Understanding how brain signals give rise to thinking using brain-wide recordings
Official title: Identifying mechanisms of cognitive computations from heterogeneous neural responses and behavior
Funded at Princeton University · NIH-11451195 · Data updated 2026-11-12
Researchers at Princeton are developing new brain theories and computer tools to understand how complex neural signals relate to thinking and behavior.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Princeton University NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Princeton, UNITED STATES) |
| Project start | September 1, 2026 |
| Project end | June 30, 2029 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $473,543 |
| NIH project number | 1R01DA063421-01A1 |
| Project ID | NIH-11451195 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Not applicable to patients directly in this grant, as it studies brain activity in animals and develops theory and methods.
✕Less likely to help
Direct benefits to patients are not the immediate focus of this funded project.
What this research studies
This project uses large-scale recordings of brain activity in behaving animals and builds new computational methods to connect neural signals with cognitive tasks. By refining recurrent neural network models and constraining them with real data, the team aims to reveal how mixed neural responses drive decision making. The work focuses on translating high-dimensional brain activity into testable predictions for how to perturb specific neural groups affect behavior. The ultimate goal is to uncover mechanisms that produce cognitive computations in the brain.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: Could lead to better understanding of how cognitive functions emerge from brain networks and inform future interventions for brain disorders.
How similar studies have gone: Prior work using large-scale neural recordings and RNN models has produced meaningful insights, but linking to causal perturbations remains challenging and this project aims to advance that link.
Where this research is happening
-
Princeton University
Princeton, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Engel, Tatiana — Princeton University
- Study coordinator: Engel, Tatiana
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About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.