Thomas Nortmann @thonor - Bluesky Profile

A functional influence based circuit motif that constrains the set of plausible algorithms of cortical function There are several plausible algorithms for cortical function that are specific enough to make testable predictions of the interactions between functionally identified cell types. Many of these algorithms are based on some variant of predictive processing. Here we set out to experimentally distinguish between two such predictive processing variants. A central point of variability between them lies in the proposed vertical communication between layer 2/3 and layer 5, which stems from the diverging assumptions about the computational role of layer 5. One assumes a hierarchically organized architecture and proposes that, within a given node of the network, layer 5 conveys unexplained bottom-up input to prediction error neurons of layer 2/3. The other proposes a non-hierarchical architecture in which internal representation neurons of layer 5 provide predictions for the local prediction error neurons of layer 2/3. We show that the functional influence of layer 2/3 cell types on layer 5 is incompatible with the hierarchical variant, while the functional influence of layer 5 cell types on prediction error neurons of layer 2/3 is incompatible with the non-hierarchical variant. Given these data, we can constrain the space of plausible algorithms of cortical function. We propose a model for cortical function based on a combination of a joint embedding predictive architecture (JEPA) and predictive processing that makes experimentally testable predictions. ### Competing Interest Statement The authors have declared no competing interest. Swiss National Science Foundation, https://ror.org/00yjd3n13 Novartis Foundation, https://ror.org/04f9t1x17 European Research Council, https://ror.org/0472cxd90, 865617

Our work with @georgkeller.bsky.social on testing predictive processing (PP) models in cortex is out on biorvix now! www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6... A short thread on our findings and thoughts on where we should move on from PP below.

30.01.2026 14:37 — 👍 35 🔁 12 💬 2 📌 1

I don’t think so, as far as I can see they are "öffentlich-rechtlich", meaning that they are funded by the German state.

14.01.2026 13:45 — 👍 1 🔁 0 💬 1 📌 0

1/6 New preprint 🚀 How does the cortex learn to represent things and how they move without reconstructing sensory stimuli? We developed a circuit-centric recurrent predictive learning (RPL) model based on JEPAs.
🔗 doi.org/10.1101/2025...
Led by @atenagm.bsky.social @mshalvagal.bsky.social

27.11.2025 08:24 — 👍 140 🔁 41 💬 3 📌 4

Thanks Vicky!

21.11.2025 19:48 — 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

A huge thanks to @timkietzmann.bsky.social, @psulewski.bsky.social and the whole Kietzmann lab for the supervision and endless support!!

20.11.2025 19:48 — 👍 3 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

Predictive remapping and allocentric coding as consequences of energy efficiency in recurrent neural network models of active vision This study gives an example of how complex computations in neural networks can emerge from simple physical principles. Training a model to optimize internal energy efficiency while performing eye move...

www.cell.com/patterns/ful...

20.11.2025 19:47 — 👍 3 🔁 0 💬 1 📌 0

🚨 Out in Patterns!

We asked ourselves, if complex neural dynamics like predictive remapping and allocentric coding can emerge from simple physical principles, in this case Energy Efficiency. Turns out they can!
More information in the 🧵 below.

I am super excited to see this one out in the wild.

20.11.2025 19:47 — 👍 19 🔁 3 💬 3 📌 0

Introducing CorText: a framework that fuses brain data directly into a large language model, allowing for interactive neural readout using natural language.

tl;dr: you can now chat with a brain scan 🧠💬

1/n

03.11.2025 15:17 — 👍 131 🔁 52 💬 4 📌 8

Henry Molaison - Wikipedia

A quite famous patient that had a hippocampus lesion. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_M...

30.10.2025 08:12 — 👍 2 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

ob man in der eigenen Wohngegend Probleme mit Flüchtlingen hätte. Auf diese Frage (die recht nah an der ursprünglichen Stadtbild-Aussage ist) haben 74% mit Nein geantwortet. Die Mehrheit hat also der ursprünglichen Aussage widersprochen und der neuen konkreteren zugestimmt

27.10.2025 14:38 — 👍 1 🔁 0 💬 1 📌 0

In der konkretisierten Form, ja. Die ursprüngliche Aussage (an die die meisten denken wenn man von der Stadtbild-Aussage spricht) ging aber nur um Migranten, Aufenthaltsstatus, aktuelle Arbeit oder Einhalten von Regeln waren nicht genannt. In der Umfrage vom ZDF gab es auch eine Frage, ob 1/2

27.10.2025 14:36 — 👍 1 🔁 0 💬 2 📌 0

In dem Kommentar des ZDF steht, dass der Kontext jetzt erst im Nachhinein hinzugefügt wurde

27.10.2025 14:31 — 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

Login • Instagram Welcome back to Instagram. Sign in to check out what your friends, family & interests have been capturing & sharing around the world.

www.instagram.com/p/DQLhSMuDdK...

27.10.2025 14:30 — 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 1 📌 0

Another Friday feat: Philip Sulewski's (@psulewski.bsky.social) and @thonor.bsky.social's
modelling work. Predictive remapping and allocentric coding as consequences of energy efficiency in RNN models of active vision

Time: Friday, August 15, 2:00 – 5:00 pm,
Location: Poster C112, de Brug & E‑Hall

08.08.2025 14:20 — 👍 11 🔁 2 💬 1 📌 0

High-level visual representations in the human brain are aligned with large language models - Nature Machine Intelligence Doerig, Kietzmann and colleagues show that the brain’s response to visual scenes can be modelled using language-based AI representations. By linking brain activity to caption-based embeddings from lar...

🚨 Finally out in Nature Machine Intelligence!!
"Visual representations in the human brain are aligned with large language models"
🔗 www.nature.com/articles/s42...

07.08.2025 13:06 — 👍 91 🔁 35 💬 3 📌 1

End-to-end topographic networks as models of cortical map formation and human visual behaviour - Nature Human Behaviour Lu et al. introduce all-topographic neural networks as a parsimonious model of the human visual cortex.

This one should work:

www.nature.com/articles/s41...

06.06.2025 11:27 — 👍 3 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

My first ever preprint is now out. We show the emergence of complex computations given only the rather simple underlying goal of energy efficiency.

05.06.2025 13:41 — 👍 8 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

Thomas Nortmann

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