1. A method of operating a node of network, the method comprising: scaling individual inputs of a plurality of inputs received by the node via a plurality of connections, the scaling using at least a transformation to produce a plurality of scaled inputs; and updating a state of the node based on at least combining the plurality of scaled inputs, the updating configured to cause the node to generate a response based on at least the updated state of the node breaching a threshold; wherein: the individual inputs of the plurality of inputs comprise a first value, and the plurality of scaled inputs comprise a second value that is larger than the first value; and the transformation comprises a concave function of the plurality of inputs, the concave function configured to increase the first value to produce a third value, and to decrease the second value to produce a fourth value.