Recent advances in motor behavior research rely on detailed knowledge of the characteristics of the neurons and networks that generate motor behavior. At the cellular level, Neurons, Networks, and Motor Behavior describes the computational characteristics of individual neurons and how these characteristics are modified by neuromodulators. At the network and behavioral levels, the volume discusses how network structure is dynamically modulated to produce adaptive behavior. Comparisons of model systems throughout the animal kingdom provide insights into general principles of motor control. Contributors describe how networks generate such motor behaviors as walking, swimming, flying, scratching, reaching, breathing, feeding, and chewing. An emerging principle of organization is that nervous systems are remarkably efficient in constructing neural networks that control multiple tasks and dynamically adapt to change.The volume contains six sections: selection and initiation of motor patterns; generation and formation of motor patterns: cellular and systems properties; generation and formation of motor patterns: computational approaches; modulation and reconfiguration; short-term modulation of pattern generating circuits; and sensory modification of motor output to control whole body orientation.

A multi-disciplinary look at the current state of knowledge regarding motor control and movement—from molecular biology to robotics The last two decades have seen a dramatic increase in the number of sophisticated tools and methodologies for exploring motor control and movement. Multi-unit recordings, molecular neurogenetics, computer simulation, and new scientific approaches for studying how muscles and body anatomy transform motor neuron activity into movement have helped revolutionize the field. Neurobiology of Motor Control brings together contributions from an interdisciplinary group of experts to provide a review of the current state of knowledge about the initiation and execution of movement, as well as the latest methods and tools for investigating them. The book ranges from the findings of basic scientists studying model organisms such as mollusks and Drosophila, to biomedical researchers investigating vertebrate motor production to neuroengineers working to develop robotic and smart prostheses technologies. Following foundational chapters on current molecular biological techniques, neuronal ensemble recording, and computer simulation, it explores a broad range of related topics, including the evolution of motor systems, directed targeted movements, plasticity and learning, and robotics. Explores motor control and movement in a wide variety of organisms, from simple invertebrates to human beings Offers concise summaries of motor control systems across a variety of animals and movement types Explores an array of tools and methodologies, including electrophysiological techniques, neurogenic and molecular techniques, large ensemble recordings, and computational methods Considers unresolved questions and how current scientific advances may be used to solve them going forward Written specifically to encourage interdisciplinary understanding and collaboration, and offering the most wide-ranging, timely, and comprehensive look at the science of motor control and movement currently available, Neurobiology of Motor Control is a must-read for all who study movement production and the neurobiological basis of movement—from molecular biologists to roboticists.

How can we make better sense of animal behavior by using what we know about the brain? This is the first book that attempts to answer this important question by applying neural network theory. Scientists create Artificial Neural Networks (ANNs) to make models of the brain. These networks mimic the architecture of a nervous system by connecting elementary neuron-like units into networks in which they stimulate or inhibit each other's activity in much the same way neurons do. This book shows how scientists can employ ANNs to analyze animal behavior, explore the general principles of the nervous systems, and test potential generalizations among species. The authors focus on simple neural networks to show how ANNs can be investigated by math and by computers. They demonstrate intuitive concepts that make the operation of neural networks more accessible to nonspecialists. The first chapter introduces various approaches to animal behavior and provides an informal introduction to neural networks, their history, and their potential advantages. The second chapter reviews artificial neural networks, including biological foundations, techniques, and applications. The following three chapters apply neural networks to such topics as learning and development, classical instrumental condition, and the role of genes in building brain networks. The book concludes by comparing neural networks to other approaches. It will appeal to students of animal behavior in many disciplines. It will also interest neurobiologists, cognitive scientists, and those from other fields who wish to learn more about animal behavior.

Neuronal Networks in Brain Function, CNS Disorders, and Therapeutics, edited by two leaders in the field, offers a current and complete review of what we know about neural networks. How the brain accomplishes many of its more complex tasks can only be understood via study of neuronal network control and network interactions. Large networks can undergo major functional changes, resulting in substantially different brain function and affecting everything from learning to the potential for epilepsy. With chapters authored by experts in each topic, this book advances the understanding of: - How the brain carries out important tasks via networks - How these networks interact in normal brain function - Major mechanisms that control network function - The interaction of the normal networks to produce more complex behaviors - How brain disorders can result from abnormal interactions - How therapy of disorders can be advanced through this network approach This book will benefit neuroscience researchers and graduate students with an interest in networks, as well as clinicians in neuroscience, pharmacology, and psychiatry dealing with neurobiological disorders. - Utilizes perspectives and tools from various neuroscience subdisciplines (cellular, systems, physiologic), making the volume broadly relevant - Chapters explore normal network function and control mechanisms, with an eye to improving therapies for brain disorders - Reflects predominant disciplinary shift from an anatomical to a functional perspective of the brain - Edited work with chapters authored by leaders in the field around the globe – the broadest, most expert coverage available

Completely revised and enlarged with six new chapters, the second edition of Neurons and Networks is an introduction not just to neurobiology, but to all of behavioral neuroscience. It is an ideal text for first- or second-year college students with minimal college science exposure.

Depending on your point of view the brain is an organ, a machine, a biological computer, or simply the most important component of the nervous system. How does it work as a whole? What are its major parts and how are they interconnected to generate thinking, feelings, and behavior? This book surveys 2,500 years of scientific thinking about these profoundly important questions from the perspective of fundamental architectural principles, and then proposes a new model for the basic plan of neural systems organization based on an explosion of structural data emerging from the neuroanatomy revolution of the 1970's. The importance of a balance between theoretical and experimental morphology is stressed throughout the book. Great advances in understanding the brain's basic plan have come especially from two traditional lines of biological thought-- evolution and embryology, because each begins with the simple and progresses to the more complex. Understanding the organization of brain circuits, which contain thousands of links or pathways, is much more difficult. It is argued here that a four-system network model can explain the structure-function organization of the brain. Possible relationships between neural networks and gene networks revealed by the human genome project are explored in the final chapter. The book is written in clear and sparkling prose, and it is profusely illustrated. It is designed to be read by anyone with an interest in the basic organization of the brain, from neuroscience to philosophy to computer science to molecular biology. It is suitable for use in neuroscience core courses because it presents basic principles of the structure of the nervous system in a systematic way.

How we raise young children is one of today's most highly personalized and sharply politicized issues, in part because each of us can claim some level of "expertise." The debate has intensified as discoveries about our development-in the womb and in the first months and years-have reached the popular media. How can we use our burgeoning knowledge to assure the well-being of all young children, for their own sake as well as for the sake of our nation? Drawing from new findings, this book presents important conclusions about nature-versus-nurture, the impact of being born into a working family, the effect of politics on programs for children, the costs and benefits of intervention, and other issues. The committee issues a series of challenges to decision makers regarding the quality of child care, issues of racial and ethnic diversity, the integration of children's cognitive and emotional development, and more. Authoritative yet accessible, From Neurons to Neighborhoods presents the evidence about "brain wiring" and how kids learn to speak, think, and regulate their behavior. It examines the effect of the climate-family, child care, community-within which the child grows.

This timely overview and synthesis of recent work in both artificial neural networks and neurobiology seeks to examine neurobiological data from a network perspective and to encourage neuroscientists to participate in constructing the next generation of neural networks.

The Encyclopedia of the Neuroscience explores all areas of the discipline in its focused entries on a wide variety of topics in neurology, neurosurgery, psychiatry and other related areas of neuroscience. Each article is written by an expert in that specific domain and peer reviewed by the advisory board before acceptance into the encyclopedia. Each article contains a glossary, introduction, a reference section, and cross-references to other related encyclopedia articles. Written at a level suitable for university undergraduates, the breadth and depth of coverage will appeal beyond undergraduates to professionals and academics in related fields.