Research goal:

1) To identify the computational algorithms that enable cognitive behaviors and their implementation in distributed circuits,

2) To determine the algorithmic constraints through which metabolic, inflammatory, and emotional states shape cognitive function in distributed brain circuits,

3)To reconfigure circuit function by manipulating network dynamics to rescue cognitive decline from neurodegenerative diseases or injury, and boost learning performance,

4)To develop advanced brain-machine interfaces.

Approach:

We integrate experimental and computational neuroscience with physics and computer engineering to study how learning and memory emerge from distributed brain dynamics. Using brain–machine interfaces, we track learning in real time and image the entire brain at single-cell resolution as animals learn and as network dynamics are perturbed. Experimental data and computational analyses inform theory development, while theory generates testable predictions that guide experimental design. Through this iterative experiment–theory loop, we aim to translate fundamental principles of brain computation into engineering solutions that improve brain health.

1, Decode cognitive brain functions by mapping whole-brain, cellular-resolution activity in small brains performing cognitive behaviors in virtual reality.

2, Precisely manipulate cognitive brain functions (such as memory formation and erasure) by perturbing and observing neural network dynamics at single-cell resolution.

3, Unify experimental, computational, and theoretical neuroscience to translate fundamental principles of brain function into engineering solutions, from diagnostics and therapeutics to brain–machine interfaces.

Projects

1, navigation, learning and memory in larval zebrafish

Projects:

• Goal-directed navigation and mental representations
• Brain–machine interface–enabled motor learning and control
• Constraint-induced motor learning and behavioral adaptation
• Motor reversal learning in VR

2, system-Level Constraints Imposed by Metabolic, Inflammatory, and Emotional States on Neural Circuits and Cognition

Projects:

• Cholesterol Dynamics from Diet to Brain-wide Circuits
• Neural Signaling, Metabolic Allocation, and Brain Dynamics

3, general principles underlying learning across animal models