A role for neural noise in animal behavior

24. Researchers from EPFL and UNIL have used flies to show how behaviors may be shaped by seemingly random brain activity. This study raises new questions about the role of neural noise in moment-to-moment decisions. What processes lie behind voluntary actions like when to walk or rest? According to a study carried out by EPFL and the University of Lausanne, these choices may be shaped in part by neural fluctuations. Neurons in the brain are never quiet. They are constantly producing and receiving signals - like background noise - yet the influences of these signals on behavior remain largely mysterious. The researchers studied the fruit fly, Drosophila melanogaster - a popular experimental animal model - to determine the impact of noisy neural fluctuations on the timing of flies' walking behaviors.