tool to standardize brain-imaging findings could bring us a step closer.

By Lucina Q. Uddin
3 January 2024 | 5 min read
Still from research video displaying wiring map of a fruit fly's brain.

Standout neuroscience news in 2023

Did you miss any of our favorite stories from the past year? Revisit them here.

By The Transmitter
27 December 2023 | 4 min read

Explore more from The Transmitter

Young researcher sitting in the grass holding a pillow shaped like a fish.

Seeing research through a new lens: Q&A with Pei Yuan Zhang

When she’s not in the lab, the cognitive scientist films documentaries that challenge her love of data and order.

By Olivia Gieger
20 September 2024 | 7 min read
Illustration of children looking at a gigantic set of building blocks, some of which display genetic sequences on their surfaces.

Autism is more heritable in boys than in girls

If boys have greater inherited liability for autism, the female protective effect may not fully explain the sex difference in prevalence.

Illustration of a brain.

This paper changed my life – ‘Response of hippocampal synapses to natural stimulation patterns,’ by Dobrunz and Stevens

The work demonstrated how to effectively combine controlled in-vitro experiments and the messiness of natural brain patterns.

By Robert Froemke
17 September 2024 | 4 min read