An Arc (or connection) is a one-way or two-way communication link between cells. A "feed forward" net permits only one-way communication - from imput cells, through hidden cells, to output cell. A "fr" network permits two-way communication.
The Amygdala is an almond-shaped neural structure in the anterior part of the temporal lobe of the cerebrum; intimately connected with the hypothalamus and the hippocampus and the cingulate gyrus; as part of the limbic system. It plays an important role in motivation and emotional behavior.
The Basal Gangilia is a collection of clusters deep within the cerebrum which plays an important role in producing smooth continous muscular movement in starting and stopping.
Biological evolution is a process. It is a process by which design is achieved (apparently, at any rate) without a designer.
Broca's Area is part of the left frontal area of the cerebrum. It converts thoughts into spoken or written language.
The Brain is the portion of the vertebrate central nervous system that is enclosed within the cranium, continous with the spinal cord, and composed of gray and white matter. It is the primary center for the regulation and control of bodily activities, receiving and interpreting sensory impulses, and translating information to the muscles and body organs. It is also the seat of consciousness, thought, memory and emotion. [American Hertitage Dictionary]
The Cerebellum is a cauliflower-shaped part located below the occipital area and next to the brain stem. The word is Latin for "little brain". Traditionally, research linked it to balance, posture, coordination and muscle movements. Newer research has linked it to cognition, novelty and emotions.
The Cerebral Cortex is the newspaper-sized 1/4 inch thick outermost layer of the cerebrum.
The Cerebrum is the largest part of the brain, composed of the left and right hemispheres. Scientists have named the four main parts of the cerebrum as "lobes" - frontal, pariental, temporal, occipital.
The Cingulate Gyrus is a long curved structure on the medial surface of the cerebral hemispheres, the cortical part of the limbic system.
Cognitive Science is the interdisciplinary study of the mind and intelligence, embracing philosophy, psychology, artifical intelligence, neurobiology, linguistics, and anthropology.
Cognitive Scientists, according to Neil Stillings, seek to understand perceiving, thinking, remembering, language understanding, learning, and other mental phenomena. Their reseach is remarkably diverse, ranging from observing children through programming computers to solve complex problems to analyzing the nature of meaning. Cognitive scientists view the human mind as a complex system which receives, stores, transforms and transmits information.
The Corpus Callosum is a white matter bundle of 200-300 million nerve fibers that connect the right and left hemispheres. It is located in the mid-brain, and is about 4 inches long.
Declarative Processing involves "little computation" other than matching. It is associated with fairly static knowledge structures.
The Diencephalon is the posterior subdivison of the forebrain. Also called the between-brain.
The Frontal lobe is the area around your forehead. It is involved with purposeful acts like judgement, creativity, planning and problem solving.
Genetic algorithms are models of machine learning that derive their behavior from a metaphor involving mechanisms of evolution in nature. Within a program, a population of simulated "individuals" are created and undergo a process of evolution in a simulated, competitive environment.
Genetic programming is the method of creating computer programs using genetic (evolutionary) algorithms.
The Glial is one of two types of brain cells. We have about 1000 billion of these. The glial cells carry nutrinents, speed repair, and may form their own communication network.
The Hippocampus is found deep in the temporal lobe. It is cresent-shaped and strongly involved in learning and memory formation.
The Hypothalamus is a basal part of the dienciphalon that lies beneath the thalamus on each side, forms the floor of the third ventricle, and includes vital automatic regulatory centers.
LISP, acronym for List Processing, a computer programming language developed from 1959 to 1960, used primarily to manipulate lists of data. LISP was a departure from the procedural languages (FORTRAN, ALGOL) then being developed; it is an interpreted language in which every expression is a list of calls to functions. LISP continues to be heavily used in research and academia and has been considered the standard language for artifical intelligence research, although Prolog has made inroads into that field.
The Lower-Brain or brain stem, is the lower portion of the brain composed of the "upper spinal cord", the "medulla", the "pons", and the "recticular formations". It sorts out sensory information and regulates survival functions like breathing.
The Medulla Oblongata is the part of the vertebrate brain that is continuous posteriorly with the spinal cord and the contains the centers controlling involuntary vital functions.
The Mid-Brain refers to the geographical area behind the frontal lobes, above the brain stem and below the parietal lobes. Structures within it include "thalamus", the "hippocampus", and the "amygdala".
The Neuron is one of two types of brain cells. We have about 100 billion of these. A neuron recieves stimulation from its branches, known as 'dendrites'. It communicates to other neurons by firing a nerve impulse along it's 'axon'. Neurons are the basic structural components of the nervous system.
The Occipital lobe is the middle back of the cerebrum. It is primarily responsible for vision.
The Pariental lobe is on the top back area. Its duties include higher sensory processing and language functions.
The Pons is located near the top of the brain stem above the medulla. It is a critcial relay station for sensory information.
Procedural Processing involves substantial computation beyond simple matching. It is associated with dynamic knowledge structures.
A Production System or a rule based system, consists of three parts:
1) a rule base, which is a set of "situation/action" rules of
the form: IF
The Reticular Formation is a mass of nerve cells and fibers situated
primarily in the brain stem and functioning upon stimulation especially in
arousal of organism.
A Synapse is the gap between the axon of one neuron and the dendrite
of another into which neurotransmitters are released. The adult human has
trillions of synapses.
The Temporal lobe (right and left sides) is above and around the
ears. This area is responsible for hearing, memory, meaning and language.
The Thalamus is the largest subdivision of the diencephalon that
consists chiefly of an ovoid mass of nuclei in each lateral wall of the
third ventricle and functions in the intergration of sensory information.
A Uniform Representation Production System is a production system
in which the representation of the world, the situation, and the action
"manipulatives" are based on the same idea.
Wernicke's Area refers to the upper edge of the temporal lobe, this
area has to do with language comprehension.
A Weight us a real number which indicates the influence of one cell
on another. Typically, positive weights indicate reinforcement, negative
weights indicate inhabition. A weight of zero (O) indicates no influence,
or that a connection does not exist.
Last modified: Thu Dec 9 16:54:09 EST 1999