TCD Mathematician Awarded Grant to Fund Brain Research

Posted on: 02 September 2010

Dr Conor Houghton of TCD’s School of Mathematics was recently awarded a grant for his research into a new area of study, mathematical neuroscience, which encompasses mathematics and neuroscience.  The award recognises and encourages the study of human cognition with the intention of improving education, training and neuro-rehabilitation.  Dr Houghton received the grant for his research into how sensory information is encoded in spike trains, a sequence of neurological signals.

The human brain continuously receives sensory information, rapidly analyses this data and then responds, controlling bodily actions and functions.  It is able to perform perplexing feats of recall and recognition however how it functions remains largely a mystery.  It is clear that neuronal signaling, in the form of spike trains, is at the heart of this mystery.  Mental faculties, the ability to reliably perceive external stimuli, alongside the huge range of functions that constitute our thinking selves rely on information being communicated as spike trains.  Questions about neuronal signals however have yet to be given a mathematical description that would inform the biology of data processing in neuronal networks.

Speaking about the research Dr Houghton said: “Mathematical neuroscience focuses on understanding how the brain works.  In my laboratory we are looking for a new mathematical language for describing spike trains, the sequences of voltage pulses that neurons use to communicate.  While neurobiologists know how these voltage pulses move along the nerves, we don’t know how they encode information.  By devising a new mathematical language or framework to translate the important features of spike trains, their information content and temporal structure will be easy to calculate and study.  We have already begun exciting new work into brain activity which will be further developed thanks to this award.”

The grant, funded by the James S. McDonnell Foundation in the USA, supports research in cognitive neuroscience, cognitive psychology and cognitive science.  Each year up to 15 scholar awards are presented to individuals whose research is judged to be original and important to advancing the state of knowledge of the field.  Each award is worth $600,000USD.