Mice optimize timed decisions about probabilistic outcomes under deadlines.

Area of Science:

• Behavioral neuroscience
• Decision-making under uncertainty
• Temporal cognition

Background:

• Optimal decision-making requires integrating timing uncertainty with environmental factors like probability and cost.
• Reward maximization under response deadlines is a critical test case for temporal decision-making.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate if and how mice optimize timing behavior in a complex deadline task.
• To examine the integration of timing uncertainty with probability and cost functions.
• To assess temporal risk assessment in a response inhibition task.

Main Methods:

• Mice performed a task with seconds-long response deadlines and geometrically varying probability/cost functions.
• Subjects were subsequently tested in a timed response inhibition task with conflicting rules.
• Behavioral data were analyzed to assess optimization strategies.

Main Results:

• Mice optimized performance under response deadlines with reward probability functions.
• Performance approached optimal levels with reward cost functions under specific assumptions.
• Mice optimized inhibitory control timing in the second task, irrespective of prior conditions.

Conclusions:

• Mice exhibit optimal temporal risk assessment across different decision-making contexts.
• The findings support the ubiquity of sophisticated temporal control mechanisms in rodents.