Johns Hopkins School of Medicine

Selected Publications

Review Papers:

M. S. Madhav and N. J. Cowan, “The synergy between neuroscience and control theory: the nervous system as inspiration for hard control challenges,” Annu Rev Control Robot Auton Syst, vol. 3, pp. 243-267, 2020.

Roth, S. Sponberg, and N. J. Cowan, “A Comparative Approach to Closed-Loop Computation,” Curr Opin Neurobiol, vol. 25, pp. 54-62, 2014. 

N. J. Cowan, M. M. Ankarali, J. P. Dyhr, M. S. Madhav, E. Roth, S. Sefati, S. Sponberg, S. A. Stamper, E. S. Fortune, and T. L. Daniel, “Feedback Control as a Framework for Understanding Tradeoffs in Biology,” Integr Comp Biol, vol. 54, iss. 2, pp. 223-237, 2014.

Recent Research Publications:

Y. Yang, D. G. Yared, E. S. Fortune, and N. J. Cowan, “Sensorimotor adaptation to destabilizing dynamics in weakly electric fish,” Curr Biol, vol. 34, iss. 10, pp. 2118-2131, 2024.

M. S. Madhav, R. P. Jayakumar, B. Y. Li, S. G. Lashkari, K. Wright, F. Savelli, J. J. Knierim, and N. J. Cowan, “Control and recalibration of path integration in place cells using optic flow,” Nat Neurosci, vol. 27, iss. 8, p. 1599–1608, 2024.

D. Biswas, A. Lamperski, Y. Yang, K. Hoffman, J. Guckenheimer, E. S. Fortune, and N. J. Cowan, “Mode switching in organisms for solving explore-versus-exploit problems,” Nat Mach Intell, vol. 5, iss. 11, p. 1285–1296, 2023.

S. C. Whitehead, S. Leone, T. Lindsay, M. R. Meiselman, N. J. Cowan, M. H. Dickinson, N. Yapici, D. L. Stern, T. Shirangi, and I. Cohen, “Neuromuscular embodiment of feedback control elements in Drosophila flight,” Sci Adv, vol. 8, iss. 50, p. eabo7461, 2022.

A. Pantula, B. Datta, Y. Shi, M. Wang, J. Liu, S. Deng, N. J. Cowan, T. D. Nguyen, and D. H. Gracias, “Untethered unidirectionally crawling gels driven by an asymmetry in contact forces,” Sci Robot, vol. 7, iss. 73, p. eadd2903, 2022.

C. S. Yang, N. J. Cowan, and A. M. Haith, “Control becomes habitual early on when learning a novel motor skill,” J Neurophysiol, vol. 128, iss. 5, pp. 1278-1291, 2022.

B. P. Vagvolgyi, R. P. Jayakumar, M. S. Madhav, J. J. Knierim, and N. J. Cowan, “Wide-angle, monocular head tracking using passive markers,” J Neurosci Methods, vol. 368, p. 109453, 2022.

M. S. Madhav, R. P. Jayakumar, S. G. Lashkari, F. Savelli, H. T. Blair, J. J. Knierim, and N. J. Cowan, “The Dome: a virtual reality apparatus for freely locomoting rodents,” J Neurosci Methods, vol. 368, p. 109336, 2022.

C. S. Yang, N. J. Cowan, and A. M. Haith, “De novo learning versus adaptation of continuous control in a manual tracking task,” eLife, vol. 10, p. e62578, 2021 

A. M. Zimmet, D. Cao, A. J. Bastian, and N. J. Cowan, “Cerebellar patients have intact feedback control that can be leveraged to improve reaching,” eLife, vol. 9, p. e53246, 2020.

I. Uyanik, S. Sefati, S. A. Stamper, K. Cho, M. M. Ankarali, E. S. Fortune, and N. J. Cowan, “Variability in locomotor dynamics reveals the critical role of feedback in task control,” eLife, vol. 9, p. e51219, 2020.

R. W. Nickl, M. M. Ankarali, and N. Cowan, “Complementary spatial and timing control in rhythmic arm movements,” J Neurophysiol, vol. 121, iss. 4, p. 1543–1560, 2019.

I. Uyanik, S. A. Stamper, N. J. Cowan, and E. S. Fortune, “Sensory Cues Modulate Smooth Pursuit and Active Sensing Movements,” Front Behav Neurosci, vol. 13, iss. 59, 2019.

R. P. Jayakumar, M. S. Madhav, F. Savelli, H. T. Blair, N. Cowan, and J. J. Knierim, “Recalibration of path integration in hippocampal place cells,” Nature, vol. 566, iss. 745, p. 533–-537, 2019.

D. Biswas, L. A. Arend, S. Stamper, B. P. Vágvölgyi, E. S. Fortune, and N. J. Cowan, “Closed-Loop Control of Active Sensing Movements Regulates Sensory Slip,” Curr Biol, vol. 28, iss. 4, 2018.

Y. Yang, D. G. Yared, E. S. Fortune, and N. J. Cowan, “Sensorimotor adaptation to destabilizing dynamics in weakly electric fish,” Curr Biol, vol. 34, iss. 10, pp. 2118-2131, 2024.

D. Biswas, A. Lamperski, Y. Yang, K. Hoffman, J. Guckenheimer, E. S. Fortune, and N. J. Cowan, “Mode switching in organisms for solving explore-versus-exploit problems,” Nat Mach Intell, vol. 5, iss. 11, p. 1285–1296, 2023.

For a complete list, see here:

https://limbs.lcsr.jhu.edu/publications/