Release Notes

Release Notes#

Introduced unified Dynamics base class providing a consistent interface for all neural mass models, including standardized initialization methods and a varshape property for neuron population geometry specification.
Refactored all model classes to adopt the “Step” suffix naming convention (e.g., JansenRitStep, HopfStep, WilsonCowanStep) for improved consistency throughout the codebase.
Reorganized parameter handling to utilize the Param class for unit-safe initialization and validation across all dynamical models.
Relocated XY_Oscillator to a dedicated module to improve code organization and maintainability.

Implemented HORNSeqLayer with support for IO region handling in visual and motor task simulations.
Replaced QIFStep with the more robust MontbrioPazoRoxinStep model for improved consistency with theoretical frameworks.
Extended the Wilson-Cowan model with additional variants and enhanced input handling capabilities.
Added laplacian_connectivity function with support for multiple connectivity types, including expanded documentation.
Improved temporal accuracy in ODE step functions for neural mass model simulations.

Published comprehensive tutorial series including:
- Harmonic Oscillator Network Dynamics with parameter exploration and network simulations
- Getting Started guide for new users
- Stuart-Landau oscillator dynamics
- Van der Pol oscillator dynamics
Standardized tutorial structure by removing numerical prefixes from headers for improved navigation and consistency.
Unified docstring formatting across all modules following NumPy documentation standards.
Enhanced notebook structure with improved simulation descriptions and clearer organizational hierarchy.

Updated brainstate dependency to version 0.2.9 for enhanced compatibility and performance.
Migrated Pygments lexer from ipython2 to ipython3 for improved compatibility with modern Jupyter environments.
Refactored sigmoid and other activation functions to leverage JAX primitives for GPU acceleration and automatic differentiation support.
Updated GitHub Actions workflow dependencies (actions/checkout v5 → v6).
Updated copyright year declarations throughout the project.

Removed deprecated code and unused functions to reduce technical debt.
Systematically reorganized imports across the codebase for improved clarity and reduced circular dependencies.
Cleaned up training loop implementations and removed obsolete state management methods.
Standardized file naming conventions across notebooks and source files for improved discoverability.

Introduced the shared XY_Oscillator base class and ArrayParam wrapper to unify initialization, transforms, and unit-safe parameter handling.
Added new phenomenological models (FitzHughNagumoModel, KuramotoNetwork, VanDerPolOscillator, StuartLandauOscillator, ThresholdLinearModel, QIF) plus accompanying tests for the new models, Hopf dynamics, and parameter utilities.
Published a refreshed example suite (Hopf, Wilson–Cowan, FitzHugh–Nagumo, parameter exploration, Nevergrad/SciPy optimization, MEG modeling) with notebook and script variants, including a KaggleHub-backed MEG workflow that downloads HCP sample data on demand.
Refactored existing dynamics (Hopf, Wilson–Cowan, Jansen–Rit, Wong–Wang, noise processes, forward model) to rely on braintools initialization utilities, expand documentation, and tighten unit-aware behavior.
Expanded project documentation with a reorganized API reference, refreshed landing page, new project logo, and an updated README covering installation badges, ecosystem packages, and citation details.
Simplified CI by focusing on Python 3.13 runners and removing the multi-version JAX matrix from the daily and main workflows.
Removed bundled example datasets and legacy notebooks/scripts; the MEG example now fetches data lazily to keep the repository lightweight.

The first release of the project.