Balanced activation in a simple embodied neural simulation

TL;DR

This paper investigates how local homeostatic plasticity and balanced brain activity regulate neural and behavioral stability in a simulated embodied agent, highlighting their complementary roles in maintaining dynamic equilibrium.

Contribution

It introduces a simple embodied neural simulation demonstrating the functional importance of homeostatic mechanisms and balanced activity in neural-behavioral dynamics.

Findings

Homeostatic plasticity stabilizes neural activity.

Balanced brain activity supports stable behavior.

Default mode network may have a regulatory role.

Abstract

In recent years, there have been many computational simulations of spontaneous neural dynamics. Here, we explore a model of spontaneous neural dynamics and allow it to control a virtual agent moving in a simple environment. This setup generates interesting brain-environment feedback interactions that rapidly destabilize neural and behavioral dynamics and suggest the need for homeostatic mechanisms. We investigate roles for both local homeostatic plasticity (local inhibition adjusting over time to balance excitatory input) as well as macroscopic task negative activity (that compensates for task positive, sensory input) in regulating both neural activity and resulting behavior (trajectories through the environment). Our results suggest complementary functional roles for both local homeostatic plasticity and balanced activity across brain regions in maintaining neural and behavioral dynamics. These findings suggest important functional roles for homeostatic systems in maintaining neural and behavioral dynamics and suggest a novel functional role for frequently reported macroscopic task-negative patterns of activity (e.g., the default mode network).