- Neurophysiology

Catalog description

We will use neurophysiology and neuroanatomy to understand the links between molecules, cells, systems, and ultimately behavior. The course will start with an exploration of neurons and signaling within and among cells. We will then examine some sensory and motor systems. The last portion of the course will examine the whole animal in a neurophysiological context. The classroom portion of the course consists of lectures, discussion of the text and of research articles, problem sets, analysis of case studies, and other activities. The laboratory component will involve a mixture of behavioral, anatomical, and physiological studies on vertebrate and invertebrate animals, electronic modeling of nerve circuits, and computer simulations of nerve activity. The labs are designed to introduce students to some fundamental neurophysiological techniques and to a variety of study organisms, and to strengthen experimental design and analysis skills.