When Bridges and Brains Start to Oscillate
My Research Stay at University College London
Only two days after London’s Millennium Bridge opened in June 2000, it was closed again. Like coupled oscillators, pedestrians started to synchronize their walking, and as a result, the bridge began to swing from side to side—a phenomenon later analyzed in Nature and captured on YouTube.
Similarly, oscillations in the brain can become excessive and are key to understanding neurological disorders. During my four-week stay at University College London (UCL), I had the privilege to investigate these pathological oscillations together with Dr. Mansoureh Fahimi and Prof. Vladimir Litvak at the Wellcome Centre for Human Neuroimaging.
Trying to understand why pathological brain rhythms emerge and how they can be better controlled is a truly captivating challenge. Just as engineers reinforced the Millennium Bridge to prevent unwanted synchrony, neuroscientists aim to stabilize the brain’s networks when oscillations become destructive.
The Millennium Bridge took two years of repair before it reopened. In the brain, the goal is to find ways to achieve such stability through neuromodulation — without closing the bridge, so to speak.
Teaching at UCL
To someone with a hammer, everything looks like a nail. - Mark Twain
I belong to the neuroscientists who use electro- and magnetoencephalography (M/EEG) to better understand behavior, cognition, and neurological diseases. But can we truly understand the brain using only its electrical and magnetic fields?
I like comparing this question to fictional superintelligent aliens who discover humanity, but their only tool to study us is microphones. What would they be able to learn about humans just by analyzing our planet's sound?
During my time at UCL, I was honored to give a lecture on “What are we measuring with M/EEG” as part of the SPM course organized by the Wellcome Centre for Human Neuroimaging. I thank Prof. Vladimir Litvak for the opportunity and all course organizers for their warm hospitality and high-quality explanations of advanced neuroimaging concepts.
View of the London skyline from Greenwich Park on a spring afternoon.
My four weeks in London were filled with learning, research, and exchange — from theoretical discussions about neural dynamics to hands-on analyses and teaching. I am deeply thankful to Vladimir for hosting me and to Mansoureh for the inspiring collaboration.
The experience not only deepened my understanding of brain oscillations but also strengthened connections that will continue to shape my research long after my time at UCL.
