Max Planck Florida’s Neurotransmissions Podcast

Latest Episodes:

31: Peering into the Fly Brain with Dr. Vivek Jayaraman Feb 08, 2019

Show notes

Sometimes studying smaller, simpler problems can give us valuable insights into larger, more complex ones. On this episode of Max Planck Florida's Neurotransmissions podcast, Joe and Dan Wilson, former IMPRS student and current postdoc at Harvard, sit down with Janelia Group Leader Dr. Vivek Jayaraman to discuss his circuitous path from aerospace engineering to neuroscience. Learn how the simplest of circuits, the crab stomatogastric ganglion, inspired him to delve deeper into neural networks, and led him to study the fruit fly.

30: Building Brains with Dr. Oscar Marin Jan 24, 2019

Show notes

Can investigating how the neocortex is built further our understanding of the function of the brain? Join Michael and Andre as they sit down with Dr. Oscar Marin, Director and Group Leader at the Centre for Developmental Neurobiology at Kings College London to discuss how the brain is built. In a wide-ranging conversation, they explore the components that come together to build the brain, how programmed cell death may contribute to the normal development of the brain, the contribution of developmental disorders to psychiatric disorders, and adult neurogenesis.

#29 - Modular Motifs of the Neocortex with Dr. Andreas Burkhalter Jan 04, 2019

Show notes

Join Joe and Misha as they survey the neocortex with Dr. Andreas Burkhalter, Professor of Anatomy and Neurobiology at Washington University. As they discuss Dr. Burkhalter's path from studying vision in ants and pigeons to his current work studying rodent neocortex learn about the evolutionary development of neocortex, different theories underpinning sensory processing, the newly found modular organization of the rodent cortex.

Episode 28- Interrogating the Cerebellum with Dr. David DiGregorio Dec 21, 2018

Show notes

On this podcast, Misha, Joe, and Matthias sit down with Dr. David DiGregorio, group leader of the Dynamic Neuronal Imaging Laboratory at Institut Pasteur, to discuss the cerebellum. From the cerebellum’s role in motor planning to the growing interest in its role in cognitive function, they will explore how Dr. DiGregorio’s model-based approaches are allowing his team to test hypotheses about the cerebellar circuit.

Episode 27: A vision quest with Dr. Michael Stryker Dec 06, 2018

Show notes

How does an aspiring poet become one of the pioneers of new model systems for studying the visual cortex? Find out as Joe and Ben sit down with Dr. Michael Stryker, Professor of Physiology at the University of California San Francisco, to chat about his journey through science and how graduate student-mentor relationships have evolved over time.

#26 Theory Meets Experiment with Dr. Judith Hirsch and Dr. Fritz Sommer Nov 21, 2018

Show notes

Using whole-cell recording techniques, Judith Hirsch investigates how the early visual pathway helps translate the visual world into a coherent perception. Fritz Sommer takes theoretical and computational approaches to understanding the basis of learning and perception in the brain. In our first dual guest podcast, Joe and Ben sit down with Dr. Hirsch and Dr. Sommer, two neuroscientists who work and live at the intersection of experimental and theoretical neuroscience. Together they explore how different approaches can often lead to divisions in thinking, how theoreticians and experimentalists have and can work together, and the current difficulties and hopeful future of data sharing.

Episode 25: Breaking the diffraction limit with Dr. Stefan Hell Nov 13, 2018

Show notes

Episode 25: Breaking the diffraction limit with Dr. Stefan Hell How does one go about breaking the laws of physics? On this podcast, Joe, Misha, and Vered sit down with Dr. Stefan Hell to discuss his path to developing super-resolution light microscopy techniques that allow researchers to see details of biology at a scale never before possible. Discover how Dr. Hell was driven to tackle the fundamental limits of resolution for light micrsocopy leading to the 2014 Nobel Prize in Chemistry, the different approaches taken to super-resolution microscopy, and his new program that is opening up freedom for early career researchers to pursue topics they are passionate about.

#24 Music to our Ears: Birdsong, Speech, and Neural Circuits with Dr. Rich Mooney Nov 01, 2018

Show notes

Driven by a lifelong love of music, Rich Mooney's career as a neuroscientist focuses on the circuits that integrate sensory and motor signals in the service of behavior. In a wide ranging interview, Joe, Misha, and Ben sit down with Dr. Mooney to discuss why the songbird is an unparalleled model organism for such a research focus. We also hear about how advances in research tools are leading to a new understanding of how other species integrate motor and auditory signals in the brain, and what this implies about our perception of speech at a philosophical level. Enjoy!

#23: Sunposium 2017: Part 3, Natural Behaviors with Drs. Michael Long and David Anderson Jan 19, 2018

Show notes

How neural circuits form the basis of complex natural behaviors is a fundamental question in neuroscience, and from an evolutionary perspective, these circuits enable the survival and reproduction of organisms from generation to generation. In our final live episode from Sunposium 2017, we sit down with two leading experts to discuss their research into behavioral neural mechanisms. First, we talk to Dr. Michael Long from NYU about his work studying vocal communication, and we learn how birdsong and speech can be studied in complementary ways to gain new insights into motor behaviors. We then talk to Dr. David Anderson from Caltech about his work studying the neural basis emotion. He describes how the brain is able to generate internal states that regulate behaviors such as fear and aggression, and how he is able to study these behaviors in both mice and flies to make use of diverse and complementary techniques.

#22: Sunposium 2017: Part 2, Technological innovation with Drs. Ed Boyden & Viviana Gradinaru Jan 02, 2018

Show notes

To advance our understanding of the nervous system, we need to know how to ask the right questions about the structure and function of neural circuits. This is often facilitated by new techniques for recording, imaging, and manipulating neural activity. In this episode, we return to our series of interviews from MPFI’s 2017 Sunposium conference. We sit down with Dr. Ed Boyden from MIT and Dr. Viviana Gradinaru from Cal Tech (2016 Peter Gruss Young Investigator Award), two leading innovators in the field, to explore the intersection of tool development and experimental neurobiology.

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