| Citation | Angus Silver has discovered fundamental mechanisms of synaptic transmission in the brain, and revealed how they contribute to information processing. By pioneering quantification of synaptic properties, he determined how different central synapses transmit and transform signals, and carry out specific computations. He showed that, surprisingly, pre-synaptic vesicle diffusion and inter-synaptic transmitter spillover play key roles in sustaining high frequency signalling at central synapses. By combining experiments and theory, he discovered how neurons perform elementary arithmetic operations, identified a novel inhibitory role for electrical synapses, and established how the anatomical structure of a cerebellar circuit defines its ability to encode information. |