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Lessons from ‘stop and frisk’ can help Philly police use drones to improve safety without compromising civil liberties

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theconversation.com – Robert Kane, Professor of Criminology and Justice Studies, Drexel University – 2025-01-21 07:36:00

Aerial view of South Philadelphia neighborhood.
halbergman/E+ Collection via Getty Images

Robert Kane, Drexel University and Jordan Hyatt, Drexel University

Philadelphia’s plans to expand its use of police-operated drones signals a pivotal shift in how the city seeks to protect – and surveil – its citizens.

According to the city’s Citizen Police Oversight Commission, the Philadelphia Police Department had two drones as of early 2024. These were, the commission says, primarily used by SWAT teams to scout locations before serving high-risk warrants.

The 2025 city budget earmarks over US$800,000 for police drones, a spokesperson from the department’s Office of Public Affairs told us via email in response to our questions.

The spokesperson also confirmed that Philadelphia police are conducting test flights in Kensington and the surrounding area as part of the initial phase of a “Drone First Responder” program. For now, they say, they’re simply gathering data on how quickly drones respond to certain types of 911 calls compared with traditional police responses.

Police technology can evolve rapidly, and many police agencies across the country already use drones – including as first responders.

This technology may make the operation of law enforcement agencies more efficient and perhaps safer for officers, as they can have eyes on a scene from a safe distance. But many privacy advocates and members of the public have raised concerns about the privacy implications.

We are Philadelphia-based criminologists and researchers who seek to understand the impact of policing practices and technologies, including body-worn cameras and Tasers, on police legitimacy and public policy.

We see how drone policing can pose an almost entirely new set of potential benefits – and risks.

Drone pictured flying in air near top of nearby building with blue sky in background
A police drone flies near Bourbon Street in New Orleans on Jan. 2, 2025, after the driver of a pickup truck plowed into a New Year’s crowd overnight, killing at least 14 people.
Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images)

Benefits for police

Drones are already used for many commercial and recreational purposes.

In Pennsylvania, police drones have recently been used in traffic management and searches for fugitives.

These devices can be equipped with facial recognition, AI, gunfire detection and other new tech that has the potential to transform the scope and nature of the data that police can collect.

Drones can provide rapid emergency responses, such as locating missing persons in remote areas or delivering medical supplies to accident victims in hard-to-reach locations.

During critical situations, they can offer live intelligence by transmitting real-time aerial footage of active crime scenes, such as armed standoffs or large-scale public disturbances. This allows officers to effectively strategize without immediate exposure to danger.

Additionally, drones can reduce the risk of officer injuries during dangerous live pursuits by tracking fleeing suspects from the air, minimizing the need for high-speed vehicle chases or foot pursuits through hazardous environments.

Privacy concerns

Given their small size, aerial maneuverability and, in many cases, ability to record audio and video, drones present new and specific challenges to Fourth Amendment protections, particularly against unreasonable searches and seizures.

In the 1967 Katz v. United States case, the Supreme Court decided people are protected from being recorded by the police in places where they may reasonably expect privacy.

While that case was about a closed phone booth, the logic has been expanded over the years to protect people from new technological intrusion, such as thermal vision.

However, police do not need a warrant to observe and record activities that are visible to the public. In the 1988 case Florida v. Riley, for example, the court decided that police were permissibly able to look into someone’s yard from a helicopter hovering at 400 feet.

While drones are capable of flying much higher than 400 feet, they can also linger 40 feet, or even 4 feet, from a yard, building or window. And they do so in almost complete silence.

Though the Supreme Court has yet to decide whether it is reasonable for people to assume they are protected from drone-based imaging, the highest state court in Michigan recently allowed police to use warrantless drone-recorded footage to count the number of cars on a fenced property in pursuit of a civil zoning violation.

While each state is still able to set its own rules, privacy advocates are concerned that drone surveillance could be used to collect evidence without judicial oversight, or to surveil people without legal limitations or consequences for the violation of constitutional privacy rights.

Low-income communities and communities of color often bear the brunt of overpolicing and surveillance, and drone usage in these neighborhoods could exacerbate existing inequities by increasing scrutiny, perpetuating bias and reinforcing systemic distrust of policing.

Philadelphia’s track record concerning “stop-and-frisk” pedestrian stops sheds important light on those concerns.

A uniformed police officer walks down a sidewalk with about a dozen people around him
Philadelphia Police Commissioner Kevin Bethel has referred to drones as the future of policing in the city, according to local news outlets WHYY and The Philadelphia Inquirer.
Spencer Platt/Getty Images

Lessons from stop and frisk

The landmark stop-and-frisk case Bailey v. City of Philadelphia led to a federal consent decree over the Philadelphia Police Department’s stop-and-frisk practices.

This decree was called the “Bailey agreement.” It required the Philadelphia police to document all stop-and-frisk encounters, revise their policies and training to comply with constitutional standards, and reduce stops that lacked reasonable suspicion or were influenced by racial bias.

The agreement also established independent monitoring and public reporting to ensure transparency and accountability. Data analyses were regularly submitted to a federal judge for oversight.

The lessons from Bailey can inform how the Philadelphia Police Department might approach its drone program to avoid overreach. Misuse of these drones can directly affect the perceived legitimacy of police, already a fraught issue in some communities.

Here are several ways Philadelphia could avoid the pitfalls of unchecked surveillance when it comes to police drones.

1. Real-time monitoring

Real-time monitoring by an independent oversight body of drone deployments, along with clear documentation of each mission, would enable regular oversight like the structured checks in Bailey.

2. Transparency

Public reporting could help ensure community members understand the purposes and limitations of drone usage in their neighborhoods. An independent oversight body or a citizen review board could issue regular reports summarizing deployment data, such as the number of drone flights, their general locations and purposes, and the outcomes of those operations, along with details on data management and compliance with privacy safeguards.

Transparency around how data collected by police drones will be managed is essential for maintaining public trust. Data retention and deletion policies could reassure residents that drone data isn’t being stockpiled indefinitely but rather used only for its intended purpose.

3. Limited usage

Protocols can limit the scope of drone surveillance to specific, critical-use cases – such as emergencies or search-and-rescue operations – and avoid use for regular monitoring of public spaces. A narrowly defined scope would clarify that drones serve as targeted, situational tools rather than blanket surveillance devices.

4. Ethics training and education

Ethics training could be part of drone operator preparation to help pilots manage the gray areas of surveillance and ensure that deployments respect constitutional rights.

To further the culture of police accountability, drone operators and officers alike should understand that surveillance tools – whether stop-and-frisk or drones – have far-reaching implications for community relationships and the broader perception of justice.

5. Demonstrate effectiveness

Bailey’s monitoring process relied on metrics to evaluate stop-and-frisk practices, uncover patterns of misuse and guide reforms. Similarly, police might track the extent to which drones improve response times, reduce crime or enhance public safety in meaningful ways.

Such evaluations would require transparency in reporting results – and not just the successes but also the failures and unintended consequences. Without evidence-based assessments, public skepticism could prevail and undermine the technology’s legitimacy.

With clear guidelines, community involvement and legal accountability, we believe drones can enhance safety without compromising civil liberties, and foster rather than erode public trust.The Conversation

Robert Kane, Professor of Criminology and Justice Studies, Drexel University and Jordan Hyatt, Associate Professor of Criminology and Justice Studies, Drexel University

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

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Scientists found a potential sign of life on a distant planet – an astronomer explains why many are still skeptical

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theconversation.com – Daniel Apai, Associate Dean for Research and Professor of Astronomy and Planetary Sciences, University of Arizona – 2025-04-18 17:44:00

An illustration of the exoplanet K2-18b, which some research suggests may be covered by deep oceans.
NASA, ESA, CSA, Joseph Olmsted (STScI)

Daniel Apai, University of Arizona

A team of astronomers announced on April 16, 2025, that in the process of studying a planet around another star, they had found evidence for an unexpected atmospheric gas. On Earth, that gas – called dimethyl sulfide – is mostly produced by living organisms.

In April 2024, the James Webb Space Telescope stared at the host star of the planet K2-18b for nearly six hours. During that time, the orbiting planet passed in front of the star. Starlight filtered through its atmosphere, carrying the fingerprints of atmospheric molecules to the telescope.

A diagram showing planets and stars emitting light, which goes through JWST detectors, where it's split into different wavelengths to make a spectrum. Each spectrum suggests the presence of a different element.
JWST’s cameras can detect molecules in the atmosphere of a planet by looking at light that passed through that atmosphere.
European Space Agency

By comparing those fingerprints to 20 different molecules that they would potentially expect to observe in the atmosphere, the astronomers concluded that the most probable match was a gas that, on Earth, is a good indicator of life.

I am an astronomer and astrobiologist who studies planets around other stars and their atmospheres. In my work, I try to understand which nearby planets may be suitable for life.

K2-18b, a mysterious world

To understand what this discovery means, let’s start with the bizarre world it was found in. The planet’s name is K2-18b, meaning it is the first planet in the 18th planetary system found by the extended NASA Kepler mission, K2. Astronomers assign the “b” label to the first planet in the system, not “a,” to avoid possible confusion with the star.

K2-18b is a little over 120 light-years from Earth – on a galactic scale, this world is practically in our backyard.

Although astronomers know very little about K2-18b, we do know that it is very unlike Earth. To start, it is about eight times more massive than Earth, and it has a volume that’s about 18 times larger. This means that it’s only about half as dense as Earth. In other words, it must have a lot of water, which isn’t very dense, or a very big atmosphere, which is even less dense.

Astronomers think that this world could either be a smaller version of our solar system’s ice giant Neptune, called a mini-Neptune, or perhaps a rocky planet with no water but a massive hydrogen atmosphere, called a gas dwarf.

Another option, as University of Cambridge astronomer Nikku Madhusudhan recently proposed, is that the planet is a “hycean world”.

That term means hydrogen-over-ocean, since astronomers predict that hycean worlds are planets with global oceans many times deeper than Earth’s oceans, and without any continents. These oceans are covered by massive hydrogen atmospheres that are thousands of miles high.

Astronomers do not know yet for certain that hycean worlds exist, but models for what those would look like match the limited data JWST and other telescopes have collected on K2-18b.

This is where the story becomes exciting. Mini-Neptunes and gas dwarfs are unlikely to be hospitable for life, because they probably don’t have liquid water, and their interior surfaces have enormous pressures. But a hycean planet would have a large and likely temperate ocean. So could the oceans of hycean worlds be habitable – or even inhabited?

Detecting DMS

In 2023, Madhusudhan and his colleagues used the James Webb Space Telescope’s short-wavelength infrared camera to inspect starlight that filtered through K2-18b’s atmosphere for the first time.

They found evidence for the presence of two simple carbon-bearing molecules – carbon monoxide and methane – and showed that the planet’s upper atmosphere lacked water vapor. This atmospheric composition supported, but did not prove, the idea that K2-18b could be a hycean world. In a hycean world, water would be trapped in the deeper and warmer atmosphere, closer to the oceans than the upper atmosphere probed by JWST observations.

Intriguingly, the data also showed an additional, very weak signal. The team found that this weak signal matched a gas called dimethyl sulfide, or DMS. On Earth, DMS is produced in large quantities by marine algae. It has very few, if any, nonbiological sources.

This signal made the initial detection exciting: on a planet that may have a massive ocean, there is likely a gas that is, on Earth, emitted by biological organisms.

An illustration of what scientists imagine K2-18b to look like, which looks a little like Earth, with clouds and a translucent surface.
K2-18b could have a deep ocean spanning the planet, and a hydrogen atmosphere.
Amanda Smith, Nikku Madhusudhan (University of Cambridge), CC BY-SA

Scientists had a mixed response to this initial announcement. While the findings were exciting, some astronomers pointed out that the DMS signal seen was weak and that the hycean nature of K2-18b is very uncertain.

To address these concerns, Mashusudhan’s team turned JWST back to K2-18b a year later. This time, they used another camera on JWST that looks for another range of wavelengths of light. The new results – announced on April 16, 2025 – supported their initial findings.

These new data show a stronger – but still relatively weak – signal that the team attributes to DMS or a very similar molecule. The fact that the DMS signal showed up on another camera during another set of observations made the interpretation of DMS in the atmosphere stronger.

Madhusudhan’s team also presented a very detailed analysis of the uncertainties in the data and interpretation. In real-life measurements, there are always some uncertainties. They found that these uncertainties are unlikely to account for the signal in the data, further supporting the DMS interpretation. As an astronomer, I find that analysis exciting.

Is life out there?

Does this mean that scientists have found life on another world? Perhaps – but we still cannot be sure.

First, does K2-18b really have an ocean deep beneath its thick atmosphere? Astronomers should test this.

Second, is the signal seen in two cameras two years apart really from dimethyl sulfide? Scientists will need more sensitive measurements and more observations of the planet’s atmosphere to be sure.

Third, if it is indeed DMS, does this mean that there is life? This may be the most difficult question to answer. Life itself is not detectable with existing technology. Astronomers will need to evaluate and exclude all other potential options to build their confidence in this possibility.

The new measurements may lead researchers toward a historic discovery. However, important uncertainties remain. Astrobiologists will need a much deeper understanding of K2-18b and similar worlds before they can be confident in the presence of DMS and its interpretation as a signature of life.

Scientists around the world are already scrutinizing the published study and will work on new tests of the findings, since independent verification is at the heart of science.

Moving forward, K2-18b is going to be an important target for JWST, the world’s most sensitive telescope. JWST may soon observe other potential hycean worlds to see if the signal appears in the atmospheres of those planets, too.

With more data, these tentative conclusions may not stand the test of time. But for now, just the prospect that astronomers may have detected gasses emitted by an alien ecosystem that bubbled up in a dark, blue-hued alien ocean is an incredibly fascinating possibility.

Regardless of the true nature of K2-18b, the new results show how using the JWST to survey other worlds for clues of alien life will guarantee that the next years will be thrilling for astrobiologists.The Conversation

Daniel Apai, Associate Dean for Research and Professor of Astronomy and Planetary Sciences, University of Arizona

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As views on spanking shift worldwide, most US adults support it, and 19 states allow physical punishment in schools

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theconversation.com – Christina Erickson, Associate Dean in the College of Nursing and Professional Disciplines, University of North Dakota – 2025-04-18 07:39:00

Spanking in the U.S. generally ends around age 12, when children become big enough to resist or fight back.
Sandro Di Carlo Darsa/Brand X Pictures via Getty Images

Christina Erickson, University of North Dakota

Nearly a half-century after the Supreme Court ruled that school spankings are permissible and not “cruel and unusual punishment”, many U.S. states allow physical punishment for students who have misbehaved.

Today, over a third of the states allow teachers to paddle or spank students. More than 100,000 students are paddled in U.S. schools each year.

Christina Erickson, an associate dean and professor of social work at the University of North Dakota, wrote a book on the subject: “Spanked: How Hitting Our Children is Harming Ourselves.” She discussed the scope of the practice and its effects with The Conversation.

What spanking legislation exists worldwide?

Around the world, 68 countries have banned the hitting of children in any form, including spanking. This movement began in 1979 with Sweden’s ban on all forms of physical punishment, including spanking in any setting, and including in the family home.

The pace of change quickened in the early 2000s when more countries adopted similar laws. For example, the legal language of countries like Nepal rests on an emerging definition of children as rights holders similar to adults and as humans worth protecting from harm.

Back view of students sitting at desks inside a classroom.
Spanking in schools is legal in 19 states.
Maskot/Getty Images

What are US policies toward spanking?

Each state in the U.S. has its own child abuse laws, and all states, tribes and territories aim to protect children from abuse. But all state laws also allow parents to hit their children if it does not leave an injury or a mark.

A typical example is Oklahoma’s definition of child abuse and neglect. It includes an exception that permits parents to use ordinary force as a means of discipline, including spanking, using an implement like a switch or a paddle. However, leaving evidence of hitting, such as welts, bruises, swelling or lacerations, is illegal and considered child abuse in all states.

Parental spanking of children is considered unique from other physical violence because of the relational context and the purpose. Laws entitle parents to hit their children for the purpose of teaching a lesson or punishing them to improve behavior. Children are the only individuals in society who can be hit by another person and the law does not regard it as assault.

Spanking’s impact on a child is unfortunately similar to abusive hitting. Spanking has been labeled as an “Adverse Childhood Experience,” or ACE. These are events that cause poor health outcomes over the span of one’s life.

The practice of spanking also affects parents. Acceptance of the physical discipline of spanking puts parents at risk for the escalation of physical punishment that leads to abuse.

Parents who spank their child have the potential to abuse them and be caught in a legal and child protection system that aims to protect children from harm. It is unclear what triggers a parent to cross over from discipline into abuse. Research shows that spanking at a young age, such as a 1-year-old, increases the chance of involvement by Child Protective Services by 33%.

Some school districts require permission from parents to allow disciplinary paddling in school, while others do not require any communication. State law does not assure agreement between parents and school districts on what offenses warrant a paddling. Parents may feel they have no alternative but to keep their child in school, or fear reprisal from school administrators. Some students are old enough to denounce the punishment themselves.

YouTube video
In this school district, physical punishment is used only when parents give written permission.

Is spanking considered the same as hitting?

The term spank conceals the concept of hitting and is so commonplace it goes unquestioned, despite the fact that it is a grown adult hitting a person much smaller than them. The concept is further concealed because hitting a child’s bottom hides any injuries that may occur.

Types of hitting that are categorized as spanking have narrowed over the years but still persist. Some parents still use implements such as tree switches, wooden spoons, shoes or paddles to “spank” children, raising the chances for abuse.

Most spanking ends by the age of 12, partly because children this age are able to fight back. When a child turns 18, parental hitting becomes the same as hitting any other adult, a form of domestic violence or assault throughout the U.S.

There is a lack of a consistent understanding of what constitutes a spanking. The definition of spanking is unique to each family. The number of hits, clothed or not, or using an implement, all reflect geographical or familial differences in understanding what a spanking is.

How do US adults view spanking?

People in the United States generally accept spanking as part of raising children: 56% of U.S. adults strongly agree or agree that “… it is sometimes necessary to discipline a child with a good, hard spanking.” This view has been slowly changing since 1986, when 83% of adults agreed with that statement.

The laws worldwide that protect children from being hit usually begin by disallowing nonparental adults to hit children. This is happening in the U.S. too, where 31 states have banned paddling in schools.

At a national level, efforts have been made to end physical punishment in schools. However, 19 states still allow spanking of children in public schools, which was upheld by a 1977 Supreme Court case.

With the slow but steady drop of parents who believe that sometimes children need a good hard spanking, as well as the ban of paddling in schools in 31 states, one could argue that the U.S. is moving toward a reduction in spanking.

What does research say about spanking?

Spanking’s negative influence on children’s behavior has been documented for decades. Spanking seems to work in the moment when it comes to changing or stopping the immediate behavior, but the negative effects are hidden in the short term and occur later in the child’s life. Yet because the spanking seemed to work at the time, the parent doesn’t connect the continued bad behavior of the child to the spanking.

An abundance of research shows that spanking causes increased negative behaviors in childhood. Spanking lowers executive functioning for children, increases dating violence as teenagers and even increases struggles with mental health and substance abuse in adulthood. Spanking does not teach new or healthy behaviors, and is a stress-inducing event for the child and the adult hitting them.

No studies have shown positive long-term benefits from spanking. Because of the long-standing and expansive research findings showing a range of harm from spanking and the increased association with child abuse, the American Psychological Association recommends that parents should never spank their children.

What are some resources for parents?

Consider these questions when choosing a discipline method for your child:

  • Is the expectation of your child developmentally accurate? One of the most common reasons parents spank is because they are expecting a behavior the child is not developmentally able to execute.

  • Can the discipline you choose grow with your child? Nearly all spanking ends by age 12, when kids are big enough to fight back. Choose discipline methods you can use over the long term, such as additional chores, apologies, difficult conversations and others that can grow with your child.

  • Might there be another explanation for your child’s behavior? Difficulty of understanding, fear or miscommunication? Think of your child as a learner and use a growth mindset to help your child learn from their life experiences.

Parents are the leaders of their families. Good leaders show strength in nonthreatening ways, listen to others and explain their decisions. Don’t spoil your kids. But being firm does not have to include hitting.

Is spanking children good for parents?

Doubtful. Parents who hit their kids may be unaware that it influences their frustration in other relationships. Expressing aggression recharges an angry and short-tempered internal battery that transfers into other parts of the adults’ lives.

Practicing calm when with your children will help you be calmer at work and in your other relationships. Listening to and speaking with a child about challenges, even from a very early age, is the best way to make it part of your relationship for the rest of your life.

Choose a method that allows you to grow. Parents matter too.The Conversation

Christina Erickson, Associate Dean in the College of Nursing and Professional Disciplines, University of North Dakota

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

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How does your brain create new memories? Neuroscientists discover ‘rules’ for how neurons encode new information

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theconversation.com – William Wright, Postdoctoral Scholar in Neurobiology, University of California, San Diego – 2025-04-17 13:00:00

Neurons that fire together sometimes wire together.
PASIEKA/Science Photo Library via Getty Images

William Wright, University of California, San Diego and Takaki Komiyama, University of California, San Diego

Every day, people are constantly learning and forming new memories. When you pick up a new hobby, try a recipe a friend recommended or read the latest world news, your brain stores many of these memories for years or decades.

But how does your brain achieve this incredible feat?

In our newly published research in the journal Science, we have identified some of the “rules” the brain uses to learn.

Learning in the brain

The human brain is made up of billions of nerve cells. These neurons conduct electrical pulses that carry information, much like how computers use binary code to carry data.

These electrical pulses are communicated with other neurons through connections between them called synapses. Individual neurons have branching extensions known as dendrites that can receive thousands of electrical inputs from other cells. Dendrites transmit these inputs to the main body of the neuron, where it then integrates all these signals to generate its own electrical pulses.

It is the collective activity of these electrical pulses across specific groups of neurons that form the representations of different information and experiences within the brain.

Diagram of neuron, featuring a relatively large cell body with a long branching tail extending from it
Neurons are the basic units of the brain.
OpenStax, CC BY-SA

For decades, neuroscientists have thought that the brain learns by changing how neurons are connected to one another. As new information and experiences alter how neurons communicate with each other and change their collective activity patterns, some synaptic connections are made stronger while others are made weaker. This process of synaptic plasticity is what produces representations of new information and experiences within your brain.

In order for your brain to produce the correct representations during learning, however, the right synaptic connections must undergo the right changes at the right time. The “rules” that your brain uses to select which synapses to change during learning – what neuroscientists call the credit assignment problem – have remained largely unclear.

Defining the rules

We decided to monitor the activity of individual synaptic connections within the brain during learning to see whether we could identify activity patterns that determine which connections would get stronger or weaker.

To do this, we genetically encoded biosensors in the neurons of mice that would light up in response to synaptic and neural activity. We monitored this activity in real time as the mice learned a task that involved pressing a lever to a certain position after a sound cue in order to receive water.

We were surprised to find that the synapses on a neuron don’t all follow the same rule. For example, scientists have often thought that neurons follow what are called Hebbian rules, where neurons that consistently fire together, wire together. Instead, we saw that synapses on different locations of dendrites of the same neuron followed different rules to determine whether connections got stronger or weaker. Some synapses adhered to the traditional Hebbian rule where neurons that consistently fire together strengthen their connections. Other synapses did something different and completely independent of the neuron’s activity.

Our findings suggest that neurons, by simultaneously using two different sets of rules for learning across different groups of synapses, rather than a single uniform rule, can more precisely tune the different types of inputs they receive to appropriately represent new information in the brain.

In other words, by following different rules in the process of learning, neurons can multitask and perform multiple functions in parallel.

Future applications

This discovery provides a clearer understanding of how the connections between neurons change during learning. Given that most brain disorders, including degenerative and psychiatric conditions, involve some form of malfunctioning synapses, this has potentially important implications for human health and society.

For example, depression may develop from an excessive weakening of the synaptic connections within certain areas of the brain that make it harder to experience pleasure. By understanding how synaptic plasticity normally operates, scientists may be able to better understand what goes wrong in depression and then develop therapies to more effectively treat it.

Microscopy image of mouse brain cross-section with lower middle-half dusted green
Changes to connections in the amygdala – colored green – are implicated in depression.
William J. Giardino/Luis de Lecea Lab/Stanford University via NIH/Flickr, CC BY-NC

These findings may also have implications for artificial intelligence. The artificial neural networks underlying AI have largely been inspired by how the brain works. However, the learning rules researchers use to update the connections within the networks and train the models are usually uniform and also not biologically plausible. Our research may provide insights into how to develop more biologically realistic AI models that are more efficient, have better performance, or both.

There is still a long way to go before we can use this information to develop new therapies for human brain disorders. While we found that synaptic connections on different groups of dendrites use different learning rules, we don’t know exactly why or how. In addition, while the ability of neurons to simultaneously use multiple learning methods increases their capacity to encode information, what other properties this may give them isn’t yet clear.

Future research will hopefully answer these questions and further our understanding of how the brain learns.The Conversation

William Wright, Postdoctoral Scholar in Neurobiology, University of California, San Diego and Takaki Komiyama, Professor of Neurobiology, University of California, San Diego

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