Criticality as a signature of healthy neural systems.

Paolo Massobrio,Valentina Pasquale,Dietmar Plenz,Lucilla De Arcangelis,Henrik J Jensen

doi:10.3389/fnsys.2015.00022

Abstract

Criticality as a signature of healthy neural systems.

Highlights

This Research Topic in “Frontiers in Systems Neuroscience” contains a collection of original contributions and review articles on the hypothesis that the normal, healthy brain resides in a critical state
This critique has refocused the debate on the specific, shallow exponents found for avalanche power laws, which demonstrate that unique, long-range spatial correlations are introduced by these dynamics, which require precisely balanced, weak interactions that differ from noise (Klaus et al, 2011)
Experimental observations of long-term temporal correlations (Botcharova et al, 2014) in fluctuations of phase synchronization in EEG and MEG signals suggest that the driving mechanisms behind avalanche activity are non-local, with all scales contributing to system behavior

Summary

Introduction

This Research Topic in “Frontiers in Systems Neuroscience” contains a collection of original contributions and review articles on the hypothesis that the normal, healthy brain resides in a critical state. This critique has refocused the debate on the specific, shallow exponents found for avalanche power laws, which demonstrate that unique, long-range spatial correlations are introduced by these dynamics, which require precisely balanced, weak interactions that differ from noise (Klaus et al, 2011).

Results

Conclusion