Neuronal Mechanisms of Intelligence
Abstract
This research program is based on the assumption that human problem- solving behavior has evolved from the goal-seeking brain functions of lower forms. These functions in turn depend on a capacity for behavior to be strengthened or positively reinforced by its consequences, a process Skinner (1938) terms operant conditioning. A critical problem is to identify the functional brain unit whose activity is modified by the reinforcement process. Our early work suggests that the individual brain cell may serve as such a functional unit, leading us to identify the 'reinforced' neuron rather than the neuronal network as the unit of goal-seeking behavior. If these assumptions are correct, it follows that the fundamental mechanisms of adaptation underlying human intelligence reside at least in part at the level of individual cells. Elucidation of the cellular mechanisms of operant conditioning may have important implications for adaptive network research. Specific objectives of this research included: (1) demonstration that the activity of individual neurons in fact is susceptible to operant conditioning, (2) determination of the properties and limits of such neuronal operant conditioning, (3) investigation of the biochemical events that may mediate the cellular reinforcement process, and (4) comparison of the properties of neuronal and behavioral operant conditioning in order to determine important similarities and differences. Keywords: Conditioning(Learning).
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Nov 01, 1987
- Accession Number
- ADA193304
Entities
People
- James D. Belluzzi
- Larry Stein
Organizations
- University of California, Irvine