Behavioral neuroscience
Recent articles
Robots marry natural neuroscience, experimental control to probe animal interactions
Faux fish and birds are helping researchers decipher some of the rules that govern schooling and squawking, among other social behaviors.

Robots marry natural neuroscience, experimental control to probe animal interactions
Faux fish and birds are helping researchers decipher some of the rules that govern schooling and squawking, among other social behaviors.
Competition seeks new algorithms to classify social behavior in animals
The winner of the competition, which launched today and tests contestants’ models head to head, is set to take home $20,000, according to co-organizer Ann Kennedy.

Competition seeks new algorithms to classify social behavior in animals
The winner of the competition, which launched today and tests contestants’ models head to head, is set to take home $20,000, according to co-organizer Ann Kennedy.
Up and out with Peggy Mason
Mason helped define the rodent prosocial behavior field, but now she’s changing course.

Up and out with Peggy Mason
Mason helped define the rodent prosocial behavior field, but now she’s changing course.
‘Bird Brains and Behavior,’ an excerpt
In their new book, published today, Georg Striedter and Andrew Iwaniuk dive deep into the latest research on the neural mechanisms of avian behavior. This excerpt from Chapter 2 explores how birds sleep.

‘Bird Brains and Behavior,’ an excerpt
In their new book, published today, Georg Striedter and Andrew Iwaniuk dive deep into the latest research on the neural mechanisms of avian behavior. This excerpt from Chapter 2 explores how birds sleep.
This paper changed my life: Victoria Abraira on a tasty link between circuits and behavior
The findings from Charles Zuker’s lab put the taste system on the map, revealing that some fundamental principles of behavior are hardwired.

This paper changed my life: Victoria Abraira on a tasty link between circuits and behavior
The findings from Charles Zuker’s lab put the taste system on the map, revealing that some fundamental principles of behavior are hardwired.
Four autism subtypes map onto distinct genes, traits
An analysis of more than 5,000 autistic children and their siblings underscores the idea that autism can be understood as multiple conditions with distinct trajectories.

Four autism subtypes map onto distinct genes, traits
An analysis of more than 5,000 autistic children and their siblings underscores the idea that autism can be understood as multiple conditions with distinct trajectories.
Star-responsive neurons steer moths’ long-distance migration
Cells in the bogong moth brain respond to astral landmarks to orient the insects in the direction they need to go.

Star-responsive neurons steer moths’ long-distance migration
Cells in the bogong moth brain respond to astral landmarks to orient the insects in the direction they need to go.
Escaping groupthink: What animals’ behavioral quirks reveal about the brain
Neuroscientists have long ignored the variability in animals’ behavioral responses in favor of studying differences across groups. But work on the brain differences that underlie that variability is beginning to pay off.
Escaping groupthink: What animals’ behavioral quirks reveal about the brain
Neuroscientists have long ignored the variability in animals’ behavioral responses in favor of studying differences across groups. But work on the brain differences that underlie that variability is beginning to pay off.
‘Natural Neuroscience: Toward a Systems Neuroscience of Natural Behaviors,’ an excerpt
In his new book, published today, Nachum Ulanovsky calls on the field to embrace naturalistic conditions and move away from overcontrolled experiments.

‘Natural Neuroscience: Toward a Systems Neuroscience of Natural Behaviors,’ an excerpt
In his new book, published today, Nachum Ulanovsky calls on the field to embrace naturalistic conditions and move away from overcontrolled experiments.
Dopamine ‘gas pedal’ and serotonin ‘brake’ team up to accelerate learning
Mice learn fastest and most reliably when they experience an increase in dopamine paired with an inhibition of serotonin in their nucleus accumbens, a new study shows, helping to resolve long-standing questions about the neuromodulators’ relationship.

Dopamine ‘gas pedal’ and serotonin ‘brake’ team up to accelerate learning
Mice learn fastest and most reliably when they experience an increase in dopamine paired with an inhibition of serotonin in their nucleus accumbens, a new study shows, helping to resolve long-standing questions about the neuromodulators’ relationship.
Explore more from The Transmitter
In memoriam: Stephanie “Steve” Shirley, autism philanthropist
Fueled by business success and her son, she played an outsized role in British autism research.

In memoriam: Stephanie “Steve” Shirley, autism philanthropist
Fueled by business success and her son, she played an outsized role in British autism research.
Ann Kennedy explains the theoretical neuroscience of survival behaviors
The Scripps neuroscientist calls for a broader theoretical neuroscience approach in her area of research, which focuses on how the subcortex bridges life and cognition.
Ann Kennedy explains the theoretical neuroscience of survival behaviors
The Scripps neuroscientist calls for a broader theoretical neuroscience approach in her area of research, which focuses on how the subcortex bridges life and cognition.
Local circuit loops within body control fly behavior, new ‘embodied’ connectome reveals
The mapping, which traces how the central nervous system interacts with the rest of the body, challenges the idea that behavior control is centralized.

Local circuit loops within body control fly behavior, new ‘embodied’ connectome reveals
The mapping, which traces how the central nervous system interacts with the rest of the body, challenges the idea that behavior control is centralized.