Visualizing Brain Activity

Brain researchers have developed various devices that can image the brain, providing insights into how it works and how the different areas interact as an animal reacts and learns. PhD candidate Mathew Rynes, in the Department of Biomedical Engineering, is working with a device called a “Mesoscope,” a head-mounted miniature device that can image a mouse cortex. Previous research has recorded activity in the cortex during various conditions; Rynes is now studying how the cortical activity might change while the mouse is learning how navigate through a new space.

Some funding for this project was provided by a 2021 University of Minnesota Informatics Institute MnDRIVE PhD Graduate Assistantship. The UMII MnDRIVE Graduate Assistantship program supports UMN PhD candidates pursuing research at the intersection of informatics and any of the five MnDRIVE areas:

• Robotics, Sensors and Advanced Manufacturing
• Global Food Ventures
• Advancing Industry, Conserving Our Environment
• Discoveries and Treatments for Brain Conditions
• Cancer Clinical Trials

This project is part of the Discoveries and Treatments for Brain Conditions MnDRIVE area.

Research Computing partners:

• University of Minnesota Informatics Institute