Brain Beats and Soil Science

How do we manage to perform sequences of movements like dancing? How do songbirds produce stereotyped sequences of sounds which are the essential components of their songs? Here, I will argue that the processes underlying these seemingly disparate abilities are actually related, and that studying one can shed light on the other. I will present a computational model to understand generation of movements at the cortical neuron level and how songbirds' vocal production can be a suitable scenario to explore and test these neural mechanisms.

Global food demands for the growing population require the application of tons of nitrogen fertilizer, from which, only half is taken up by crops; the other half is lost, thus contributing to climate change. Recently, it was found that certain crops can produce specific compounds that retain the nitrogen in soil, which in turn, reduce the nitrogen losses. However, it is still unkown how well they work in agricultural systems. Therefore, my thesis focuses on testing the efficacy of these natural compounds under different soil types as well as their effect on microbial communities and plants.