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      What is all the noise about in interval timing?

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          Abstract

          Cognitive processes such as decision-making, rate calculation and planning require an accurate estimation of durations in the supra-second range—interval timing. In addition to being accurate, interval timing is scale invariant: the time-estimation errors are proportional to the estimated duration. The origin and mechanisms of this fundamental property are unknown. We discuss the computational properties of a circuit consisting of a large number of (input) neural oscillators projecting on a small number of (output) coincidence detector neurons, which allows time to be coded by the pattern of coincidental activation of its inputs. We showed analytically and checked numerically that time-scale invariance emerges from the neural noise. In particular, we found that errors or noise during storing or retrieving information regarding the memorized criterion time produce symmetric, Gaussian-like output whose width increases linearly with the criterion time. In contrast, frequency variability produces an asymmetric, long-tailed Gaussian-like output, that also obeys scale invariant property. In this architecture, time-scale invariance depends neither on the details of the input population, nor on the distribution probability of noise.

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          Noise in the nervous system.

          Noise--random disturbances of signals--poses a fundamental problem for information processing and affects all aspects of nervous-system function. However, the nature, amount and impact of noise in the nervous system have only recently been addressed in a quantitative manner. Experimental and computational methods have shown that multiple noise sources contribute to cellular and behavioural trial-to-trial variability. We review the sources of noise in the nervous system, from the molecular to the behavioural level, and show how noise contributes to trial-to-trial variability. We highlight how noise affects neuronal networks and the principles the nervous system applies to counter detrimental effects of noise, and briefly discuss noise's potential benefits.
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            Theta oscillations in the hippocampus.

            Theta oscillations represent the "on-line" state of the hippocampus. The extracellular currents underlying theta waves are generated mainly by the entorhinal input, CA3 (Schaffer) collaterals, and voltage-dependent Ca(2+) currents in pyramidal cell dendrites. The rhythm is believed to be critical for temporal coding/decoding of active neuronal ensembles and the modification of synaptic weights. Nevertheless, numerous critical issues regarding both the generation of theta oscillations and their functional significance remain challenges for future research.
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              Interneurons of the neocortical inhibitory system.

              Mammals adapt to a rapidly changing world because of the sophisticated cognitive functions that are supported by the neocortex. The neocortex, which forms almost 80% of the human brain, seems to have arisen from repeated duplication of a stereotypical microcircuit template with subtle specializations for different brain regions and species. The quest to unravel the blueprint of this template started more than a century ago and has revealed an immensely intricate design. The largest obstacle is the daunting variety of inhibitory interneurons that are found in the circuit. This review focuses on the organizing principles that govern the diversity of inhibitory interneurons and their circuits.
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                Author and article information

                Journal
                Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci
                Philos. Trans. R. Soc. Lond., B, Biol. Sci
                RSTB
                royptb
                Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences
                The Royal Society
                0962-8436
                1471-2970
                5 March 2014
                5 March 2014
                : 369
                : 1637 , Theme Issue 'Timing in neurobiological processes: from genes to behaviour' compiled and edited by Valter Tucci, Catalin V. Buhusi, Randy Gallistel and Warren H. Meck
                : 20120459
                Affiliations
                [1 ]Department of Physics and Astronomy, College of Charleston , 66 George Street, Charleston, SC 29624, USA
                [2 ]Department of Psychology, Utah State University , 2810 Old Main Hill, Logan, UT 84332-2810, USA
                Author notes
                Article
                rstb20120459
                10.1098/rstb.2012.0459
                3895984
                24446493
                7ed39b55-a891-4517-9245-37a183a8b7d6

                © 2014 The Authors. Published by the Royal Society under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/, which permits unrestricted use, provided the original author and source are credited.

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                Custom metadata
                March 5, 2014

                Philosophy of science
                interval timing,striatal beat frequency,noise
                Philosophy of science
                interval timing, striatal beat frequency, noise

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