modeling cerebral cortical dynamics

[Stephen Grossberg]

The following article is now available at 
http://www.cns.bu.edu/Profiles/Grossberg in PDF:

Raizada, R. and <http://cns-web.bu.edu/Profiles/Grossberg/>Grossberg, 
S. (2003). Towards a Theory of the Laminar Architecture of Cerebral 
Cortex: Computational Clues from the Visual System.
Cerebral Cortex

One of the most exciting and open research frontiers in neuroscience 
is that of seeking to understand the functional roles of the layers 
of cerebral cortex. New experimental techniques for probing the 
laminar circuitry of cortex have recently been developed, opening up 
novel opportunities for investigating how its six-layered 
architecture contributes to perception and cognition. The task of 
trying to interpret this complex structure can be facilitated by 
theoretical analyses of the types of computations that cortex is 
carrying out, and of how these might be implemented in specific 
cortical circuits. We have recently developed a detailed neural model 
of how the parvocellular stream of the visual cortex utilizes its 
feedforward, feedback and horizontal interactions for purposes of 
visual filtering, attention and perceptual grouping. This model, 
called LAMINART, shows how these perceptual processes relate to the 
mechanisms that ensure the stable development of cortical circuits in 
the infant, and to the continued stability of learning in the adult. 
The present article reviews this laminar theory of visual cortex, 
considers how it may be generalized towards a more comprehensive 
theory that encompasses other cortical areas and cognitive processes, 
and shows how its laminar framework generates a variety of testable 
predictions.