The Rest of the Engine: Neuron–Astrocyte Dynamics in Associative Memory and Embodied Cognition

Imagine trying to reverse-engineer how a car works by watching only the spark plugs fire, ignoring everything else under the hood. This talk is about the rest of the engine. I will present recent theoretical and computational work aimed at explaining growing experimental evidence that non-neuronal cells (specifically astrocytes) play active roles in behavior, learning, and memory.

Across circuit- and systems-level models, we show that neuron–astrocyte interactions can support powerful associative memory mechanisms (e.g., modern Hopfield networks and transformers) and generate stable, autonomous behavior in virtual robotic models of organisms (larval zebrafish) without external rewards. These latter models reproduce key behavioral transitions and quantitatively predict large-scale neural and astrocytic data observed in freely behaving animals. The central message of this talk is simple: reverse-engineering natural intelligence will likely require understanding not just neurons, but the rest of the engine.