Closed-loop neuroscience and neuroengineering

Feedback and closed-loop circuits exist in just about every part of the nervous system. It is curious, therefore, that for decades neuroscientists have been probing the nervous system in an openloop manner to understand it. Instead of the linear, reductionistic "stimulate record response" approach, a more modern approach is taking hold: closed-loop neuroscience. It respects the inherent "loopiness" of neural circuits, and the fact that the nervous system is embodied, and embedded in an environment. Through active sensing, behaving animals can influence their environment in ways that alter subsequent sensory inputs. Therefore, loops abound not only in the nervous system itself, but through its dynamic interactions with the world. By interposing our own technology in some of these loops, we can achieve unprecedented control over the system being studied and explore the functional consequences. This Research Topic, "Closing the Loop Around Neural Systems," presents a diverse set of recent methodological, scientific and theoretical advances from neuroscientists and neuroengineers who are pioneering closed-loop neuroscience.