Many complex systems are composed of a large number of similar units that are connected in a complicated manner. An important example is provided by neural networks where nerve cells in the brain communicate by exchanging pulses via synaptic connections. Unlike atoms in a crystal which are arranged on a regular, e.g cubic lattice, nerve cells in the brain grow synaptic connections in a highly specific but irregular fashion. In such systems, a particular question is how rapid coordination, e.g. synchronization, between units of a complex network can be achieved. Three theoretical neuro-physicists from the Max Planck Institut for Flow Research in Goettingen have now shed new light on this question for networks of pulse-coupled oscillators, simple models of neural networks in the brain (Physical Review Letters 92: 074101, 2004).
To analyze the impact of network structure on its function the scientists use the theory of random matrices. Initiated by the work of Wigner on correlations of energy levels in atomic nuclei, random matrix theory has been extensively investigated since the 1950s. Its range of application has been continuously growing since then and today includes the study of various phenomena as different as quantum mechanical aspects of chaos and price fluctuations on financial markets. Timme, Wolf, and Geisel have now demonstrated that the theory of random matrices can also be applied to the dynamic evolution of complex networks. This new approach allows the explorationof the impact of a network's topology on its dynamics, systematically and analytically. From the theory of random matrices the researchers derived mathematical expressions which precisely determined how fast neurons can coordinate their activity, i.e. how fast neural networks can synchronize. Using these random matrix theory expressions, the dependence on properties of single neurons as well as of the network topology can be accurately predicted.
As might be expected, they fou
'"/>
Contact: Prof. Theo Geisel
geisel@chaos.gwdg.de
49-551-517-6400
Max-Planck-Gesellschaft
8-Mar-2004
Page: 1 2 Related biology news :1.
NIGMS funds Center for Quantitative Biology2.
Biology of aging3.
Chemistry meets Biology4.
Annual Chemical Biology Symposium at Yale May 14, 20045.
Institute for Systems Biology, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory announce collaboration6.
Light Biology, a biotech company based on UT Southwestern technology, bought by NimbleGen Systems7.
Biochemistry and Molecular Biology: Research at the Interface of Biochemistry and Human Health8.
Experimental Biology 2004 - Translating the Genome9.
ASPB Plant Biology 2004 in Walt Disney World10.
The American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology meets in Boston11.
Experimental Biology 2004 meets in Washington, D.C. April 17-21