[BIC-announce] "Neuron Firing Patterns" Stats seminar Mon 19 Sep

[Keith Worsley]

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CONFERENCIER(E):  Rob Kass
SPEAKER:          Carnegie-Melon


TITRE/TITLE:
"Bayesian Curve Fitting and Neuron Firing Patterns"



LIEU:          Universite McGIll
PLACE:         Pav. Leacock
                855, rue Sherbrooke O.
                Salle / Room 14

DATE:          Le lundi 19 septembre 2005*
                Monday, September 19, 2005*

HEURE/TIME:    15h30  / 3:30 p.m.

* La conference aura lieu le lundi et non le vendredi.
* The lecture will be held Monday instead of Friday.


RESUME/ABSTRACT:
One of the most important techniques in learning about the functioning
of the brain has involved examining neuronal activity in laboratory animals
under varying experimental conditions. Neural information is represented
and communicated through series of action potentials, or spike trains, and 
the
central scientific issue in many studies concerns the physiological
significance
that should be attached to a particular neuron firing pattern in a 
particular
part of
the brain. In addition, a major relatively new effort in neurophysiology
involves the
use of multielectrode recording, in which responses from dozens of neurons 
are
recorded simultaneously. Among other things, this has made possible the
construction
of brain-controlled robotic devices, which could benefit people whose 
movement
has
been severely impaired.

My colleagues and I have formalized specific scientific questions in terms 
of
point process
intensity functions, and have used Bayesian methods to fit the point process
models
to neuronal data (though we sometimes prefer simple smoothers and the
Bootstrap). In my
talk I will very briefly outline some of the substantive problems we are
examining and the
progress being made. I will also give some details on BARS (Bayesian 
Adaptive
Regression
Splines), an approach to generalized nonparametric regression which we have
found quite useful.


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Coffee and cookies will be served at 3:00 p.m.
Cafe et biscuits seornt servis avant le colloque a 15 h.

Un vin d'honneur suivra le colloque.
A reception, with wine and cheese, will follow the talk.
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Keith Worsley
Department of Mathematics and Statistics, McGill University
805 ouest, rue Sherbrooke, Montreal, Quebec, Canada H3A 2K6
tel: (514) 398-3842, fax: (514) 398-3899
e-mail: keith.worsley at mcgill.ca, web: http://www.math.mcgill.ca/keith