We are thankful to be welcome on these lands in friendship. The lands we are situated on are covered by the Williams Treaties and are the traditional territory of the Mississaugas, a branch of the greater Anishinaabeg Nation, including Algonquin, Ojibway, Odawa and Pottawatomi. These lands remain home to many Indigenous nations and peoples.

We acknowledge this land out of respect for the Indigenous nations who have cared for Turtle Island, also called North America, from before the arrival of settler peoples until this day. Most importantly, we acknowledge that the history of these lands has been tainted by poor treatment and a lack of friendship with the First Nations who call them home.

This history is something we are all affected by because we are all treaty people in Canada. We all have a shared history to reflect on, and each of us is affected by this history in different ways. Our past defines our present, but if we move forward as friends and allies, then it does not have to define our future.

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January 31, 2014

Speaker: Dr. Estefania Ruiz Vargas

Title: Topological properties of modular networks, with a focus on networks of functional connections in the human brain

Abstract:The pathophysiology underlying neurocognitive dysfunction following mild traumatic brain injury (TBI), or concussion, is poorly understood. In order to shed light on the effects of TBI at the functional network or modular level we use mathematical and computational techniques to determine how modular structure changes in response to specific mechanisms of injury. In particular, we examine in detail the potential effects of focal contusions, diffuse axonal degeneration and diffuse microlesions, illustrating the extent to which functional modules are preserved or degenerated by each type of injury. We highlight other key differences among the effects of the three modeled injuries, and discuss their clinical implications.

Within this modular framework, particular nodes which play key roles have been previously identified based on the node’s degree, and on the node’s participation coefficient. In this contribution, we develop a generalization of the participation coefficient, called the gateway coefficient, which measures not only the diversity of the intermodular connections, but also how critical these connections are to intermodular connectivity; in brief, nodes which form rare or unique gateways between sparsely connected modules rank highly in this measure.