Dr. Aaron Gruber

Basic Science:

The Gruber lab investigates how how information is represented and processed by decision-making circuits in the brain, with a focus on how the underlying neural dynamics are affected by molecular mechanisms such as bioenergenics, inflammatory molecules, and neuromodulators like dopamine. 

Translation:

Our provides a multi-scale framework to study how cognitive phenomena are affected by environmental factors linked to neurodevelopmental (Autism, ADHD) and neuropsychiatric (depression, anxiety) illnesses. These factors include chronic inflammation, psychological stress, drug use, and environmental toxins at different time points in development.

Technology:

We develop neurosience-inspired algorithms to endow AI with brain-like functionality. We focus on leveraging the high-bandwidth and energetically efficient processing enabled by recurrent artificial neural networks. Our objectives are to develop better learning algorithms and embodied AI to make AI more efficient and to endow it with human-level understanding and ethics. 

We collaborate extensively with researchers in medicine, engineering, physics, computer science, and other fields.