The Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel is one of the world’s top-ranking multidisciplinary research institutes. Research in the Department of Neurobiology of the Institute encompasses a wide variety of subjects, in areas including brain imaging (fMRI, optical and to-photon), cellular and molecular biology, computational neuroscience, neuroanatomy, physiology, pharmacology, psychophysics, and systems neuroscience. The Adaptive Perceptual Processing Laboratory (APPL) is part of the Dept. of Neurobiology.
Main tasks
The APPL will play a major role in the neurobiological components of the project including mechanophysiological studies of whisker motion and contact, neurophysiological studies of the vibrissal sensory-motor loops and neuroethological studies of whisking. APPL will also contribute to modelling various system components.
Research experience
The APPL was established in 1992 to study the neuronal mechanisms of adaptive perceptual processing via active sensing, focusing on the rat vibrissal system. Additional efforts are dedicated to studying human active touch and active vision. The APPL employs techniques of multiple-site single-unit recordings together with accurate tracking of whisker kinematics in order to reveal neuronal mechanisms underlying active vibrissal touch. The lab pioneered the method of single-unit recording in artificially-whisking rats which is currently the standard method for studying active vibrissal touch in animals.
