title: From Brains to Neural Nets to Brains.
abstract: The paper traces theoretical work concerning the understanding and simulation of brain functions from early studies of artificial neural nets to present considerations of human consciousness. The emphasis is on work carried out since about 1963 at my laboratory in collaboration with my students. The discussion centers on sensory, especially visual, information processing, some of the cerebral mechanisms involved, and current approaches to an understanding of conscious perception. The sketchpad model, in which the ubiquitous feedback pathways in the brain play a dominant role, is described, together with a discussion of the meaning and applicability of scientific reductionism to the problem of consciousness.
authors.affiliation: Physics Department, Syracuse University, Syracuse NY, USA
authors.forename: Erich
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Harth