Structure and Function of neural Networks

The problem with the brain is that it is organized in such an incredibly complex way. There is the level of areas and structures – a visual cortex here, some basal ganglia there. Then there are the individual cells with their complex communication at the synapse. And then these cells form networks in all possible shapes and sizes that do not care about structures and areas. There are still many blank spots on our map of the brain – often only the size of a molecule, yet crucial to our overall understanding.

So what do these networks look like? How are they organized? How do they regenerate when damaged? How flexible are they? How is the fate of each individual cell in the fetus determined? And how does all of this ultimately shape our behavior?

Questions like these lead us into the engine room of the nervous system – into its structures and functions. It is a small-scale and mechanistic environment, but also highly dynamic and complex. Taken together, we find here the foundations for the miracle of life.

The Collaborative Research Center 870 operates precisely there, in the dynamic processes somewhere between sensory and motor functions, bottom-up and top-down, function and assembly. It is a vast field that we are covering step by step in three phases:

• Phase 1 highlights the flexible nervous system, with the introduction Well Connectedby Janosch Deeg.
• Phase 2 looks at the individual cell – how it works, what it can do, and why more than one is needed. Nora Schulz introduces this with the text The Secret to Success: Communication.
• In phase 3, we experience a new image of the brain – one that overturns existing specialist knowledge. Nora Schulz gives us an idea of this in her text Senses and Actions.

The text Die Wunder des Lebens(The Wonders of Life) paints a bigger picture of the questions.

We hope you enjoy this topic that is right at the heart of life.