BE Seminar – “The Neurobiology of Mistakes” (Becket Ebitz, Université de Montréal)
Berger Auditorium (Room 13), Skirkanich Hall 210 South 33rd Street, Philadelphia, PA, United StatesHumans and other animals do not always choose the most rewarding course of action, even when we have ample time and computational resources. Why do we make mistakes? The noiseLab uses a combination of theoretical, behavioral, and neurobiological techniques to address this question. In this talk, Dr. Becket Ebitz will discuss converging evidence that mistakes are the product of representational and temporal nonlinearities in neural activity that constrain our ability to make good decisions. The talk will argue that some of these nonlinearities have long-term adaptive benefits, even when they fail to produce the best decision in the moment.