scholarly journals Practopoiesis: Or how life fosters a mind

2014 ◽  
Author(s):  
Danko Nikolic
Keyword(s):  
Neural Plasticity ◽  
Lower Number ◽  
Long Term Memory ◽  
Explanatory Gap ◽  
Biological Phenomenon ◽  
Intelligent Behavior ◽  
Brain Theory ◽  
Motor Actions ◽  
The Mind

The mind is a biological phenomenon. Thus, biological principles of organization should also be the principles underlying mental operations. Practopoiesis states that the key for achieving intelligence through adaptation is an arrangement in which mechanisms laying a lower level of organization, by their operations and interaction with the environment, enable creation of mechanisms lying at a higher level of organization. When such an organizational advance of a system occurs, it is called a traverse. A case of traverse is when plasticity mechanisms (at a lower level of organization), by their operations, create a neural network anatomy (at a higher level of organization). Another case is the actual production of behavior by that network, whereby the mechanisms of neuronal activity operate to create motor actions. Practopoietic theory explains why the adaptability of a system increases with each increase in the number of traverses. With a larger number of traverses, a system can be relatively small and yet, produce a higher degree of adaptive/intelligent behavior than a system with a lower number of traverses. The present analyses indicate that the two well-known traverses—neural plasticity and neural activity—are not sufficient to explain human mental capabilities. At least one additional traverse is needed, which is named anapoiesis for its contribution in reconstructing knowledge e.g., from long-term memory into working memory. The conclusions bear implications for brain theory, the mind-body explanatory gap, and developments of artificial intelligence technologies.

Towards Truly Autonomous Synthetic Characters with the Sigma Cognitive Architecture

2016 ◽  
pp. 213-237
Author(s):  
Volkan Ustun ◽  
Paul S. Rosenbloom
Keyword(s):  
Graphical Models ◽  
Virtual Worlds ◽  
Computational Models ◽  
Cognitive Architecture ◽  
Behavioral Models ◽  
Complete Control ◽  
Intelligent Behavior ◽  
The Mind ◽  
Fixed Structure

Realism is required not only for how synthetic characters look but also for how they behave. Many applications, such as simulations, virtual worlds, and video games, require computational models of intelligence that generate realistic and credible behavior for the participating synthetic characters. Sigma (S) is being built as a computational model of general intelligence with a long-term goal of understanding and replicating the architecture of the mind; i.e., the fixed structure underlying intelligent behavior. Sigma leverages probabilistic graphical models towards a uniform grand unification of not only traditional cognitive capabilities but also key non-cognitive aspects, creating unique opportunities for the construction of new kinds of non-modular behavioral models. These ambitions strive for the complete control of synthetic characters that behave as humanly as possible. In this paper, Sigma is introduced along with two disparate proof-of-concept virtual humans – one conversational and the other a pair of ambulatory agents – that demonstrate its diverse capabilities.

Cell Adhesion Molecules: Key Players in Memory Consolidation?

Physiology ◽  
2003 ◽  
Vol 18 (4) ◽  
pp. 147-150 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hans Welzl ◽  
Oliver Stork
Keyword(s):  
Cell Adhesion ◽  
Neural Plasticity ◽  
Memory Consolidation ◽  
Cell Adhesion Molecules ◽  
Cell Adhesion Molecule ◽  
Neural Cell Adhesion Molecule ◽  
Long Term Memory ◽  
Learning Tasks ◽  
Neural Cell Adhesion

Experimental evidence implies that L1 and neural cell adhesion molecule (NCAM) are involved in long-term memory formation. Changes in their expression and glycosylation appear to modify the synaptic strength underlying memory consolidation. Interference with L1 and NCAM function in a variety of learning tasks in different species severely attenuates memory consolidation, indicating their involvement in an evolutionary conserved mechanism of neural plasticity.

Words Versus Rules (Storage Versus Online Production/Processing) in Morphology

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vsevolod Kapatsinski
Keyword(s):  
Mental Representations ◽  
Morphological Processing ◽  
English Speakers ◽  
Long Term Memory ◽  
Plural Form ◽  
Connectionist Networks ◽  
Complex Words ◽  
The Mind ◽  
Novel Words

Speakers of most languages comprehend and produce a very large number of morphologically complex words. But how? There is a tension between two facts. First, speakers can comprehend and produce novel words, which they have never experienced and therefore could not have stored in memory. For example, English speakers readily generate the plural form of wug. These novel words often look like they are composed of recognizable parts, such as the plural marker -s. Second, speakers also comprehend and produce many words that cannot be straightforwardly decomposed into parts, such as bought or brunch. Morphology is the paradigm example of a quasi-regular domain, full of only partially productive, exception-ridden patterns, many of which nonetheless appear to be learned and used by speakers and listeners. Quasi-regularity has made morphology a fruitful testing ground for alternative views of how the mind works. Every major approach to the nature of the mind has attempted to tackle morphological processing. These approaches range from symbolic rule-based approaches to connectionist networks of simple neuron-like processing units to clouds of richly specified holistic exemplars. They vary in their assumptions about the nature of mental representations; particularly, those comprising long-term memory of language. They also vary in the computations that the mind is thought to perform; including the computations that are performed by a speaker attempting to produce or comprehend a word. In challenging all major approaches to cognition with its intricate patterns, morphology continues to provide a valuable window onto the nature of the mind.

scholarly journals Prophylactic Subacute Administration of Zinc Increases CCL2, CCR2, FGF2, and IGF-1 Expression and Prevents the Long-Term Memory Loss in a Rat Model of Cerebral Hypoxia-Ischemia

2015 ◽  
Vol 2015 ◽  
pp. 1-15 ◽  
Author(s):  
Victor Manuel Blanco-Alvarez ◽  
Guadalupe Soto-Rodriguez ◽  
Juan Antonio Gonzalez-Barrios ◽  
Daniel Martinez-Fong ◽  
Eduardo Brambila ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cerebral Cortex ◽  
Growth Factors ◽  
Neural Plasticity ◽  
Memory Loss ◽  
Male Rats ◽  
Long Term Memory ◽  
Cerebral Hypoxia ◽  
Term Memory ◽  
Hypoxia Ischemia

Prophylactic subacute administration of zinc decreases lipoperoxidation and cell death following a transient cerebral hypoxia-ischemia, thus suggesting neuroprotective and preconditioning effects. Chemokines and growth factors are also involved in the neuroprotective effect in hypoxia-ischemia. We explored whether zinc prevents the cerebral cortex-hippocampus injury through regulation of CCL2, CCR2, FGF2, and IGF-1 expression following a 10 min of common carotid artery occlusion (CCAO). Male rats were grouped as follows: (1) Zn96h, rats injected with ZnCl2(one dose every 24 h during four days); (2) Zn96h + CCAO, rats treated with ZnCl2before CCAO; (3) CCAO, rats with CCAO only; (4) Sham group, rats with mock CCAO; and (5) untreated rats. The cerebral cortex-hippocampus was dissected at different times before and after CCAO. CCL2/CCR2, FGF2, and IGF-1 expression was assessed by RT-PCR and ELISA. Learning in Morris Water Maze was achieved by daily training during 5 days. Long-term memory was evaluated on day 7 after learning. Subacute administration of zinc increased expression of CCL2, CCR2, FGF2, and IGF-1 in the early and late phases of postreperfusion and prevented the CCAO-induced memory loss in the rat. These results might be explained by the induction of neural plasticity because of the expression of CCL2 and growth factors.

scholarly journals The Influence of Poststudy Action Congruency on Memory Consolidation

2020 ◽  
Vol 67 (4) ◽  
pp. 211-223
Author(s):  
René Zeelenberg ◽  
Sebastiaan Remmers ◽  
Florence Blaauwgeers ◽  
Diane Pecher
Keyword(s):  
Memory Consolidation ◽  
Test Performance ◽  
Initial Study ◽  
Memory Test ◽  
Long Term Memory ◽  
Term Memory ◽  
Motor Actions ◽  
Better Than

Abstract. The actions associated with objects are thought to be automatically activated when processing object names. Recent studies, however, have failed to find evidence for a role of the motor system in long-term memory for objects. One exception is a study by van Dam et al. (2013) in which participants studied object names associated with pressing (e.g., doorbell) or twisting (e.g., jar), followed by pressing or twisting actions in a seemingly unrelated task. In the final memory test, performance for action congruent words was better than for action incongruent words. We aimed to generalize these findings. In Experiments 1 and 2, we found no effect of action congruency on repetition priming in lexical decision and man-made/natural decision. In Experiment 3, the action congruency manipulation was administered immediately after initial study or a day later, just prior to the recognition memory test. We found no effects of action congruency and timing of the action. Finally, Experiment 4 was a direct replication of Experiment 1 of van Dam et al. (2013) . Again, we failed to find an effect of poststudy action congruency. Thus, we obtained no evidence for the view that motor actions play a role in long-term memory for objects.

scholarly journals Entropy-based model for cognitive systems

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Moshe Szweizer ◽  
Rivka Schlagbaum
Keyword(s):  
Multidimensional Space ◽  
Long Term Memory ◽  
Term Memory ◽  
Decision Making Processes ◽  
Independent Entity ◽  
Short And Long Term ◽  
Properties Of Information ◽  
The Mind ◽  
Different Characteristics

The work presented here looks at information as an independent entity. Without any involvement of the mind, information forms patterns and regularities which manifest themselves during cognitive experiments. Information can arrange itself within a multidimensional space and depending on the number of dimensions exhibit different characteristics. It is shown here that information analysis allows for the reproduction of some elementary cognitive processes like short- and long-term memory, chunking, long term memory categories, the formation of convictions, decision-making processes and mechanisms responsible for the formation of understanding. It is therefore argued here that some cognitive experiments do not relate to the workings of a subject’s mind but instead relate to the properties of information itself.

Introduction

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-24
Author(s):  
Erik D. Reichle
Keyword(s):  
Information Processing ◽  
Storage Systems ◽  
Human Mind ◽  
Memory Storage ◽  
Long Term Memory ◽  
Behavioral Experiments ◽  
Term Memory ◽  
Modal Model ◽  
The Mind

This chapter provides an introduction to reading research and computer models. The chapter discusses the information-processing metaphors that have been used to study the human mind, drawing parallels between components of the latter and similar distinctions in computers (e.g., short- vs. long-term memory/storage systems). The chapter also introduces the modal model, or most commonly used metaphor for describing the human mind. The chapter then provides examples illustrating how behavioral experiments can be used to make informed inferences about the operation of the mind and its information-processing components. The chapter closes with a discussion of reading, including how it is similar and dissimilar to spoken language, and how the latter differs from other forms of communication (e.g., animal).

scholarly journals Neurotransmitters, Cell Types, and Circuit Mechanisms of Motor Skill Learning and Clinical Applications

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wotu Tian ◽  
Shengdi Chen
Keyword(s):  
Motor Learning ◽  
Neural Mechanism ◽  
Experimental Tests ◽  
Cell Types ◽  
Skill Learning ◽  
Motor Memory ◽  
Long Term Memory ◽  
Motor Actions ◽  
The Brain

Animals acquire motor skills to better survive and adapt to a changing environment. The ability to learn novel motor actions without disturbing learned ones is essential to maintaining a broad motor repertoire. During motor learning, the brain makes a series of adjustments to build novel sensory–motor relationships that are stored within specific circuits for long-term retention. The neural mechanism of learning novel motor actions and transforming them into long-term memory still remains unclear. Here we review the latest findings with regard to the contributions of various brain subregions, cell types, and neurotransmitters to motor learning. Aiming to seek therapeutic strategies to restore the motor memory in relative neurodegenerative disorders, we also briefly describe the common experimental tests and manipulations for motor memory in rodents.

Conceptual short-term memory (CSTM) supports core claims of Christiansen and Chater

2016 ◽  
Vol 39 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mary C. Potter
Keyword(s):  
Working Memory ◽  
Rapid Serial Visual Presentation ◽  
Language Comprehension ◽  
Short Term Memory ◽  
Visual Presentation ◽  
Long Term Memory ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Term Memory ◽  
Use Of Knowledge

AbstractRapid serial visual presentation (RSVP) of words or pictured scenes provides evidence for a large-capacity conceptual short-term memory (CSTM) that momentarily provides rich associated material from long-term memory, permitting rapid chunking (Potter 1993; 2009; 2012). In perception of scenes as well as language comprehension, we make use of knowledge that briefly exceeds the supposed limits of working memory.

Comparison of Auditory, Language, Memory, and Attention Abilities in Children With and Without Listening Difficulties

2020 ◽  
Vol 29 (4) ◽  
pp. 710-727
Author(s):  
Beula M. Magimairaj ◽  
Naveen K. Nagaraj ◽  
Alexander V. Sergeev ◽  
Natalie J. Benafield
Keyword(s):  
Auditory Processing ◽  
Short Term Memory ◽  
Group Differences ◽  
Long Term Memory ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Significant Group ◽  
Term Memory ◽  
Memory And Attention ◽  
Speed And Accuracy

Objectives School-age children with and without parent-reported listening difficulties (LiD) were compared on auditory processing, language, memory, and attention abilities. The objective was to extend what is known so far in the literature about children with LiD by using multiple measures and selective novel measures across the above areas. Design Twenty-six children who were reported by their parents as having LiD and 26 age-matched typically developing children completed clinical tests of auditory processing and multiple measures of language, attention, and memory. All children had normal-range pure-tone hearing thresholds bilaterally. Group differences were examined. Results In addition to significantly poorer speech-perception-in-noise scores, children with LiD had reduced speed and accuracy of word retrieval from long-term memory, poorer short-term memory, sentence recall, and inferencing ability. Statistically significant group differences were of moderate effect size; however, standard test scores of children with LiD were not clinically poor. No statistically significant group differences were observed in attention, working memory capacity, vocabulary, and nonverbal IQ. Conclusions Mild signal-to-noise ratio loss, as reflected by the group mean of children with LiD, supported the children's functional listening problems. In addition, children's relative weakness in select areas of language performance, short-term memory, and long-term memory lexical retrieval speed and accuracy added to previous research on evidence-based areas that need to be evaluated in children with LiD who almost always have heterogenous profiles. Importantly, the functional difficulties faced by children with LiD in relation to their test results indicated, to some extent, that commonly used assessments may not be adequately capturing the children's listening challenges. Supplemental Material https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.12808607

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