The embodied brain: Bridging the brain, body, and behavior with biorealistic neuromechanical models
- 1Neuroengineering Laboratory, Brain Mind Institute & Institute of Bioengineering, EPFL, Lausanne, Switzerland. Electronic address: [email protected]
- 2Neuroengineering Laboratory, Brain Mind Institute & Institute of Bioengineering, EPFL, Lausanne, Switzerland. Electronic address: [email protected]
Abstract
Animal behavior reflects interactions between the nervous system, body, and environment. Therefore, biomechanics and environmental context must be considered to understand algorithms for behavioral control. Computational models that embed artificial neural controllers within body models in simulated environments are a powerful tool for this purpose. Here, we review advances in biorealistic neuromechanical models while also highlighting emerging opportunities ahead. We first show how these models enable inference of biophysical variables that are difficult to measure experimentally. Through systematic perturbations, one can generate new experimentally testable hypotheses using these models. We then examine how neuromechanical models facilitate the exchange among neuroscience, robotics, and machine learning, and showcase their applications in healthcare. We envision that coupling experimental studies with active probing of their neuromechanical surrogates will significantly accelerate progress in neuroscience.
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BibTeX
@article{wang2026embodied,
title = {{The embodied brain: Bridging the brain, body, and behavior with biorealistic neuromechanical models}},
author = {Sibo Wang and Pavan P Ramdya},
journal = {Current Opinion in Neurobiology},
year = {2026},
month = jul,
doi = {10.1016/j.conb.2026.103244},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conb.2026.103244},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - The embodied brain: Bridging the brain, body, and behavior with biorealistic neuromechanical models
AU - Sibo Wang
AU - Pavan P Ramdya
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/07/20
JO - Current Opinion in Neurobiology
DO - 10.1016/j.conb.2026.103244
UR - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conb.2026.103244
AB - Animal behavior reflects interactions between the nervous system, body, and environment. Therefore, biomechanics and environmental context must be considered to understand algorithms for behavioral control. Computational models that embed artificial neural controllers within body models in simulated environments are a powerful tool for this purpose. Here, we review advances in biorealistic neuromechanical models while also highlighting emerging opportunities ahead. We first show how these models enable inference of biophysical variables that are difficult to measure experimentally. Through systematic perturbations, one can generate new experimentally testable hypotheses using these models. We then examine how neuromechanical models facilitate the exchange among neuroscience, robotics, and machine learning, and showcase their applications in healthcare. We envision that coupling experimental studies with active probing of their neuromechanical surrogates will significantly accelerate progress in neuroscience.
SN - 0959-4388
SN - 1873-6882
ER -