Neuroscience at NSFStatus and Prosepctives

Rae SilverSenior AdvisorOIA/OD

November 16 2006ENG Advisory Committee

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Why Now

The 2006 OMB-OSTP memo calls for more research in complex biological systems – systems that are non-linear, multi-scale, and difficult to predict

Why NSF

NSF is the one agency that can bring to bear the necessary scientific, mathematical and engineering disciplines to explore “complex biological systems – systems that are non-linear, multi-scale, and difficult to predict”

Opportunity Potential Instrumentation and computational tools Education

Planning process: Neuroscience at NSF

Instrumentation -development -purchase

behavioral and physiologic measurement

data analysis, modeling, and informatics

conceptual and theoretical approaches

building brain-like devices and systems

BIO CISE GEO ENG MPS SBE

Our Challenge

• Articulate future research opportunities– new scientific directions– broader benefits to society

• Develop a series of workshops to identify transformative opportunities– research– education

Workshop recommendationsBIO SBE July 06

Promising work in cognition & neuroscienceAdaptive Plasticity, Conflict and Cooperation, Spatial

knowledge, Time, Language, Causal Understanding

http://www.nsf.gov/sbe/grand_chall.pdf 

CISE ENG MPS August 06

Identified 4 broad areas of opportunity• Instrumentation and Measurement• Data Analysis, Statistical Modeling, Informatics• Conceptual and Theoretical Approaches• Building Brain-like Devices and Systems

Timing & Time measurement “Talk about engineering

principles!” • A central master clock in the SCN. • Many cells in different organs throughout the

body have clocks, each of which have a circadian cycle in gene expression for large number of genes

• Similar to motor system – loops within loops – exactly how one should build a complicated engineered system.

• It’s a bit like how computers are coordinated over the internet in terms of time – each computer has a local clock, and they can be coordinated overall using the NNTP (network time protocol).

Partha Mitra ColdSpringHarborLab

Circadian Body Clocks• 1972 Daily clock located in hypothalamus-SCN• 1971 Clock mutants in flies • 1982 Cloning of fly clock gene (Period) • 1997-98 Period gene in mammals• Discovery of cell based circa-dian clock

DAY NIGHT

Brain Computer Interfaces:Biomimetic Microelectronics as Implantable Neural Prostheses

Problem: Integration of Brain and Computing Systems

Multi-Disciplinary Components:

1. Biomimetic modeling of neurons and neural systems (neuroscience, mathematics, biomedical engineering)

2. Hardware implementation (VLSI) of neural models for parallelism, rapid computational speed, and miniaturization (computer science, computer engineering, electrical engineering)

3. Multi-site electrode recording/stimulation arrays to interface devices with the brain (material science, physics, chemistry)

long-term memory

short-term memory

Ted Berger Aug 06

Functional Neuroimaging of Information Flows within the Brain:Functional Neuroimaging of Information Flows within the Brain:

Mechanisms of cognitive processes and brain functionsMechanisms of cognitive processes and brain functions

ITR: High-Resolution Cortical Imaging of Brain ITR: High-Resolution Cortical Imaging of Brain Electrical Activity. Bin He, U MinnesotaElectrical Activity. Bin He, U Minnesota

Implementation: WorkshopsBIO+SBE: Mind and Brain: Strategies

and Directions for Future July 18-19, 2006

CISE+ENG+MPS: Brain Science as a Mutual Opportunity for the Physical & Mathematical Sciences, Computer Science & Engineering 21-22 August 2006

BIO+CISE+ENG+MPS+SBE March 5-6