One of the central questions in neuroscience is how particular tasks, or computations, are
implemented by neural networks to generate behavior. The prevailing view has been that
information processing in neural networks results primarily from the properties of synapses
and the connectivity of neurons within the network, with the intrinsic excitability of single
neurons playing a lesser role. As a consequence, the contribution of single neurons to
computation in the brain has long been underestimated. Here we review recent work�…