TY  - UNPB
ID  - cogprints715
UR  - http://cogprints.org/715/
A1  - Harpaz, Yehouda
TI  - The Neurons In The Brain Cannot Implement Symbolic Systems
Y1  - 1996/04//
N2  - It is widely accepted that symbolic systems are useful in understanding the working of the brain, and there are many symbolic models of functions of the brain. This is based on the assumption, commonly implicit, that in the brain itself there is a symbolic system. In this article I challenge this belief, by showing that symbolic systems cannot be implemented by neurons in the brain. I based the argument on textbook knowledge from neurobiology, and the basic requirements for implementing symbolic systems. In particular, I show that there is no way to implement symbol tokens in neuronal substrate, where the individual connections of individual neurons (as opposed to cell populations) are not well defined.
AV  - public
KW  - Symbolic system
KW  -  brain
KW  -  neurons
KW  -  Connectivity
KW  -  Stochastic connectivity
KW  -  symbol tokens
ER  -

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