REU Site - Theoretical and Computational Neuroscience

我们的目标是吸引各种各样的聪明的数学倾向上升的大三学生和大四学生，他们具有建模，成像或细胞生物学的能力，并为他们提供1）现有和新兴的神经成像模式以及随后的计算挑战的共同基础，这些挑战来自分析，合成和最终指导这样的实验，2）在一个有明确智力奖励的研究领域中，在密切指导下体验发现的乐趣（没有一个有大脑的人缺乏对他们大脑的好奇心）和对生物学、健康和数学领域产生更广泛影响的潜力，和3）口头和书面科学交流的最佳实践的共同基础。我们的参与者将收到一封预先邮寄的邮件，包括1）共同的阅读文本，2）成像和建模教程，以及3）详细的项目描述。他们将在10周的教程中度过第一周，有充足的时间与我们在赖斯大学，贝勒医学院和德克萨斯大学休斯顿健康科学中心的导师库进行互动。这将使他们能够在第一周结束时对导师和项目做出明智的选择。示例项目包括：1）记忆的生物化学基础的数学建模，2）大脑力学的计算建模，3）警觉行为灵长类动物大脑皮层中视觉信息处理的电生理、计算和功能成像方法，以及4）时间感知的神经机制。

We aim to attract a diverse pool of bright mathematically inclined rising juniors and seniors with demonstrated aptitude for modeling, imaging or cell biology and provide them with 1) a common grounding in existing and emerging neuro-imaging modalities and the subsequent computational challenges that arise from the analysis, synthesis and eventual guidance of such experiments, 2) a closely mentored experience of the joy of discovery in a field of research with clear intellectual reward (no one with a brain lacks in wonder of their brain) and potential for broader impact on the fields of biology, health, and mathematics, and 3) a common grounding in the best practices of oral and written communication of science.Our participants will receive an advance mailing comprising 1) a common reading text, 2) imaging and modeling tutorials, and 3) detailed project descriptions. They will spend the first of their 10 weeks in tutorials with ample time to interact with our mentor pool at Rice University, Baylor College of Medicine and the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston. This will permit them to make an informed choice of mentor and project by the close of the first week. Sample projects include: 1) Mathematical modeling of the biochemical basis of memory, 2) Computational Modeling of Cochlear Mechanics, 3) Electrophysiological, computational and functional imaging approaches to processing of visual information in the cerebral cortex of alert behaving primates, and 4) Neural mechanisms of time perception.