Neural coding: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 20:55, 17 June 2007

Revision as of 20:55, 17 June 2007

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{{Unreferenced|date=June 2007}}

'''Neural coding''' is an important topic in [[neuroscience ]]. This is the question of how sensory and other information is represented in the brain by neurons.

As of 2006, the central [[hypothesis]] of [[neuroscience]] is that [[brain]] function is a product of the electrical and chemical activity of [[neurons]] (formalized as the [[neuron doctrine]]). Supporting cells called [[Glial cell|glia]] have also been hypothesized to play a direct role in brain function{{fact|date=June 2007}}.

[[Sense|Sensory]] stimuli, such as [[light]], [[sound]], [[taste]], [[smell]] and [[touch]] are known to cause sensory neurons to change their activity, resulting in a change in the pattern of electrical activity they produce. It is hypothesized that [[information]] about the stimulus is encoded in this pattern of electrical activity. Sensory information is hypothesized to be transmitted into and around the brain, electrically. It is known that [[muscles]] are activated by electrical pulses and that [[Motor neuron|motoneurons]] serve to convert electrical pulses generated by the brain into muscle movements that allow animals to interact with the environment, often in response to sensory stimuli they receive from it. The study of neural coding is the effort to understand how neurons encode and manipulate information to effect behavior.