Title
Decreasing-Rate Pruning Optimizes the Construction of Efficient and Robust Distributed Networks
Abstract
Robust, efficient, and low-cost networks are advantageous in both biological and engineered systems. During neural network development in the brain, synapses are massively over-produced and then pruned-back over time. This strategy is not commonly used when designing engineered networks, since adding connections that will soon be removed is considered wasteful. Here, we show that for large distributed routing networks, network function is markedly enhanced by hyper-connectivity followed by aggressive pruning and that the global rate of pruning, a developmental parameter not previously studied by experimentalists, plays a critical role in optimizing network structure. We first used high-throughput image analysis techniques to quantify the rate of pruning in the mammalian neocortex across a broad developmental time window and found that the rate is decreasing over time. Based on these results, we analyzed a model of computational routing networks and show using both theoretical analysis and simulations that decreasing rates lead to more robust and efficient networks compared to other rates. We also present an application of this strategy to improve the distributed design of airline networks. Thus, inspiration from neural network formation suggests effective ways to design distributed networks across several domains.
Year
DOI
Venue
2015
10.1371/journal.pcbi.1004347
PLOS COMPUTATIONAL BIOLOGY
Field
DocType
Volume
Computer science,Artificial intelligence,Genetics,Artificial neural network,Machine learning,Distributed computing,Network structure,Pruning
Journal
11
Issue
ISSN
Citations 
7
1553-734X
2
PageRank 
References 
Authors
0.39
13
3
Name
Order
Citations
PageRank
Saket Navlakha139323.55
Alison L Barth261.21
Ziv Bar-Joseph31207112.00