Most of what we have learned about the functioning of the living brain has come from extracellular electrical recordings, like the measurement of spikes, LFP, ECoG and EEG signals.

And most analysis of these recordings has been statistical, looking for correlations between the recorded signals and what the animal/human is doing or being exposed to.

However, starting with the neuron rather than the data, these electrical brain signals can also be computed from biophysics-based forward models, and this is topic of this podcast.

The most prominent visual characteristic of neurons is their dendrites.

Even more than 100 years after their first observation by Cajal, their function is not fully understood. Biophysical modeling based on cable theory is a key research tool for exploring putative functions, and today’s guest is one the leading researchers in this field.

We talk about of passive and active dendrites, the kind of filtering of synaptic inputs they support, the key role of synapse placements, and how the inclusion of dendrites may facilitate AI.

The greatest mystery of all is why a group of atoms, like the ones constituting me, can feel anything. The mind-brain problem has puzzled philosophers for millennia.

Thanks to pioneers like Christof Koch, consciousness studies have recently become a legitimate field of scientific inquiry.

In this vintage episode, recorded in February 2021, we discuss many aspects of the phenomenon, including an intriguing candidate theory: Integrated Information Theory.