Researchers in Tennessee have trained a neural network to analyze the brain activity of mice. This AI can inform scientists of the animal’s location and the direction it is facing based on this data.
The mammalian brain uses two primary types of neurons for navigation. “Head direction neurons” indicate where they are looking, while “place neurons” help create a two-dimensional brain map indicating their location.
Vasilios Maroulas and colleagues conducted a series of experiments to learn more about the function of these cells.
During the study, probes were inserted into the brains of several mice. Data on their neural impulses were then matched with video recordings showing their location and head position as they moved through open spaces.
From this, an algorithm was developed to determine parameters related to location and gaze direction.
“This method allows us to avoid relying on a preloaded map or updating GPS coordinates based on satellite data. In a way, the algorithm ‘thinks’ and recognizes space just like a mammalian brain,” said Maroulas.
The researchers suggested that in the near future, the data obtained could help improve autonomous robot navigation.
Previously, scientists created a neural interface that converts brain waves into words.