Thinking about Systems

Psychiatry lacks biological tools to assist in diagnosis and treatment. New research on brain network "biotypes" is a major step forward in developing biomarkers for depression.

Until the last couple of decades or so (with some exceptions), basic approaches to neuroscience were reductionistic—based on breaking things down into easier to understand parts. Part of this is because although we could conceptualize the brain as a system, the mathematical and computational tools have only been available recently. It's important to recognize this shift to a complex model of the brain, because it is a game changer both conceptually and in terms of being able to design more powerful tools based on a more accurate understanding of how the brain actually works.