
Mike Wiest
Associate Professor of Neuroscience
Links
Mission: to determine the distributed neural substrate of perception.
Education
- B.A., Dartmouth College
- M.S., Michigan State University
- Ph.D., Michigan State University
Current and upcoming courses
The electrical activities of neurons in the brain underlie all of our thoughts, perceptions, and memories. However, it is difficult to measure these neural activities experimentally, and also difficult to describe them precisely in ordinary language. For these reasons, mathematical models and computer simulations are increasingly used to bridge the gap between experimental measurements and hypothesized network function. This course will focus on the use of mathematical models and computer simulations to describe the functional dynamics of neurons in a variety of animals. Topics will range from single neuron biophysics to the analysis of circuits thought to underlie sensory perception and memory. Topics will be introduced by background lectures, followed by student-led presentations of primary literature and construction of a computer model of the system studied. Lab will introduce students to computer programming of mathematical models in MATLAB and the neuron-simulator NEURON.
This course has a required co-requisite Laboratory - NEUR 335L.