Model of cortical organization embodying a basis for a theory of information processing and memory recall.
Motivated by V. B. Mountcastle's organizational principle for neocortical function, and by M. E. Fisher's model of physical spin systems, we introduce a cooperative model of the cortical column incorporating an idealized substructure, the trion, which represents a localized group of neurons. Computer studies reveal that typical networks composed of a small number of trions (with symmetric interactions) exhibit striking behavior--e.g., hundreds to thousands of quasistable, periodic firing patterns, any of which can be selected out and enhanced with only small changes in interaction strengths by using a Hebb-type algorithm.
D000818:Animals; D002415:Cats; D002540:Cerebral Cortex / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000502:physiology*; D004594:Electrophysiology; D008568:Memory / Q000502:physiology*; D008959:Models, Neurological; D009415:Nerve Net / Q000502:physiology; D009474:Neurons / Q000502:physiology