Black-box model reduction of the C. Elegans nervous system.

In recent years, modeling neurons and neuronal collections with high accuracy have become central issues of neuroscience. The development of efficient algorithms for their simulation as well as the increase in computational power and parallelization need to keep up with the quantity and complexity of novel recordings and reconstructions reported by the experimental neuroscientists. The extraction of low-order equivalents that capture the essential aspects of the high-accuracy models is an essential part of the simulation process.

Improved 7 Tesla resting-state fMRI connectivity measurements by cluster-based modeling of respiratory volume and heart rate effects.

Several strategies have been proposed to model and remove physiological noise from resting-state fMRI (rs-fMRI) data, particularly at ultrahigh fields (7 T), including contributions from respiratory volume (RV) and heart rate (HR) signal fluctuations. Recent studies suggest that these contributions are highly variable across subjects and that physiological noise correction may thus benefit from optimization at the subject or even voxel level. Here, we systematically investigated the impact of the degree of spatial specificity (group, subject, newly proposed cluster, and voxel levels) on the optimization of RV and HR models.

Training bottlenose dolphins to overcome avoidance of environmental enrichment objects in order to stimulate play activities.

Enrichment programs may contribute to the quality of life and stress reduction in bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) kept in zoos and aquaria. The results of these programs are generally positive in terms of welfare, but the magnitude of their effects may vary greatly between individuals of the same species, especially when the enrichment plans are based on the introduction of manipulative objects. Some animals will interact spontaneously with novel objects, even without food rewards and in the absence of the trainers, while others show no interest or even aversion toward the objects.