Teach a four-session connectomics block
Four 90-minute sessions on structural claims, synapse quality, reproducible methods and graph inference.
Start here if you want to teach a small connectomics block now. These four 90-minute sessions use existing decks with selected slides, activities, instructor cues and model responses. They do not replace the full nine-unit Technical Course or the three-lecture EN.585.781 sequence.
Session 1: Introduction to Connectomics
Question: What can a wiring diagram establish?
Teach the claim framework and analysis units, then have pairs write a study brief. The output is a structural endpoint with a denominator, comparison and explicit non-claim. Introductory neuroscience is helpful; no programming is required.
Between sessions: 20 minutes
Read Synapse Detection, focusing on localization, partner assignment and evaluation units. Bring the study brief and underline the measurement most vulnerable to a missed or misassigned synapse. No account or dataset download is needed.
Session 2: Synapse Detection
Question: What errors could change that structural result?
Learners calculate metrics on explicitly synthetic data and write a validation plan. They then revise their Session 1 brief to name the relevant error, provenance and additional evidence needed. The arithmetic exercise requires only a calculator.
Session 3: Tools and Methods
Question: Can another person reproduce the number in your figure?
Bring the revised study brief and audit from Session 2. Learners trace the relevant pipeline artifacts, compare two synthetic snapshots, write a recoverable methods record and estimate raw storage. No live data or accounts are required. Python 3 is optional; the same query can be completed from the worksheet’s printed rows.
- Timed plan, instructor cues and slides
- Learner worksheet and offline query
- Instructor model responses
This is the third session in this short sequence, but Lecture 2 / Module 8 in the original EN.585.781 course. Synapse Detection is the standalone session inserted between the Introduction and Tools lectures here.
Session 4: Algorithms and Applications
Question: Does the structural result exceed what the chosen null explains?
Carry forward the study brief, audit and methods record. Learners build a tiny directed graph, compare reciprocity with an exactly enumerated null, test a threshold and an uncertain edge, then write an analysis card. Python 3 is optional; all inputs and the exact census are supplied on the worksheet. No accounts are needed.
- Timed plan, instructor cues and slides
- Learner worksheet and offline analysis
- Instructor model responses
This is Session 4 here, but Lecture 3 / Module 9 in the original graduate course.
Preparation and pacing
Open the selected decks before teaching. Keep the timed plan in a second tab or print it. Slide numbers include the cover. Share only the worksheet during the activity; answer keys are public and intended for formative learning, not secure exams. Embedded notes remain in the editable Marp sources, with delivery cues on the plans.
For a half-day workshop, run the first two sessions with a 15-minute break: 195 minutes of room time. Replace the between-session reading with a short advance reading. For separate meetings, allow the 20-minute reading between them. For a full Introduction lecture, use its existing three-part, approximately 150-minute route instead of the selected-slide session and schedule breaks separately.
For the first three sessions, allow 270 minutes of teaching plus two 15-minute breaks: five hours, excluding lunch. For all four, allow 360 minutes of teaching plus three 15-minute breaks: 6 hours 45 minutes, excluding lunch. Two half-days are another option. The Session 1-to-2 reading remains advance work for a single-day event. Sessions 3 and 4 require no additional homework beyond bringing prior artifacts.
If discussion runs long, omit optional history slides before cutting the activity or its debrief. The learning evidence is the revised claim, not the number of slides shown.
What comes next
Use the final analysis card to choose a focused extension: a real dataset query, a proofreading exercise or an applications seminar. For hands-on depth, choose a module session kit after checking its prerequisites. These four packs are complete formative sessions; semester-length syllabus maps and model answers for all 25 modules remain separate work.
Teaching Hub · All presentation decks
Teaching sequence: CC BY-SA 4.0, NeuroTrailblazers.