Dr. Hans Braun
The Quantitative Biology Institute presents a colloquium with Dr. Hans A. Braun, head of the Marburg Neurodynamics Group at the Institute of Physiology at Philipps University in Germany. The colloquium is Tuesday, Oct. 29, 4:10 to 5 p.m. in Walter 245. He will discuss “Nonlinear Dynamics, Oscillations, Chaos and Noise: From Shark Electroreceptors to Mental Disorders.”
Braun heads Virtual Physiology, didactic programs that offer “realistically appearing fully equipped laboratories on the computer screen for experimentation almost like in the real world.”
“Biological functions typically include nonlinearities and time delays and often are organized in circular, positive and negative feedback loops which easily can lead to oscillations and even chaotic behavior,” he says. “Moreover, biological systems are notoriously noisy, which can induce significant alterations of the system dynamics compared to the deterministic situation.
“Consequences of these particular properties will be illustrated by experimental recording from hypothalamic neurons and sensory receptors of the skin with focus on temperature sensitive electroreceptors of sharks that are endowed with a most exquisite stimulus sensitivity,” he says in his abstract. “The experimental data will be accomplished by computer simulations for the elucidation of the underlying dynamics.
“Remarkably, similar functional principles can be applied to model the time course of manic-depressive disorders—in this case, however, with rather detrimental than beneficial effects: sensitivity turns into vulnerability. Implications of these apparently general principles of biological functions will be discussed—also in comparison to technical systems. The question arises whether biological systems are still more flexible and adaptable then any technical system not despite but because of these technically mostly undesired properties.”
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