Mathematical Tractability of Neural Nets

[Steven L. Small]

I agree with Liz Bates about neurological localization in general, and language
functions in particular. One major problem with localization is that the data
come from experiments of nature in which large areas of brain are damaged;
inferences about small areas of the brain are made by comparing individuals
to look for intersections in both damaged brain and in deficient cognitive
processing abilities. There are lots of problems with this, and a number of
assumptions of the enterprise are probably wrong (e.g., that computational
organizations across individuals do not differ at the gross neuroanatomical
level).
I also agree that connectionist networks make a better metaphor for brain
computations than do filing cabinets and filing clerks (or the store and
retrieve operations of CPUs).
Regards, Steve Small (neurologist among other things).