Speaker:

István Kovács, Assistant Professor, Department of Physics and Astronomy, Northwestern University

Title:

The Brain as a Critical Spatial Network

Abstract:

Recent cellular-level volumetric brain reconstructions have revealed petabytes of information about the astronomical level of anatomic complexity. Determining which structural aspects of the brain to focus on, especially when comparing with computational models and other organisms, remains a major challenge. Recently, we utilized tools from statistical physics to show that cellular brain anatomy satisfies universal scaling laws, establishing the notion of "structural criticality" in the cellular structure of the brain. For example, we obtain estimates for critical exponents in the human, mouse and fruit fly brains and show that they are consistent between organisms, to the extent that data limitations allow. Such universal quantities are robust to many of the microscopic details of the cellular structures of individual brains, providing a key step towards generative computational models, and also clarifying in which sense one animal may be a suitable anatomic model for another. Therefore, our framework provides clear guidance in selecting informative structural properties of cellular brain anatomy. Similarly, in terms of the complex interplay between the spatial and topological aspects of the neural connectome, we showed that brain networks share simple organizing principles across the studied organisms. We used these observations to design scalable generative network models, and demonstrated predictive power beyond the input data, as they capture several additional biological and network characteristics, like synaptic weights and graphlet statistics. Currently, with our experimental collaborators, we are working on incorporating transcriptomics data into our models to also understand the underlying genetic wiring rules of brain organization. As in the brain the hardware is the software, even with all the remaining open questions, our results are expected to have broad implications on brain function and dynamics.

References:

[1] H. S. Ansell and I. A. Kovács (2024) Unveiling universal aspects of the cellular anatomy of the brain, Communications Physics, 7, 184

[2] A. Salova and I. A. Kovács (2024) Combined topological and spatial constraints are required to capture the structure of neural connectomes, Network Neuroscience, 1-41

Speaker Bio:

István Kovács is Assistant Professor in the Department of Physics and Astronomy at Northwestern University, a core member of NICO and NITMB, with a courtesy appointment in the Department of Engineering Science and Applied Mathematics. He is a recipient of the 2025 NSF CAREER Award, the Karl Rosengren Faculty Mentoring Award in 2021 and 2023, and was selected for the 2021-2022 Faculty Honor Roll at Northwestern University, for powerful and exceptional impact on student experience. Previously he was a postdoctoral fellow in the Network Science Institute at Northeastern University, a visiting researcher in the Center for Cancer Systems Biology at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and at University of Toronto, as well as at the Department of Network and Data Science of the Central European University. He received a PhD in Physics from the Eötvös Loránd University in Hungary, working at the Wigner Research Centre for Physics. His group develops novel methodologies to predict the emerging structural and functional patterns in problems ranging from systems biology to quantum physics, in close collaboration with experimental groups.

Location:

In person: Chambers Hall, 600 Foster Street, Lower Level
Remote option: https://northwestern.zoom.us/j/97797870075
Passcode: NICO25

About the Speaker Series:

Wednesdays@NICO is a vibrant weekly seminar series focusing broadly on the topics of complex systems, data science and network science. It brings together attendees ranging from graduate students to senior faculty who span all of the schools across Northwestern, from applied math to sociology to biology and every discipline in-between. Please visit: https://bit.ly/WedatNICO for information on future speakers.

Related Info

Speaker:

Cedric Langbort, Professor of Aerospace Engineering, University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign (UIUC)

Title:

TBA

Abstract:

TBA

Speaker Bio:

Cedric Langbort is a Professor of Aerospace Engineering at the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign (UIUC), where he is also affiliated with the Decision & Control Group at the Coordinated Science Lab (CSL), and the department of Electrial and Computer Engineering. He works on applications of control, game, and optimization theory to a variety of fields. His and his advisees' work have garnered multiple recognitions such as a NSF CAREER Award, a Siebel Energy Institute Research Award, a IEEE CDC Best Student Paper Award and a NDSEG fellowship. Most recently, he has been leading a DoD MURI project on Information Exchange Network Dynamics funded by ARO, in which, along with psychologists, communication scientists and behavioral economists, he investigates the dynamics of (mis)information over networks.

Location:

In person: Chambers Hall, 600 Foster Street, Lower Level
Remote option: https://northwestern.zoom.us/j/95560170313
Passcode: NICO25

About the Speaker Series:

Wednesdays@NICO is a vibrant weekly seminar series focusing broadly on the topics of complex systems, data science and network science. It brings together attendees ranging from graduate students to senior faculty who span all of the schools across Northwestern, from applied math to sociology to biology and every discipline in-between. Please visit: https://bit.ly/WedatNICO for information on future speakers.

Related Info

Speaker:

Marianne Green, MD, Vice Dean for Education, Chair, Department of Medical Education, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University

Title:

Precision Education: It's Time

Abstract:

TBA

Speaker Bio:

Marianne Green, MD is the Raymond H. Curry, MD, Professor of Medical Education at the Northwestern Feinberg School of Medicine. She is also the Vice Dean for Education, the chair of the Department of Medical Education, and Co-Director of the Institute for Artificial Intelligence in Medicine - Center for Medical Education in Data Science and Digital Health. Clinically she is interested in the primary care of adults with acute and chronic illness. Academically she is interested in competency assessment for both undergraduate medical students and practicing physicians.

Location:

In person: Chambers Hall, 600 Foster Street, Lower Level
Remote option: https://northwestern.zoom.us/j/94544365225
Passcode: NICO25

About the Speaker Series:

Wednesdays@NICO is a vibrant weekly seminar series focusing broadly on the topics of complex systems, data science and network science. It brings together attendees ranging from graduate students to senior faculty who span all of the schools across Northwestern, from applied math to sociology to biology and every discipline in-between. Please visit: https://bit.ly/WedatNICO for information on future speakers.

Related Info

Speaker:

Diego Gomez-Zara, Assistant Professor, Department of Computer Science and Engineering, University of Notre Dame

Title:

TBA

Abstract:

TBA

Speaker Bio:

Diego Gomez-Zara is an assistant professor at the Department of Computer Science and Engineering and the Mendoza College Business (courtesy) at the University of Notre Dame. He received his Ph.D. in Technology & Social Behavior from Northwestern University, where he worked at the Science of Networks in Communities (SONIC) Research Group. He was a postdoctoral fellow at the Center for Science of Science and Innovation (CSSI). His research is in the fields of Network Science, Human-Computer Interaction (HCI), Computer-Supported Cooperative Work (CSCW), and Computational Social Science.

Location:

In person: Chambers Hall, 600 Foster Street, Lower Level
Remote option: https://northwestern.zoom.us/j/97652419302
Passcode: NICO25

About the Speaker Series:

Wednesdays@NICO is a vibrant weekly seminar series focusing broadly on the topics of complex systems, data science and network science. It brings together attendees ranging from graduate students to senior faculty who span all of the schools across Northwestern, from applied math to sociology to biology and every discipline in-between. Please visit: https://bit.ly/WedatNICO for information on future speakers.

Related Info

Speaker:

Aparna Baskaran, Professor of Physics, Brandeis University

Title:

TBA

Abstract:

TBA

Speaker Bio:

Aparna Baskaran is a Professor of Physics at Brandeis University. The Baskaran Group seeks to understand emergent behavior in driven and inherently out of equilibrium soft materials. The tools used are the framework of non-equilibrium statistical mechanics, phenomenological macroscopic theories and numerical simulations at various scales, from microscopic (brownian dynamics) to macroscopic (numerical solutions to non-linear hydrodynamic equations).

Location:

In person: Chambers Hall, 600 Foster Street, Lower Level
Remote option: https://northwestern.zoom.us/j/92035300595
Passcode: NICO25

About the Speaker Series:

Wednesdays@NICO is a vibrant weekly seminar series focusing broadly on the topics of complex systems, data science and network science. It brings together attendees ranging from graduate students to senior faculty who span all of the schools across Northwestern, from applied math to sociology to biology and every discipline in-between. Please visit: https://bit.ly/WedatNICO for information on future speakers.

Related Info

Speaker:

Morgan Frank, Assistant Professor, Department of Informatics and Networked Systems, University of Pittsburgh

Title:

TBA

Abstract:

TBA

Speaker Bio:

Morgan Frank is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Informatics and Networked Systems in the School of Computing and Information at the University of Pittsburgh. His research agenda is to embrace the complexity of artificial intelligence (AI), the future of work, and the socio-economic consequences of technological change. This goal is inherently multi-disciplinary and collaborative as it builds broadly on advances in the fields of labor economics, sociology, computational social science, network science, data science, political science, and complex systems.

Location:

In person: Chambers Hall, 600 Foster Street, Lower Level
Remote option: https://northwestern.zoom.us/j/91407653122
Passcode: NICO25

About the Speaker Series:

Wednesdays@NICO is a vibrant weekly seminar series focusing broadly on the topics of complex systems, data science and network science. It brings together attendees ranging from graduate students to senior faculty who span all of the schools across Northwestern, from applied math to sociology to biology and every discipline in-between. Please visit: https://bit.ly/WedatNICO for information on future speakers.

Related Info

Speaker:

Neda Bagheri, Associate Professor, Department of Biology, University of Washington

Title:

TBA

Abstract:

TBA

Speaker Bio:

Neda Bagheri is an Associate Professor in the Department of Biology at the University of Washington. The Bagheri Lab develops computational models and algorithms to elucidate fundamental properties governing intracellular dynamics and intercellular regulation. Our group is highly collaborative, integrating a diverse array of research interests and multidisciplinary expertise. We take on grand challenges spanning complex dynamics of cell populations, heterogeneous cell decisions, experimental design, and tool development. A common thread that persists among our projects involves uncovering, predicting, and ultimately controlling biological response, particularly in context of disease.

Location:

In person: Chambers Hall, 600 Foster Street, Lower Level
Remote option: https://northwestern.zoom.us/j/97273424116
Passcode: NICO25

About the Speaker Series:

Wednesdays@NICO is a vibrant weekly seminar series focusing broadly on the topics of complex systems, data science and network science. It brings together attendees ranging from graduate students to senior faculty who span all of the schools across Northwestern, from applied math to sociology to biology and every discipline in-between. Please visit: https://bit.ly/WedatNICO for information on future speakers.

Related Info

Speaker:

Michael Dickey, Camille and Henry Dreyfus Professor & University Faculty Scholar, Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, NC State University

Title:

TBA

Abstract:

TBA

Speaker Bio:

Michael Dickey is the Camille and Henry Dreyfus Professor & University Faculty Scholar at NC State University. The Dickey group is studying new ways to pattern, actuate, and control soft materials (gels, polymers, liquid metals). A common theme of our projects is the importance of thin films, interfacial phenomena, and microfabrication. Our approach is to (i) elucidate the fundamental properties of materials such that they can be harnessed in a useful manner, and (ii) develop new, unconventional approaches to fabricate, actuate, and assemble these materials. Applications of the research include patterning, 3D printing, stretchable / soft electronics, self-folding, actuation of soft robotics, wearable electronics, energy harvesting devices, reconfigurable circuits, and microfluidics..

Location:

In person: Chambers Hall, 600 Foster Street, Lower Level
Remote option: https://northwestern.zoom.us/j/96920996561
Passcode: NICO25

About the Speaker Series:

Wednesdays@NICO is a vibrant weekly seminar series focusing broadly on the topics of complex systems, data science and network science. It brings together attendees ranging from graduate students to senior faculty who span all of the schools across Northwestern, from applied math to sociology to biology and every discipline in-between. Please visit: https://bit.ly/WedatNICO for information on future speakers.

Related Info

Winter Classes End

Spring Classes Begin - Northwestern Monday: Classes scheduled to meet on Mondays meet on this day.