Princeton Neuroscience Institute

**At a Glance** Founded in 2005 by [Jonathan Cohen](https://pni.princeton.edu/people/jonathan-cohen) and [David Tank](https://pni.princeton.edu/people/david-tank), the Princeton Neuroscience Institute (PNI) is led by our director [Mala Murthy](https://pni.princeton.edu/people/mala-murthy), who oversees the institute and its researchers as they tackle some of the biggest questions in neuroscience: how the myriad molecules, synapses, cells, circuits and computations of the nervous system give rise to cognition and behavior. Since our founding, we have developed unique strengths in research on computational and quantitative neuroscience, along with the development and application of cutting-edge technology, leading to a highly interdisciplinary institute with pace-setting undergraduate and graduate program in neuroscience. **Mission** The human brain is arguably the most complex device in the known universe. It comprises more than 100 billion neurons, each forming thousands of connections, and gives rise to perceptions, thoughts, feelings, and actions. Even within a single neuron, complex networks of genetic and biochemical reactions control the building blocks of network computation. PNI bridges scales of thinking and analysis from the cellular and molecular to the mental, focusing on how brains achieve complex feats of sensory integration and attention, decision-making, learning and memory, resilience to stress, the control of motor actions, the ability to engage in social interactions, and advanced cognition. The development of new methods at PNI has enabled uncovering relationships between gene expression, synapse-level connectivity, brain activity, and behavior, as well as the application of advanced theoretical models of cognitive function. Neuroscience research at PNI is defined by a focus on basic scientific research and cutting-edge methodological development, an integrative and multilevel approach spanning from cellular, circuit and systems levels analyses of neural mechanisms in non-human species to the study of cognitive function in humans, and a strong emphasis on formal theoretical analysis and modeling.