Metastability in the brain
In the field of computational neuroscience, the theory of metastability refers to the human brain's ability to integrate several functional parts and to produce neural oscillations in a cooperative and coordinated manner, providing the basis for conscious activity.
In the past 25 years, interest in metastability and the underlying framework of nonlinear dynamics has been fueled by advancements in the methods by which computers model brain activity.
Noise at the 1/f regime can be found in many biological systems – for instance, in the output of a heartbeat in an ECG waveform—but serves a unique purpose for phase synchrony in neuronal networks.
[2] While often transient, these waveforms exist in a stable form long enough to contribute to what can be thought of as conscious response to environmental stimuli.
the HKB model has become a widely accepted theory to explain the coordinated movements and behaviors of individual neurons into large, end-to-end neural networks.
The HKB model, which has also been elucidated by several complex mathematical descriptors, is still a relatively simple but powerful way to describe seemingly-independent systems that come to reach synchrony just before a state of self-organized criticality.
[8] Some unusual characteristics of these waves: they are virtually simultaneous and have a very short onset latency, which implies that they operate faster than synaptic conduction would allow; and that their recognizable patterns are sometimes interrupted by periods of randomness.
fMRI, large-scale electrode arrays, and MEG expand upon the patterns seen in EEG by providing visual confirmation of coordinated dynamics.
A. Scott Kelso and fellow researchers at Florida Atlantic University to provide experimental results for the theory of social coordination dynamics.
The link between EEG and conscious social interaction is described as Phi, one of several brain rhythms operating in the 10 Hz range.
A second theory of metastability involves a so-called dynamic core, which is a term to loosely describe the thalamocortical region believed to be the integration center of consciousness.
Despite growing evidence for the DCH, the ability to generate mathematical constructs to model and predict dynamic core behavior has been slow to progress.
This idea is analogous to a skier on the slope of a mountain, who, by disrupting a few blocks of ice with his skis, initiates a giant avalanche in his wake.
To help prove the circuit-like amplification theory, research has shown that inducing lesions in long-distance connections corrupts performance in integrative models.
The wide distribution and constant signal transfer between different areas of the brain in experimental results is a common method to attempt to prove the neural workspace hypothesis.
More studies are being conducted to determine precisely the correlation between conscious and unconscious task deliberation in the realm of the global workspace.
