Saikat Ray
@ray-neuro.bsky.social
Real world neuroscience.
Neuroscience of animal societies and in the wild.
Flying bats, shrinking shrews, running rats.
Neuroscience of animal societies and in the wild.
Flying bats, shrinking shrews, running rats.
Pinned
Bat Island: The New Era of Science
YouTube video by Weizmann Institute of Science
www.youtube.com
Neuroscience projects last several years, and you are usually a bit jaded by the time you wrap it up. Not this one– spending several months on an island in the middle of nowhere, away from all the craziness of the world reminds you how beautiful the world really is.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=46sv...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=46sv...
Reposted by Saikat Ray
Naturalistic approaches such as Ulanovsky’s open up “potential opportunities to really reveal why the brain is structured in the way it’s structured,” says Iain Couzin.
By @claudia-lopez.bsky.social
#neuroskyence
www.thetransmitter.org/neuroetholog...
By @claudia-lopez.bsky.social
#neuroskyence
www.thetransmitter.org/neuroetholog...
Diving in with Nachum Ulanovsky
With an eye toward realism, the neuroscientist, who has a new study about bats out today, creates microcosms of the natural world to understand animal behavior.
www.thetransmitter.org
October 20, 2025 at 7:03 PM
Naturalistic approaches such as Ulanovsky’s open up “potential opportunities to really reveal why the brain is structured in the way it’s structured,” says Iain Couzin.
By @claudia-lopez.bsky.social
#neuroskyence
www.thetransmitter.org/neuroetholog...
By @claudia-lopez.bsky.social
#neuroskyence
www.thetransmitter.org/neuroetholog...
Neuroscience projects last several years, and you are usually a bit jaded by the time you wrap it up. Not this one– spending several months on an island in the middle of nowhere, away from all the craziness of the world reminds you how beautiful the world really is.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=46sv...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=46sv...
Bat Island: The New Era of Science
YouTube video by Weizmann Institute of Science
www.youtube.com
October 17, 2025 at 7:07 AM
Neuroscience projects last several years, and you are usually a bit jaded by the time you wrap it up. Not this one– spending several months on an island in the middle of nowhere, away from all the craziness of the world reminds you how beautiful the world really is.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=46sv...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=46sv...
Reposted by Saikat Ray
I am excited to share my PhD work on head-direction cells recorded in the wild, now published in @science.org, where we recorded neurons in bats flying outdoors on an island.
doi.org/10.1126/sci...
With @ray-neuro.bsky.social, Shir Maimon, Liora Las, Nachum Ulanovsky and many others
doi.org/10.1126/sci...
With @ray-neuro.bsky.social, Shir Maimon, Liora Las, Nachum Ulanovsky and many others
October 16, 2025 at 6:04 PM
I am excited to share my PhD work on head-direction cells recorded in the wild, now published in @science.org, where we recorded neurons in bats flying outdoors on an island.
doi.org/10.1126/sci...
With @ray-neuro.bsky.social, Shir Maimon, Liora Las, Nachum Ulanovsky and many others
doi.org/10.1126/sci...
With @ray-neuro.bsky.social, Shir Maimon, Liora Las, Nachum Ulanovsky and many others
Reposted by Saikat Ray
The work with bats on barren, 7-acre Latham Island was Nachum Ulanovsky’s most complex undertaking yet.
By @claudia-lopez.bsky.social
#neuroskyence
www.thetransmitter.org/neuroetholog...
By @claudia-lopez.bsky.social
#neuroskyence
www.thetransmitter.org/neuroetholog...
October 16, 2025 at 6:15 PM
The work with bats on barren, 7-acre Latham Island was Nachum Ulanovsky’s most complex undertaking yet.
By @claudia-lopez.bsky.social
#neuroskyence
www.thetransmitter.org/neuroetholog...
By @claudia-lopez.bsky.social
#neuroskyence
www.thetransmitter.org/neuroetholog...
Reposted by Saikat Ray
DOI is not up yet, but this is the link:
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
Head-direction cells as a neural compass in bats navigating outdoors on a remote oceanic island
Animals and humans rely on their navigation skills to survive. However, spatial neurons in the brain’s “navigation circuit” had not previously been studied under real-world conditions. We conducted an...
www.science.org
October 16, 2025 at 6:07 PM
DOI is not up yet, but this is the link:
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
This is such a fun meeting. If you are in social neuroscience - you should come. Heck even if you are not - the science is great in general! And a fun mix of animal and human research!
Next time in Canada!
Next time in Canada!
Saykat Ray observed natural behavior in fruit bats 🦇 and found that spatial place cells also encode social information.
These place cells are a cognitive map of the social environment! 😱
These place cells are a cognitive map of the social environment! 😱
October 2, 2025 at 9:57 AM
This is such a fun meeting. If you are in social neuroscience - you should come. Heck even if you are not - the science is great in general! And a fun mix of animal and human research!
Next time in Canada!
Next time in Canada!
Reposted by Saikat Ray
🦇 In a bat colony, neurons build more than a map of space. They code for identity, interactions, and social ties, creating a socio-spatial “map” of the community and social life itself!
Read the full story 👉 zurl.co/JInQs
🧪 #HFSPFellowships #sts #HFSPscience
Read the full story 👉 zurl.co/JInQs
🧪 #HFSPFellowships #sts #HFSPscience
September 17, 2025 at 12:47 PM
🦇 In a bat colony, neurons build more than a map of space. They code for identity, interactions, and social ties, creating a socio-spatial “map” of the community and social life itself!
Read the full story 👉 zurl.co/JInQs
🧪 #HFSPFellowships #sts #HFSPscience
Read the full story 👉 zurl.co/JInQs
🧪 #HFSPFellowships #sts #HFSPscience
See you in Lisbon next week!
✨ Exciting news for our upcoming S4SN Lisbon meeting! ✨
Join us from September 23-26 for a dynamic program filled with inspiring talks, poster presentations, and networking opportunities. Get ready to connect, learn, and share ideas in the beautiful city of Lisbon!
The program is out 😍
Join us from September 23-26 for a dynamic program filled with inspiring talks, poster presentations, and networking opportunities. Get ready to connect, learn, and share ideas in the beautiful city of Lisbon!
The program is out 😍
September 16, 2025 at 9:22 AM
See you in Lisbon next week!
Reposted by Saikat Ray
Really interesting study showing learning of tool use in carrion crows! www.cell.com/current-biol...
September 10, 2025 at 8:55 PM
Really interesting study showing learning of tool use in carrion crows! www.cell.com/current-biol...
Reposted by Saikat Ray
I'm usually not very active here, but good news:
Together with @milliejohnston.bsky.social, our paper on time estimation in #crows got published in @natcomms.nature.com today!
We found crow neurons track time like a stopwatch — without a cortex! 🐦⏱️🧠
#SciComm #Science 🧪
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Together with @milliejohnston.bsky.social, our paper on time estimation in #crows got published in @natcomms.nature.com today!
We found crow neurons track time like a stopwatch — without a cortex! 🐦⏱️🧠
#SciComm #Science 🧪
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
A neuronal correlate for time interval estimation in the crow’s telencephalon - Nature Communications
It is unknown how birds estimate time using brains organized differently from mammals. Here, the authors show that neurons in the crow NCL encode duration categories, supporting abstract, cue-independ...
www.nature.com
September 10, 2025 at 12:10 PM
I'm usually not very active here, but good news:
Together with @milliejohnston.bsky.social, our paper on time estimation in #crows got published in @natcomms.nature.com today!
We found crow neurons track time like a stopwatch — without a cortex! 🐦⏱️🧠
#SciComm #Science 🧪
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Together with @milliejohnston.bsky.social, our paper on time estimation in #crows got published in @natcomms.nature.com today!
We found crow neurons track time like a stopwatch — without a cortex! 🐦⏱️🧠
#SciComm #Science 🧪
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Michael Brecht talking about why the differences in brain size in elephants might be more important than the differences in their ear sizes @behaviour2025.bsky.social
August 25, 2025 at 10:55 AM
Michael Brecht talking about why the differences in brain size in elephants might be more important than the differences in their ear sizes @behaviour2025.bsky.social
Hope to see you on Monday! This will be fun!
Come visit Calcutta in the last week of August and see some amazing neuroscientists talk about the neural basis of behaviour at @behaviour2025.bsky.social
With @neuroetho.bsky.social @danielavallentin.bsky.social @selmaan.bsky.social @arkarupbanerjee.bsky.social and Michael Brecht!
With @neuroetho.bsky.social @danielavallentin.bsky.social @selmaan.bsky.social @arkarupbanerjee.bsky.social and Michael Brecht!
August 22, 2025 at 1:30 PM
Hope to see you on Monday! This will be fun!
Reposted by Saikat Ray
Have you registered yet? 😁
Secure your spot at #S4SN2025 at share.google/vRumlIDQBNLX... and join us this September in beautiful Lisbon! ✨
Secure your spot at #S4SN2025 at share.google/vRumlIDQBNLX... and join us this September in beautiful Lisbon! ✨
July 24, 2025 at 11:35 AM
Have you registered yet? 😁
Secure your spot at #S4SN2025 at share.google/vRumlIDQBNLX... and join us this September in beautiful Lisbon! ✨
Secure your spot at #S4SN2025 at share.google/vRumlIDQBNLX... and join us this September in beautiful Lisbon! ✨
Reposted by Saikat Ray
The new issue is out👉https://www.cell.com/cell/current
On the cover, Eliav et al. reveal that hippocampal replays in bats flying in very large, naturalistic environments were highly fragmented and short, depicting trajectories covering only a small portion of the environment size.
On the cover, Eliav et al. reveal that hippocampal replays in bats flying in very large, naturalistic environments were highly fragmented and short, depicting trajectories covering only a small portion of the environment size.
July 24, 2025 at 4:17 PM
The new issue is out👉https://www.cell.com/cell/current
On the cover, Eliav et al. reveal that hippocampal replays in bats flying in very large, naturalistic environments were highly fragmented and short, depicting trajectories covering only a small portion of the environment size.
On the cover, Eliav et al. reveal that hippocampal replays in bats flying in very large, naturalistic environments were highly fragmented and short, depicting trajectories covering only a small portion of the environment size.
Reposted by Saikat Ray
🚨Very happy that my PhD work is now out in @nature.com!
We discovered that evolution, by acting in the midbrain, shifted the threshold to escape in Peromyscus mice, to fine-tune defensive strategies in different environments
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
This was a truly collaborative effort! 🧵⬇️
We discovered that evolution, by acting in the midbrain, shifted the threshold to escape in Peromyscus mice, to fine-tune defensive strategies in different environments
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
This was a truly collaborative effort! 🧵⬇️
July 23, 2025 at 3:06 PM
🚨Very happy that my PhD work is now out in @nature.com!
We discovered that evolution, by acting in the midbrain, shifted the threshold to escape in Peromyscus mice, to fine-tune defensive strategies in different environments
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
This was a truly collaborative effort! 🧵⬇️
We discovered that evolution, by acting in the midbrain, shifted the threshold to escape in Peromyscus mice, to fine-tune defensive strategies in different environments
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
This was a truly collaborative effort! 🧵⬇️
Reposted by Saikat Ray
"I look forward to the day when Israeli scientists can freely collaborate with scientists in Iran and do good for the region and for humanity. I wish the same for scientists in Gaza and throughout the Middle East." www.nature.com/articles/d41...
How we’re rebuilding the Weizmann Institute — and our hopes for a better future
Scientific research is at the heart of Israel’s success and has worldwide benefits. Our work will continue despite adversity.
www.nature.com
July 4, 2025 at 6:48 AM
"I look forward to the day when Israeli scientists can freely collaborate with scientists in Iran and do good for the region and for humanity. I wish the same for scientists in Gaza and throughout the Middle East." www.nature.com/articles/d41...
Come visit Calcutta in the last week of August and see some amazing neuroscientists talk about the neural basis of behaviour at @behaviour2025.bsky.social
With @neuroetho.bsky.social @danielavallentin.bsky.social @selmaan.bsky.social @arkarupbanerjee.bsky.social and Michael Brecht!
With @neuroetho.bsky.social @danielavallentin.bsky.social @selmaan.bsky.social @arkarupbanerjee.bsky.social and Michael Brecht!
June 28, 2025 at 8:49 AM
Come visit Calcutta in the last week of August and see some amazing neuroscientists talk about the neural basis of behaviour at @behaviour2025.bsky.social
With @neuroetho.bsky.social @danielavallentin.bsky.social @selmaan.bsky.social @arkarupbanerjee.bsky.social and Michael Brecht!
With @neuroetho.bsky.social @danielavallentin.bsky.social @selmaan.bsky.social @arkarupbanerjee.bsky.social and Michael Brecht!
Reposted by Saikat Ray
Please join us in Lisbon for the 2025 S4SN (@s4sn.bsky.social) meeting this year. We have a wonderful set of speakers and symposium sessions!! 👇👇
June 14, 2025 at 7:35 PM
Please join us in Lisbon for the 2025 S4SN (@s4sn.bsky.social) meeting this year. We have a wonderful set of speakers and symposium sessions!! 👇👇
Reposted by Saikat Ray
Very, very cool paper from @tamir-eliav.bsky.social and the Ulanovsky lab!
www.cell.com/cell/abstrac...
www.cell.com/cell/abstrac...
Fragmented replay of very large environments in the hippocampus of bats
Hippocampal replays in bats flying in a 200-m tunnel depict short fragments of long
flight trajectories, suggesting constraints on the mechanisms and functions of replay.
www.cell.com
June 14, 2025 at 9:29 AM
Very, very cool paper from @tamir-eliav.bsky.social and the Ulanovsky lab!
www.cell.com/cell/abstrac...
www.cell.com/cell/abstrac...
Reposted by Saikat Ray
Happy 99th birthday to the man who gave voice to the wild. 🎉
Sir David Attenborough, thank you for a lifetime dedicated to the natural world, and for sharing its story with wisdom, wonder, and grace.
You've inspired generations to fall in love with nature.
Sir David Attenborough, thank you for a lifetime dedicated to the natural world, and for sharing its story with wisdom, wonder, and grace.
You've inspired generations to fall in love with nature.
May 8, 2025 at 7:09 AM
Happy 99th birthday to the man who gave voice to the wild. 🎉
Sir David Attenborough, thank you for a lifetime dedicated to the natural world, and for sharing its story with wisdom, wonder, and grace.
You've inspired generations to fall in love with nature.
Sir David Attenborough, thank you for a lifetime dedicated to the natural world, and for sharing its story with wisdom, wonder, and grace.
You've inspired generations to fall in love with nature.
How to understand the brain through the lens of natural behaviour?
Here's Nachum's vision on exploring the whole range - from lab experiments to those in the wild.
Join us in this adventure as we uncover what the brain does under the conditions it has evolved in.
mitpress.mit.edu/978026204499...
Here's Nachum's vision on exploring the whole range - from lab experiments to those in the wild.
Join us in this adventure as we uncover what the brain does under the conditions it has evolved in.
mitpress.mit.edu/978026204499...
Natural Neuroscience
Natural neuroscience departs from the classical reductionist approach, which emphasizes control at the expense of natural behaviors, by proposing a shift tow...
mitpress.mit.edu
April 19, 2025 at 12:07 PM
How to understand the brain through the lens of natural behaviour?
Here's Nachum's vision on exploring the whole range - from lab experiments to those in the wild.
Join us in this adventure as we uncover what the brain does under the conditions it has evolved in.
mitpress.mit.edu/978026204499...
Here's Nachum's vision on exploring the whole range - from lab experiments to those in the wild.
Join us in this adventure as we uncover what the brain does under the conditions it has evolved in.
mitpress.mit.edu/978026204499...
Reposted by Saikat Ray
Cells in the hippocampus encode not only information about a fellow bat’s position, but also its identity and distinct social features.
By @claudia-lopez.bsky.social
#neuroskyence
www.thetransmitter.org/social-behav...
By @claudia-lopez.bsky.social
#neuroskyence
www.thetransmitter.org/social-behav...
January 30, 2025 at 7:05 PM
Cells in the hippocampus encode not only information about a fellow bat’s position, but also its identity and distinct social features.
By @claudia-lopez.bsky.social
#neuroskyence
www.thetransmitter.org/social-behav...
By @claudia-lopez.bsky.social
#neuroskyence
www.thetransmitter.org/social-behav...
How does the brain work in natural scenarios, in multi-animal societies of wild animals? 🧠 🧪 🦇
doi.org/10.1126/scie...
(1/n)
doi.org/10.1126/scie...
(1/n)
January 30, 2025 at 7:20 PM
How does the brain work in natural scenarios, in multi-animal societies of wild animals? 🧠 🧪 🦇
doi.org/10.1126/scie...
(1/n)
doi.org/10.1126/scie...
(1/n)
Come visit my hometown - the biggest conference in animal behavior is happening there later this year.
There are also a couple of sessions on the neural basis of behavior with some fantastic speakers!
There are also a couple of sessions on the neural basis of behavior with some fantastic speakers!
📣🚨 Abstract submission deadline extended!!! 🚨📣
In response to continued interest from prospective contributors, we are pleased to announce that the deadline for abstract submission has been extended.
🗓New submission deadline: 15th February 2025.
🗒️Submission requirements: A 300-word abstract.
In response to continued interest from prospective contributors, we are pleased to announce that the deadline for abstract submission has been extended.
🗓New submission deadline: 15th February 2025.
🗒️Submission requirements: A 300-word abstract.
January 30, 2025 at 7:01 AM
Come visit my hometown - the biggest conference in animal behavior is happening there later this year.
There are also a couple of sessions on the neural basis of behavior with some fantastic speakers!
There are also a couple of sessions on the neural basis of behavior with some fantastic speakers!
Go work with Jerome!
I am so excited to share the incredible news that I have received funding from the DFG to start my Emmy-Noether group in Würzburg next year to study the neural mechanisms of the bee's waggle dance including their spatial memory. #Neuroethology
December 20, 2024 at 8:01 AM
Go work with Jerome!