Localist Connectionist Approaches To Human Cognition

This volume provides an overview of a relatively neglected branch of connectionism known as localist connectionism. The singling out of localist connectionism is motivated by the fact that some critical modeling strategies have been more readily applied in the development and testing of localist as opposed to distributed connectionist models (models using distributed hidden-unit representations and trained with a particular learning algorithm, typically back-propagation). One major theme emerging from this book is that localist connectionism currently provides an interesting means of evolving from verbal-boxological models of human cognition to computer-implemented algorithmic models. The other central messages conveyed are that the highly delicate issue of model testing, evaluation, and selection must be taken seriously, and that model-builders of the localist connectionist family have already shown exemplary steps in this direction.

This volume provides an overview of a relatively neglected branch of connectionism known as localist connectionism. The singling out of localist connectionism is motivated by the fact that some critical modeling strategies have been more readily applied in the development and testing of localist as opposed to distributed connectionist models (models using distributed hidden-unit representations and trained with a particular learning algorithm, typically back-propagation). One major theme emerging from this book is that localist connectionism currently provides an interesting means of evolving from verbal-boxological models of human cognition to computer-implemented algorithmic models. The other central messages conveyed are that the highly delicate issue of model testing, evaluation, and selection must be taken seriously, and that model-builders of the localist connectionist family have already shown exemplary steps in this direction.

A state-of-the-art review of neural network modelling in core areas of cognitive psychology including: memory and learning, language (written and spoken), cognitive development, cognitive control, attention and action.

This distinctive handbook is a key reference for both clinicians and researchers working in the scientific investigation of aphasia. The focus is on how the study of acquired language disorders has contributed to our understanding of normal language and its neural substrates, and to the clinical management of language disorders. The handbook is unique in that it reviews studies from the major disciplines in which aphasia research is conducted - cognitive neuropsychology, linguistics, neurology, neuroimaging, and speech-language pathology - as they apply to each topic of language. For each language domain (such as reading), there is a chapter devoted to theory and models of the language task, a chapter devoted to the neural basis of the language task (focusing on recent neuroimaging studies) and a chapter devoted to clinical diagnosis and treatment of impairments in that domain.

This book is divided into five sections dealing with various fundamental issues in current research: attention, information processing and eye movement control; the role of phonology in reading; syntax and discourse processing and computational models and simulations. Control and measurement of eye movements form a prominent theme in the book. A full understanding of the where and when of eye movement control is a prerequisite of any complete theory of reading, since it is precisely at this point that perceptual and cognitive processes interact. Amongst the 'hot topics' included are the relation between parafoveal and foveal visual processing of linguistic information, the role of phonology in fluent reading and the emergence of statistical 'tuning' approaches to sentence parsing. Also discussed in the book are three attempts to develop quantitative models of reading which represent a significant departure in theory-building and a quantum step in the maturation of reading research. Much of the work reported in the book was first presented at the 5th European Workshop on Language Comprehension organised in April 1998 which was held at the CNRS Luminy Campus, near Marseilles. All contributions summarise the state-of-the-art in the relevant areas of reading research.

1. Introdudion This volume collects together the refereed versions of 25 papers presented at the 5th Neural Computation and Psychology Workshop (NCPW5), held at the University of Birmingham from the 8th until the lOth of September 1998. The NCPW is a well-established, lively forum, which brings together researchers from a range of disciplines (artificial intelligence, mathematics, cognitive science, computer science, neurobiology, philosophy and psychology), all of whom are interested in the application of neurally-inspired (connectionist) models to topics in psychology. The theme of the 5th workshop in the series was Connectionist models in cognitive neuroscience', and the workshop aimed to bring together papers focused on the inter-relations between functional (psychological) accounts of cognition and neural accounts of underlying brain processes, linked by connectionist models. From the very beginnings of modern psychology, with the work of William James and his contemporaries, researchers have believed it important to relate behavioural analyses to neurological underpinnings. However, with the advent of connectionist modelling, where models are at least inspired by neuronal processes, this enterprise has received a new boost. With this volume, we hope that this volume adds one further mosaic stone to this ambitious objective, of unifying functional and neuronal accounts of performance.

This book presents the complete collection of peer-reviewed presentations at the 1999 Cognitive Science Society meeting, including papers, poster abstracts, and descriptions of conference symposia. For students and researchers in all areas of cognitive science.

A comprehensive and interdisciplinary approach to the study of memory, language and cognitive processing across various populations of bilingual speakers.