Memory And Prediction In A Changing Environment

Theoretical reflections and analytical observations on memory and prediction, linking these concepts to the role of the cerebellum in higher cognition. What is memory? What is memory for? Where is memory in the brain? Although memory is probably the most studied function in cognition, these fundamental questions remain challenging. We can try to answer the question of memory's purpose by defining the function of memory as remembering the past. And yet this definition is not consistent with the many errors that characterize our memory, or with the phylogenetic and ontogenetic origin of memory. In this book, Tomaso Vecchi and Daniele Gatti argue that the purpose of memory is not to remember the past but to predict the future.

"An argument to view memory as predicting the future, rather than merely archiving the past. Based on experimental evidence from psychology and neuroscience"--

Abstract: Distinctiveness effects in episodic memory were examined using a novel experimental paradigm. The critical manipulation was context-based change defined by the color feature of words in to-be-remembered study lists. Three experiments brought together the balanced-features design from previous research on isolation effects, different learning conditions reflecting variations on prediction error, and a source monitoring metric. A unique set of data shows a distinctiveness effect in source memory based on context change, but the effect is limited to stable environments with a low frequency of feature change. Conversely, no distinctiveness effect arose in random or frequently changing environments. It is proposed that, during learning, information is modified and associated with context by combining context-updating and prediction-violation mechanisms of cognition. The information provided by this research shows that there is context-sensitive organization critical for memory encoding, and provides a further account for some of the memory variance in effects of distinctiveness.

The ability to remember prior experience is a core aspect of cognition. Memory can be comprised of information about individual items or contexts, but information about the temporal relationships between entities in the environment can provide not only a record of what happened in the past but also facilitate predictions about what might happen in the future. To address how temporal relationships are learned and used to facilitate predictions, the current work includes three investigations, two experiments using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and one experiment using behavior. The reported fMRI experiments tested neural predictions from a recent model positing the existence of dissociable posterior-medial (PM) and anterior-temporal (AT) cortical networks that are thought to represent spatio-temporal relationships and item information, respectively, in the service of memory-guided behavior (Ranganath and Ritchey, 2012). In Chapter 2, representational similarity analysis was used to test for evidence of PM network involvement in supporting representations of shared temporal structure across event sequences. In Chapter 3, computational model-based fMRI was employed to assess evidence for the involvement of the AT network in representing the shared meaning of objects in a task where shared meaning could be discerned by learning to predict outcomes associated with sequentially presented pairs of object cues. In Chapter 4, we tested for behavioral evidence of increased flexibility of predictions about temporally associated stimuli following a period of memory trace stabilization. Together, the results across these investigations extend our understanding of the neural and behavioral correlates of learning and using temporal information to guide expectations and predictions about upcoming information.

For a variety of reasons, cognitive scientists tend to divide the study of the brain into separate domains. Some of the most studied domains are episodic memory, visual perception, and prediction. However, the underlying processes that give rise to one's memories, perceptions, and predictions do not operate independently. Instead each of these processes influences the others. Previous research has demonstrated that the memory system is critical for the generation of predictions (Buckner, 2010; Corbit & Balleine, 2000; Johnson, Meer, & Redish, 2007; Lisman & Redish, 2009). Other researchers have argued that portions of the memory system are actually a part of the visual perception system (Baxter, 2009; Bussey & Saksida, 2007). Here we present research that furthers our understanding of how these processes interact. First we demonstrate, through a series of behavioral experiments, that predictions influence memory. Specifically, in high-predictability environments, we find enhanced memory for items that could have been predicted to recur, but did not. We then present a computational model of recognition memory that attempts to formally explain this pattern using a prediction-based learning mechanism. Finally, we present neural evidence that the information content of the perceptual system is contingent on subsequent memory. Taken together, these results demonstrate how the perception of present stimuli and the prediction of future stimuli interact with the memory system.

The brain ... There is no other part of the human anatomy that is so intriguing. How does it develop and function and why does it sometimes, tragically, degenerate? The answers are complex. In Discovering the Brain, science writer Sandra Ackerman cuts through the complexity to bring this vital topic to the public. The 1990s were declared the "Decade of the Brain" by former President Bush, and the neuroscience community responded with a host of new investigations and conferences. Discovering the Brain is based on the Institute of Medicine conference, Decade of the Brain: Frontiers in Neuroscience and Brain Research. Discovering the Brain is a "field guide" to the brainâ€"an easy-to-read discussion of the brain's physical structure and where functions such as language and music appreciation lie. Ackerman examines: How electrical and chemical signals are conveyed in the brain. The mechanisms by which we see, hear, think, and pay attentionâ€"and how a "gut feeling" actually originates in the brain. Learning and memory retention, including parallels to computer memory and what they might tell us about our own mental capacity. Development of the brain throughout the life span, with a look at the aging brain. Ackerman provides an enlightening chapter on the connection between the brain's physical condition and various mental disorders and notes what progress can realistically be made toward the prevention and treatment of stroke and other ailments. Finally, she explores the potential for major advances during the "Decade of the Brain," with a look at medical imaging techniquesâ€"what various technologies can and cannot tell usâ€"and how the public and private sectors can contribute to continued advances in neuroscience. This highly readable volume will provide the public and policymakersâ€"and many scientists as wellâ€"with a helpful guide to understanding the many discoveries that are sure to be announced throughout the "Decade of the Brain."

Simulations are widely used in the military for training personnel, analyzing proposed equipment, and rehearsing missions, and these simulations need realistic models of human behavior. This book draws together a wide variety of theoretical and applied research in human behavior modeling that can be considered for use in those simulations. It covers behavior at the individual, unit, and command level. At the individual soldier level, the topics covered include attention, learning, memory, decisionmaking, perception, situation awareness, and planning. At the unit level, the focus is on command and control. The book provides short-, medium-, and long-term goals for research and development of more realistic models of human behavior.

This book constitutes the refereed proceedings of the 10th International Conference on Parallel Problem Solving from Nature, PPSN 2008, held in Dortmund, Germany, in September 2008. The 114 revised full papers presented were carefully reviewed and selected from 206 submissions. The conference covers a wide range of topics, such as evolutionary computation, quantum computation, molecular computation, neural computation, artificial life, swarm intelligence, artificial ant systems, artificial immune systems, self-organizing systems, emergent behaviors, and applications to real-world problems. The paper are organized in topical sections on formal theory, new techniques, experimental analysis, multiobjective optimization, hybrid methods, and applications.

"The fourth edition of The Cognitive Neurosciences continues to chart new directions in the study of the biologic underpinnings of complex cognition - the relationship between the structural and physiological mechanisms of the nervous system and the psychological reality of the mind. The material in this edition is entirely new, with all chapters written specifically for it." --Book Jacket.