Constantin Rothkopf (TU Darmstadt): Computational models of naturalistic sensorimotor decisions and actions
Dec 1st, 2022, 3 PM; Michael-Lankeit-Hörsaal, German Primate Center
Models of human behavior ranging from decision making to sensorimotor control have been classically dichotomized as either being normative, i.e. prescribing how people ought to act, or as descriptive, i.e. capturing how people actually do act, often with the notion that they violate the prescriptions of normative theories. We will present a string of work from my lab, in which we use probabilistic inference methods to invert normative models thereby asking: for what uncertainties about the state of the world, subjective utilities including effort, and for what, possibly false, internal models is observed human behavior optimal? This not only reconciles normative and descriptive models but additionally allows recovering meaningful cognitive quantities describing participants’ behavior on an individual by individual and trial by trial basis. This framework provides computational level explanations and predictions for phenomena ranging from the adaptability of human blinking strategies, learning of active vision behaviors, to perceptual biases in continuous psychophysics, and strategies in visuomotor behavior such as ball catching or navigation.
LECTURE
Luca Bonini (University of Parma): Coding of actions of self and others in the monkey presupplementary motor cortex
October 20th, 2022, 2 PM; via zoom
The
presupplementary motor cortex (pre-SMA, or area F6 in the macaque) is
one of the brain areas most frequently activated in fMRI studies, and it
is thought to play a role in a variety of motor and executive
functions. A hallmark of this area is its rich set of connections with
prefrontal regions, on one side, and dorso-lateral premotor regions, on
the other, thereby acting as a bridge between high-order cognitive
functions and motor planning. In recent years, the research on this
region has gained momentum because of its role in social interactions
and in the encoding of actions of self and others. I will overview
recent evidence indicating that largely shared neural mechanisms and
substrates underlie the motor processing of objects, contextual cues,
observed actions and nonbiological motion in area F6, suggesting that a
basic property of this area consists in a multimodal and flexible
recruitment of motor plans based on a variety of stimuli from the
outside world. This unitary and coding principle may be shared by a
variety of different processes, enabling to account for the manifold of
functional properties and roles attributed to this brain area.
RESEARCH COLLOQUIUM SOCIAL NEUROSCIENCE
October 12th, 2022: 11.30 AM - 1 PM:
Camille Testard: Social connection in primates: adaptive function and underlying neural circuitry
Social
distancing measures implemented to slow the spread of COVID-19 have
triggered a worldwide craving for social contact, leading to surges in
anxiety and depression. This social desire is deeply rooted in our
evolutionary history: most of our closest nonhuman primate relatives
live in groups in which they form strong friendships. After a
devastating hurricane destroyed over 60% of the vegetation on a small
Caribbean island, instead of being more competitive, resident rhesus
macaques became more tolerant of each other, less aggressive, and
expanded their social networks. However, some monkeys increased their
social connectedness by a lot –leading to better chances of survival
almost 5 years after the storm– while others did not. What are the
neurobiological underpinnings of macaques’ ability to socially connect?
In this same free-ranging rhesus macaque population before the storm, we
found that the number of social connections individuals maintained
predicted the volume of specific structures –the mid–superior temporal
sulcus (mSTS) and ventral-dysgranular insula– implicated in social
decision-making and empathy, respectively. Moreover, single-unit
recordings in anatomically connected areas to the mSTS in freely-moving,
socially-interacting rhesus macaques demonstrate that neural ensembles
carry a wealth of information about species-typical social behavior and
contexts important for success in the wild –including neighboring
monkeys’ identity and preceding interactions.
Neda Shahidi: Population Codes and their Correlates in Decision Making
My
goal is to understand the neural correlates of natural decision-making.
During my Ph.D., I pursued this goal by investigating the coordinated
activity of neurons in visual cortices of macaques prior to the animals’
reports, discriminating between two natural scenes. The accuracy of
animals’ reports was correlated with the strength of coordination within
a mid-way visual cortex (area V4), and between this area and the
primary visual cortex (area V1), but not within V1. The results indicate
that while stimulus encoding is related to the spiking rates of
neurons, perceptual accuracy is correlated with the precise spiking
coordination within visual cortical populations.
I also investigated the foraging behavior of unrestrained macaques and
the representation of reward expectation and choices in the dorsolateral
prefrontal cortex (dlPFC). We found that monkeys predict the reward
outcomes to subsequently decide ‘when’ and ‘where’ to forage. Canonical
components of the neural population activity represented animals’ reward
expectations. These components predicted the next choices better than
the true reward expectation and as well as the entire neural population.
Together, the findings of the mentioned projects shaped my curiosity to
study natural decision-making, highlighting the importance of linking
behavior and neural activity in multiple dimensions and the significance
of inter-area cortical communication. LECTURE
Karen J Parker (Stanford University): Developing a monkey model to drive streamlined translation and clinical impact for autism
October 6th, 2022, 5 PM; via zoom
Autism
spectrum disorder (ASD) is a prevalent and poorly understood
neurodevelopmental disorder. There are currently no laboratory-based
diagnostic tests to detect ASD, nor are there any disease-modifying
medications that effectively treat ASD’s core behavioral symptoms.
Scientific progress has been impeded, in part, by overreliance on model
organisms that fundamentally lack the sophisticated social and cognitive
abilities essential for modeling ASD. We therefore saw significant
value in studying naturally low-social rhesus monkeys to model human
social impairment, taking advantage of a large outdoor-housed colony for
behavioral screening and biomarker identification. Careful development
and validation of our animal model, combined with a strong commitment to
evaluating the translational utility of our preclinical findings
directly in patients with ASD, yielded a robust neurochemical marker
(cerebrospinal fluid vasopressin concentration) of trans-primate social
impairment and a medication (intranasal vasopressin) shown to improve
social cognition in naturally low-social monkeys and in children with
ASD. This translational primate research approach stands to advance our
understanding of ASD in a manner not readily achievable with existing
animal models, and can be adapted to investigate a variety of other
human brain disorders which currently lack valid preclinical options,
thereby streamlining translation and amplifying clinical impact more
broadly.
WORKSHOP
Social Curiosity
October 6th-7th, 2022
The
last decades have seen a resurgence of interest in understanding how
individuals actively solicit information about events and entities in
the world around them. This work typically characterises the individual
as a "lone scientist", intrinsically motivated to explore the world in
order to garner more information. However, humans and nonhuman primates
are rarely detached from the sociocultural contexts they live in and
even very young children have been shown to interact with their social
partners and make inferences about their thoughts and beliefs. Such
interactions are likely to influence how we explore the world. This
workshop will bring together researchers aiming to understand the role
of primate sociality in curiosity, bringing together varied perspectives
across a range of formats, such as structured talks, podium
discussions, flash talks and posters.
LECTURE
Peter Carruthers (University of Maryland): Questioning and model-free meta-cognition
September 28, 2022 3 PM; via zoom
LECTURE
Hyowon Gweon
(Stanford University & Research Training Group 2070): Curious,
cooperative and communicative: How we learn from others and help others
learn
July 7, 2022, 3 PM: Michael-Lankeit-Hörsaal, Deutsches Primatenzentrum, Kellnerweg 4
LECTURE
Helen Blank
(University Medical Center Hamburg Eppendorf): You say "tomato", I say
"tumatu" - The influence of prior expectations on perception in social
interaction
June 27, 2022 11 AM: Seminar room 1.136, Institute for Psychology, Goßlerstraße 14