Computational Neuroscience

这篇文章是Coursera课程Computational Neuroscience的笔记。

第一周

Computational neuroscience provides tools and methods for “characterizing what nervous systems do, determining how they function, and understanding why they operate in particular ways” (P. Dayan and L. Abbott)

• Descriptive Models (what)
• Mechanistic Models (how)
• Interpretive Models (why)

Receptive Field: Specific properties of a sensory stimulus that generate a strong response from the cell

Example:
1. Spot of light that turns on at a particular location on the retina
2. Bar of light that turns on at a particular orientation and location on the retina

-Receptive Field

The center is referred to the center of the small patch of retina associated with the cell. It can be thought of as a filter, causing activation with stimuli concentrated on the center of the receptive field, and depressing activation with stimuli which are concentrated in the background.