Significant differences are indicated with 🐦‍⬛

🐔 p < 0.05, 🦆 p < 0.01, 🦉 p < 0.001, 🦅 p < 0.0001, 🦤= n.s.

To understand decision-making, we need to truly challenge lab animals Complex, multidimensional tasks that unfold over time could reveal how different brain areas work together to support decisions.

By designing decision-making tasks that vary along multiple dimensions and truly challenge our animals, we might finally understand how multiple brain areas coordinate to drive decisions, writes @chandlab.bsky.social.

#neuroskyence

www.thetransmitter.org/decision-mak...

coincidentally just got this tshirt

Our new article is out in @jexpbiol.bsky.social! 🐦 We show how song cultures emerged in three domesticated zebra finch colonies founded with males trained to sing the same song 🎶

Full study here:
journals.biologists.com/jeb/article/...

Excited to share a new review by @kocherlab.bsky.social and me:

Nature-inspired neuroscience

We discuss diverse sensory systems and behaviors across the animal kingdom and argue for their integration into neuroscience. New tools in diverse systems are making this possible ✨

tinyurl.com/y5y9du27

ribbiting content

A large songbird is singing while perched on a fencepost. He has a streaked brown, black and white back, head and wings and a bright yellow neck and breast with a black "necklace". His beak is wide open and eye partially closed as he sings loudly.

Lots of western meadowlarks belting out their songs this morning.
#Alberta #wildlife #birding #birds 🪶

a large willow oak tree in a backyard

our massive willow oak (~15ft circumference) in full glory

mountain laurel, a white cup like flower with pink spots

always love mountain laurel

My circus, and my monkeys (Barnum P:T)

Hebb, -70:0

go home biology, you’re drunk.
reverse transcriptase is now taking sequence instructions from a protein

Emma Hammond explored minor inflammation impacts on sociability! LPS impact based on sex/behavioral phenotype; less affiliative males increased sociability, contrary to classic social withdrawal when sick. Microglia in mPFC/DG (-) correlated with sociability
authors.elsevier.com/c/1msOfbrwfU...

no worries and that's a good description. Always hard to joke about these things given Poe's law:

Without a clear indicator of the author's intent, it is impossible to tell the difference between a parody of extreme views and sincere, genuine extremism.

using the mimic as my go-to analogy for prediction error from now on

indeed a joke - these are all ideas that somehow have permeated public understanding about neuroscience with no basis in fact

need a serotonin feast asap

dopamine fast update: my right lizard brain went from optimal 10% utilization down to 5% (I'm left-brained). breaking fast to neuromaxx my brain stack 🧠💪 #neuroskyence

Does anyone in the Boston area have Emx1-Cre mice?? Jax stopped selling them! Asking for a friend.

Neurobiologists Hack Brain Circuits Tied to Placebo Pain Relief Scientists have identified the brain circuits tied to placebo pain relief. Researchers have known that placebo effects can be a powerful treatment, yet the underlying neurological mechanisms have not ...

Excited to share our new study on how the brain generates placebo pain relief!

We developed a mouse model that recapitulates key features of human placebo analgesia, then used it to identify causal circuitry.

www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

today.ucsd.edu/story/neurob...

1/n

Applying for an ERC grant in the 2027 competitions: what you need to know The ERC plans to launch the grant competitions under its 2027 Work Programme between July 2026 and June 2027, with the calls for proposals introducing several changes to the eligibility rules for appl...

The #ERC just announced new rules!
erc.europa.eu/news-events/...

If you got a B score before, you’re blocked for 2 years (instead of 1). A C score means 3-year exclusion.

This applies to the 2027 call for now, but I’d expect this to stick. Important for anyone planning to apply this round!

If the vagus whispers and dopamine isn’t around to hear it, does it make a sound?

New paper in collaboration with @mhburrell.bsky.social @naoshigeuchida.bsky.social and @gershbrain.bsky.social !

"Phasic dopamine drives conditioned responding beyond its role in learning" 🧵 (1/8)

www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...

Going from neural activity to blood flow just became easier! Two brainwide populations, each with its neurovascular coupling. (But going backwards... is now a tad more complicated.)

By @agnesland.bsky.social & team.
Thanks @intlbrainlab.bsky.social @wellcometrust.bsky.social @simonsfoundation.org

per our earlier discussion in my dreams...

why don't they just do all the experiments? are they stupid?

purr review

Idea for grant proposal formative assessment. Very short proposal (1 page say) and reviewers are each allowed 3 questions which you get a very limited character count to respond to. Overall effort hugely reduced and lets the proposal evolve within a round rather than needing resubmission. Thoughts?