Talk summary: The experience of a reward, such as the ingestion of food, is accompanied by dynamic patterns of neuronal activity across many brain regions. For example, reward ingestion is often accompanied by brief increases in spike activity by dopamine neurons, amygdala neurons, and neurons in the basal ganglia. I will discuss studies that illustrate different approaches to understanding the behavioral functions of this reward-elicited activity, with a focus on reward signals that promote reward-seeking behavior.

This event is in memory of Elliot S. Valenstein (1923-2023), Professor Emeritus of Psychology, whose irreplaceable contributions to the Department of Psychology include 24 years of teaching and mentoring and over a decade of service as Biopsychology area chair. Professor Emeritus Valenstein's memorial can be viewed via the link below.

https://lsa.umich.edu/psych/news-events/all-news/faculty-news/faculty-memorial---elliot-valenstein--1923-2023-.html