How the Brain Maps What it Sees and Hears: Jason Triplett

Auditory and visual cues are crucial for perceiving the environment. Within the brain, both auditory stimuli and visual stimuli are organized topographically. In the visual system this means that neighboring spots on the retina project to neighboring spots in the brain. Likewise, areas along the basilar membrane in the cochlea which are sensitive to increasing frequencies of sound maintain this arrangement in the areas of the brain to which they project.

Our guest this week is Jason Triplett, a postdoctoral researcher at the University of California, Santa Cruz. He is interested in understanding the molecular and genetic mechanisms that guide the formation of these spatial maps. Jason will discuss how waves of neuronal activity that take place during development (before the eyes are even opened) are used by the brain to establish these complicated maps. Finally, we will hear briefly about the experiences that led him toward a career in science.

More on the Triplett Lab's research.

Hosted by Sama Ahmed.