  Thalamic circuits are able to generate state-dependent oscillations of
different frequencies and degrees of synchronization. However, only little is
known how synchronous oscillations, like spindle oscillations in the thalamus,
are organized in the intact brain. Experimental findings suggest that the
simultaneous occurrence of spindle oscillations over widespread territories of
the thalamus is due to the corticothalamic projections, as the synchrony is
lost in the decorticated thalamus. Here we study the influence of
corticothalamic projections on the synchrony in a thalamic network, and uncover
the underlying control mechanism, leading to a control method which is
applicable in wide range of stochastic driven excitable units.
