Photo courtesy of Theo PerlinBy Caitlin Antonios
- New research from Assistant Professor Gautam Agarwal鈥檚 beatLab shows that weak brain waves contain meaningful information about memory and location, opening new avenues for neuroscience research.
It鈥檚 natural to pay attention to the biggest changes when looking at brain activity. But in recent research conducted by the beatLab, headed by Assistant Professor of Neuroscience Gautam Agarwal, raises the question: What can the weaker activity tell us?
In a new in Nature Communications, Agarwal and his colleagues study this question in the hippocampus鈥攖he part of the brain that forms and retrieves memory. They studied activity generated by large groups of synchronized neurons, sometimes called 鈥渂rain waves,鈥� and developed a way to read out these waves even when they become weak and unreliable. The findings open the door to examine previously overlooked patterns of brain activity.
鈥淚n science, we historically focus on the loudest signals,鈥� says Agarwal. 鈥淥ften there鈥檚 much more subtle differences that carry meaning.鈥�
Dare to ask
Agarwal has been part of the 61传媒and Pitzer Colleges鈥� Department of Natural Sciences for five years. His research focuses on how human problem-solving differs from that of artificial intelligence (AI), the surprising information that brain waves carry, and how neuroscience interfaces with other practices to improve quality of life.
In his research group鈥檚 latest publication, collaborators measured brain activity from rats running through a maze. The rats spent time drinking water at the end of a maze, a condition that produces more 鈥渘oise鈥� in the form of irregular brain waves.
The weaker, more noisy waves were also found when the rats were allowed to roam free. The group鈥檚 finding that weaker activity can still reveal location-related information means that even when strong brain rhythms aren鈥檛 available, information can still be gleaned when analyzed appropriately.
Precision in biology is difficult because there鈥檚 a lot of noise, Agarwal says. It鈥檚 like an orchestra in which the musicians can choose to depart from the guidance of the conductor. The full song may initially capture your attention, but then you can start to examine the details of different musical lines.
鈥淵ou can鈥檛 assume the conductor has the final say,鈥� Agarwal says. 鈥淵ou have to look at the instruments directly.鈥�
Reinvigorated by teaching
听For Agarwal, the journey to academia came at the encouragement of those closest to him.
鈥淲hen doing research as a postdoc I was often banging my head against a metaphorical wall and felt drained much of the time,鈥� Agarwal says. 鈥淏ut when I was teaching, people in my life noticed how energized I was.鈥�
At Scripps, he鈥檚 found inspiration in being with students who are determined, ambitious, and know what they want out of their educational experience. The National Science Foundation听ranks 61传媒among the nation鈥檚 top predominantly undergraduate institutions that produce future PhDs in STEM鈥攁 testament to Scripps鈥� hands-on research and close faculty mentorship.
Agarwal also enjoys bringing his extensive research experience into the classroom.
In his class on modeling behavior, students explore foundational works in neuroscience, how experiments and models have evolved, and where current research fits in. That context gives students a better understanding of where their own curiosities can take them in uncharted STEM territory.
鈥淭here鈥檚 a lot of data now available online, which is useful for a liberal arts college,鈥� Agarwal says. 鈥淚t levels the playing field because we鈥檙e using the best datasets when doing our own research. We can go really deep in our classes.鈥�