Neural plasticity

Recent articles

Two panels depict different brain wiring-like networks.

Rethinking how neural activity sculpts critical periods

New findings on the role of neural activity in developing circuits are challenging our prior notions about the rules that govern critical periods.

By Gregg Wildenberg
3 June 2025 | 5 min read

Explore more from The Transmitter

New Stanford initiative aims to build digital twin of human brain

The effort, funded by private donors, seeks to train the model on a trove of MRI and magnetoencephalography data that scientists plan to collect over the next five years—but questions about its scientific utility and feasibility remain.

By Natalia Mesa
2 November 2026 | 0 min watch
Illustration of cake with genetic code inside.

The genome offers a recipe, not a blueprint, for the brain

During brain development, genes set the rules and turn the knobs; self-organization does much of the rest.

By Ila Fiete
2 November 2026 | 8 min read
Illustration of four faces of a rhesus macaque transitioning from opaque to transparent.

Autism research involving monkeys contends with uphill battle

Macaques and marmosets recapitulate the condition’s core traits better than mice can, but funding uncertainty and challenges at primate centers in the United States could make this work difficult to continue.

By Diana Kwon
2 November 2026 | 8 min read