SCIENCE@home

The human Turing machine: a neural framework for mental programs.

Ariel Zylberberg,S. Dehaene,P. Roelfsema,M. Sigman

Published 2011 in Trends in Cognitive Sciences

ABSTRACT

In recent years much has been learned about how a single computational processing step is implemented in the brain. By contrast, we still have surprisingly little knowledge of the neuronal mechanisms by which multiple such operations are sequentially assembled into mental algorithms. We outline a theory of how individual neural processing steps might be combined into serial programs. We propose a hybrid neuronal device: each step involves massively parallel computation that feeds a slow and serial production system. Production selection is mediated by a system of competing accumulator neurons that extends the role of these neurons beyond the selection of a motor action. Productions change the state of sensory and mnemonic neurons and iteration of such cycles provides a basis for mental programs.

PUBLICATION RECORD

CITATION MAP

EXTRACTION MAP

CLAIMS

  • No claims are published for this paper.

CONCEPTS

  • No concepts are published for this paper.

REFERENCES

Showing 1-83 of 83 references · Page 1 of 1

CITED BY

Showing 1-100 of 160 citing papers · Page 1 of 2

12
Next