George N. Reeke, Jr.
Associate Professor
|
Laboratory of Biological Modelling George N. Reeke, Jr. Associate Professor |
Research Focus:
Interest centers on the nervous system, which provides the
biological substrate for behavior and higher thought processes.
Models are being constructed that attempt to provide a conceptual
bridge between the physical phenomena occurring in the nervous
system and the psychological level. A technique called synthetic
neural modeling is used to construct computer-simulated organisms
with senses, motor outputs, and a nervous system. Neurons in
these models have biologically realistic properties based on
experimental neurophysiology. They interact with each other and
with the environment according to a comprehensive Darwinian view
of population dynamics in the nervous system proposed by G.M.
Edelman.
The ability of model organisms to display adaptive behavior
has been tested both in simulated worlds and in the real world,
under conditions of both normal and impaired nervous system
function. These models have shown how the ability to recognize
objects and events in the environment can arise in the developing
nervous system as a result of the operation of selective
processes guided by innate value systems. There is no need for
built-in representational codes or computational algorithms, nor
for feedback of error signals from omniscient external teachers.
These results call into question the popular theory that the
brain is a kind of computer.
