How critical is brain criticality?. Issue 11 (November 2022)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: O'Byrne, Jordan; Jerbi, Karim
• Is Part Of: Trends in neurosciences. Volume 45:Issue 11(2022)
• Page Start: 820
• Page End: 837
• Publication Date: 2022-11
• Subjects: phase transition -- edge of chaos -- neuronal avalanche -- cognition -- scale-free -- complexity; Neurology -- Periodicals; Neurophysiology -- Periodicals; Neurobiology -- Periodicals; 612.8
• DOI: 10.1016/j.tins.2022.08.007
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0166-2236

Abstract

Abstract : Criticality is the singular state of complex systems poised at the brink of a phase transition between order and randomness. Such systems display remarkable information-processing capabilities, evoking the compelling hypothesis that the brain may itself be critical. This foundational idea is now drawing renewed interest thanks to high-density data and converging cross-disciplinary knowledge. Together, these lines of inquiry have shed light on the intimate link between criticality, computation, and cognition. Here, we review these emerging trends in criticality neuroscience, highlighting new data pertaining to the edge of chaos and near-criticality, and making a case for the distance to criticality as a useful metric for probing cognitive states and mental illness. This unfolding progress in the field contributes to establishing criticality theory as a powerful mechanistic framework for studying emergent function and its efficiency in both biological and artificial neural networks. Highlights: Empirical and theoretical work suggests that the brain operates at the edge of a critical phase transition between order and disorder. The wider adoption and investigation of criticality theory as a unifying framework in neuroscience has been hindered in part by the potentially daunting complexity of its analytical and theoretical foundation. Among critical phase transitions, avalanche and edge of chaos criticality are particularly relevant to studying brain function and dysfunction. The computational features of criticality provide a conceptual link between neuronal dynamics and cognition. Mounting evidence suggests that near-criticality, more than strict criticality, may be a more plausible mode of operation for the brain. The distance to criticality presents a promising and underexploited biological parameter for characterizing cognitive differences and mental illness.