Miller Lab at MIT

10/14/2026

This paper changed my life: A first glimpse into the ‘middle’ of brain processing - Earl K. Miller
https://www.thetransmitter.org/this-paper-changed-my-life/this-paper-changed-my-life-a-first-glimpse-into-the-middle-of-brain-processing/

Work by Moran and Desimone showed that monkeys could focus their attention on different stimuli in their visual field without shifting their gaze.

10/01/2026

Surprisingly Complex Waves Reveal the Brain’s Inner Workings
https://www.quantamagazine.org/surprisingly-complex-waves-reveal-the-brains-inner-workings-20260930/

09/30/2026

Symposium highlights MIT’s wide range of innovations for aging brain health

In six talks Sept. 25, researchers from across MIT described projects aimed at advancing the understanding of and interventions against neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and ALS

09/11/2026

New Theory Of Consciousness Suggests The Brain Uses Analog Computing To Create Awareness And Experience
https://www.iflscience.com/new-theory-of-consciousness-suggests-the-brain-uses-analog-computing-to-create-awareness-and-experience-84627

It's like herding sheep, or performing a Mexican wave.

09/09/2026

How the brain keeps its options straight at decision time.
Making a decision requires juggling a set of options without getting them confused or losing track of them. A new MIT study shows how ensembles of neurons encode information to maximize clarity throughout the process.

Making a decision requires juggling a set of options without getting them confused or losing track of them. A new MIT study shows how ensembles of neurons encode information to maximize clarity throughout the process.

09/09/2026

New paper! Decision-making isn't just picking winners via more neural firing, the brain reorganizing activity patterns into different subspaces, shifting from "one option vs. another" to "chosen vs. rejected"

Neural subspace reorganization reflects value-based decision-making
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.isci.2026.117492

09/09/2026

A discussion of what analog cognition and consciousness imply for AI. Spoiler: the brain operates fundamentally differently from today’s AI.
https://thecynefin.co/cognitive-outsourcing-3-3-analogue-asymmetry/

The community stagnates without the impulse of the individual. The impulse dies away without the sympathy of the community.” — William James, The Will to

09/04/2026

The Brain May Be Organizing Itself Into Thought
A new theory argues that cognition isn't just wired into the brain — it may be assembled, moment by moment, by traveling electrical waves
https://vocal.media/longevity/the-brain-may-be-organizing-itself-into-thought

A new theory argues that cognition isn't just wired into the brain — it may be assembled, moment by moment, by traveling electrical waves

09/02/2026

Podcast: How the Brain Compresses Our Noisy World
Conor Feehly discuss how the brain manages to categorize things, including the new theory of Lisa Barrett and Earl K. Miller.

If you are well rested and full, your brain tells you that a bruised overripe apple is a piece of subpar fruit to be passed over. However, if you are exhausted and hungry, an overripe apple is categorized as much-needed food. But how is the brain able to categorize that same apple in these situation...

08/24/2026

A New Framework for How the Brain Compresses Our Noisy World
https://quantamagazine.org/a-new-framework-for-how-the-brain-compresses-our-noisy-world-20260824/
An updated view of categorization reflects the modern understanding that the nervous system is more of a prediction engine than a filing cabinet.

An updated view of categorization reflects the modern understanding that the nervous system is more of a prediction engine than a filing cabinet.