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Biophysics of Neural Systems
Last Updated: 2026-02-05 14:59:42
Abstract
The course material covers electrophysiological methods for recording neural activityin the brain, statistical tools and models for spike train dataanalysis, and mathematical descriptions of neurons and interactingnetworks of neurons. The goal is to cover important methods in thefields of Systems and Computational Neurosciences.
Objective
The biological system of choice to which the methods in the lectures will be applied is the songbird. However, the applicability of the methods is not limited to the songbird. For the exercises, sike train data from sleeping songbirds will be made available for the students. The goal of the exercises will be to acquire the ability to write Matlab scripts implementing the methods covered in the lectures.
Content
- extracellular and intracellular recording techniques - crosscorrelation and spectral spike train analysis techniques - generative models of spike trains (Poisson statistics, Hidden Markov models) - signal estimation and stimulus reconstruction - unsupervised spike pattern classification - synaptic dynamics and plasticity
Resources
Lecture Notes
A script that covers over 90% of the presented material will be made available on my homepage.
Literature
- Theoretical Neuroscience by Peter Dayan and Larry Abbott. - Biophysics of Computation by Chritoph Koch. - Spikes: Exploring the neural code by Fred Rieke and David Warland et al. - Spiking Neuron Models by Wulfram Gerstner and Werner Kistler. - Original research articles.
General Information
- Language
- English
- Frequency
- Yearly recurring
Examination
- Type
- session examination
- Mode
- oral 30 minutes
Course Components
| Type | Title | Time & Place | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| lecture |
Biophysics of Neural Systems
V: HPP H5, V+U: HPP H7
|
|
2 h weekly |
| exercise | Biophysics of Neural Systems |
|
1 h weekly |