12 research outputs found
Adaptive networks for robotics and the emergence of reward anticipatory circuits
Currently the central challenge facing evolutionary robotics is to determine
how best to extend the range and complexity of behaviour supported by evolved
neural systems. Implicit in the work described in this thesis is the idea that this
might best be achieved through devising neural circuits (tractable to evolutionary
exploration) that exhibit complementary functional characteristics. We concentrate
on two problem domains; locomotion and sequence learning. For locomotion
we compare the use of GasNets and other adaptive networks. For sequence learning
we introduce a novel connectionist model inspired by the role of dopamine
in the basal ganglia (commonly interpreted as a form of reinforcement learning).
This connectionist approach relies upon a new neuron model inspired by notions
of energy efficient signalling. Two reward adaptive circuit variants were investigated.
These were applied respectively to two learning problems; where action
sequences are required to take place in a strict order, and secondly, where action
sequences are robust to intermediate arbitrary states. We conclude the thesis
by proposing a formal model of functional integration, encompassing locomotion
and sequence learning, extending ideas proposed by W. Ross Ashby.
A general model of the adaptive replicator is presented, incoporating subsystems
that are tuned to continuous variation and discrete or conditional events.
Comparisons are made with Ross W. Ashby's model of ultrastability and his
ideas on adaptive behaviour. This model is intended to support our assertion
that, GasNets (and similar networks) and reward adaptive circuits of the type
presented here, are intrinsically complementary. In conclusion we present some
ideas on how the co-evolution of GasNet and reward adaptive circuits might lead
us to significant improvements in the synthesis of agents capable of exhibiting
complex adaptive behaviour
Selectionist and Evolutionary Approaches to Brain Function: A Critical Appraisal
We consider approaches to brain dynamics and function that have been claimed to be Darwinian. These include Edelmanâs theory of neuronal group selection, Changeuxâs theory of synaptic selection and selective stabilization of pre-representations, Seungâs Darwinian synapse, Loewensteinâs synaptic melioration, Adamâs selfish synapse, and Calvinâs replicating activity patterns. Except for the last two, the proposed mechanisms are selectionist but not truly Darwinian, because no replicators with information transfer to copies and hereditary variation can be identified in them. All of them fit, however, a generalized selectionist framework conforming to the picture of Priceâs covariance formulation, which deliberately was not specific even to selection in biology, and therefore does not imply an algorithmic picture of biological evolution. Bayesian models and reinforcement learning are formally in agreement with selection dynamics. A classification of search algorithms is shown to include Darwinian replicators (evolutionary units with multiplication, heredity, and variability) as the most powerful mechanism for search in a sparsely occupied search space. Examples are given of cases where parallel competitive search with information transfer among the units is more efficient than search without information transfer between units. Finally, we review our recent attempts to construct and analyze simple models of true Darwinian evolutionary units in the brain in terms of connectivity and activity copying of neuronal groups. Although none of the proposed neuronal replicators include miraculous mechanisms, their identification remains a challenge but also a great promise
Nonspecific synaptic plasticity improves the recognition of sparse patterns degraded by local noise
Safaryan, K. et al. Nonspecific synaptic plasticity improves the recognition of sparse patterns degraded by local noise. Sci. Rep. 7, 46550; doi: 10.1038/srep46550 (2017). This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the articleâs Creative Commons license, unless indicated otherwise in the credit line; if the material is not included under the Creative Commons license, users will need to obtain permission from the license holder to reproduce the material. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ © The Author(s) 2017.Many forms of synaptic plasticity require the local production of volatile or rapidly diffusing substances such as nitric oxide. The nonspecific plasticity these neuromodulators may induce at neighboring non-active synapses is thought to be detrimental for the specificity of memory storage. We show here that memory retrieval may benefit from this non-specific plasticity when the applied sparse binary input patterns are degraded by local noise. Simulations of a biophysically realistic model of a cerebellar Purkinje cell in a pattern recognition task show that, in the absence of noise, leakage of plasticity to adjacent synapses degrades the recognition of sparse static patterns. However, above a local noise level of 20 %, the model with nonspecific plasticity outperforms the standard, specific model. The gain in performance is greatest when the spatial distribution of noise in the input matches the range of diffusion-induced plasticity. Hence non-specific plasticity may offer a benefit in noisy environments or when the pressure to generalize is strong.Peer reviewe
Proper embodiment: the role of the body in affect and cognition
Embodied cognitive science has argued that cognition is embodied principally in virtue of gross
morphological and sensorimotor features. This thesis argues that cognition is also internally embodied
in affective and fine-grained physiological features whose transformative roles remain mostly
unnoticed in contemporary cognitive science. I call this âproper embodimentâ. I approach this larger
subject by examining various emotion theories in philosophy and psychology. These tend to emphasise
one of the many gross components of emotional processes, such as âfeelingâ or âjudgementâ to the
detriment of the others, often leading to an artificial emotion-cognition distinction even within emotion
science itself. Attempts to reconcile this by putting the gross components back together, such as Jesse
Prinzâs âembodied appraisal theoryâ, are, I argue, destined to failure because the vernacular concept of
emotion which is used as the explanandum is not a natural kind and is not amenable to scientific
explication.
I examine Antonio Damasioâs proposal that emotion is involved in paradigmatic âcognitiveâ processing
such as rational decision making, and argue (1) that the research he discusses does not warrant the
particular hypothesis he favours, and (2) that Damasioâs account, though in many ways a step in the
right direction, nonetheless continues to endorse a framework which sees affect and cognition as
separate (though now highly interacting) faculties. I further argue that the conflation of âaffectâ and
âemotionâ may be the source of some confusion in emotion theory and that affect needs to be properly
distinguished from âemotionâ. I examine some dissociations in the pain literature which give us further
empirical evidence that, as with the emotions, affect is a distinct component along with more cognitive
elements of pain. I then argue that affect is distinctive in being grounded in homeostatic regulative
activity in the body proper.
With the distinction between affect, emotion, and cognition in hand, and the associated grounding of
affect in bodily activity, I then survey evidence that bodily affect is also involved in perception and in
paradigmatic cognitive processes such as attention and executive function. I argue that this relation is
not âmerelyâ casual. Instead, affect (grounded in fine-grained details of internal bodily activity) is
partially constitutive of cognition, participating in cognitive processing and contributing to perceptual
and cognitive phenomenology. Finally I review some work in evolutionary robotics which reaches a
similar conclusion, suggesting that the particular fine details of embodiment, such as molecular
signalling between both neural and somatic cells matters to cognition. I conclude that cognition is
âproperly embodiedâ in that it is partially constituted by the many fine-grained bodily processes
involved in affect (as demonstrated in the thesis) and plausibly by a wide variety of other fine-grained
bodily processes that likewise tend to escape the net of contemporary cognitive science
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Evolved transistor array robot controllers
For the first time a field programmable transistor array (FPTA) was used to evolve robot control circuits directly in analog hardware. Controllers were successfully incrementally evolved for a physical robot engaged in a series of visually guided behaviours, including finding a target in a complex environment where the goal was hidden from most locations. Circuits for recognising spoken commands were also evolved and these were used in conjunction with the controllers to enable voice control of the robot, triggering behavioural switching. Poor quality visual sensors were deliberately used to test the ability of evolved analog circuits to deal with noisy uncertain data in realtime. Visual features were coevolved with the controllers to automatically achieve dimensionality reduction and feature extraction and selection in an integrated way. An efficient new method was developed for simulating the robot in its visual environment. This allowed controllers to be evaluated in a simulation connected to the FPTA. The controllers then transferred seamlessly to the real world. The circuit replication issue was also addressed in experiments where circuits were evolved to be able to function correctly in multiple areas of the FPTA. A methodology was developed to
analyse the evolved circuits which provided insights into their operation. Comparative experiments demonstrated the superior evolvability of the transistor array medium
Spatial, Temporal, and Modulatory Factors Affecting GasNet Evolvability in a Visually Guided Robotics Task
Spatial, temporal, and modulatory factors affecting the evolvability of GasNets-a style of artificial neural network incorporating an analogue of volume signalling-are investigated. The focus of the article is a comparative study of variants of the GasNet, implementing various spatial, temporal, and modulatory constraints, used as control systems in an evolutionary robotics task involving visual discrimination. The results of the study are discussed in the context of related research
A complex systems approach to education in Switzerland
The insights gained from the study of complex systems in biological, social, and engineered systems enables us not only to observe and understand, but also to actively design systems which will be capable of successfully coping with complex and dynamically changing situations. The methods and mindset required for this approach have been applied to educational systems with their diverse levels of scale and complexity. Based on the general case made by Yaneer Bar-Yam, this paper applies the complex systems approach to the educational system in Switzerland. It confirms that the complex systems approach is valid. Indeed, many recommendations made for the general case have already been implemented in the Swiss education system. To address existing problems and difficulties, further steps are recommended. This paper contributes to the further establishment complex systems approach by shedding light on an area which concerns us all, which is a frequent topic of discussion and dispute among politicians and the public, where billions of dollars have been spent without achieving the desired results, and where it is difficult to directly derive consequences from actions taken. The analysis of the education system's different levels, their complexity and scale will clarify how such a dynamic system should be approached, and how it can be guided towards the desired performance
Embodiment in Evolution and Culture
From its beginnings, the theory of evolution has unsettled fundamental anthropological assumptions about the place of human beings in nature. The integration of human origins into natural history by Darwinism was countered by the philosophical anthropologies of the 20th century. Their attempts were to hold on even more resolutely to the special status of humans as beings 'open towards the world'. Today, evolutionary and philosophical anthropology have moved closer together via the paradigm of embodiment. Building on embodied cognitive science, this volume aims to establish how far the human mind and human cultural cognition can be attributed to the structures of human existence, structures which have emerged in the course of evolution and have in turn been affected by culture. The traditional dualism of nature and culture is transformed into an explanation of an evolutionary process in which body and mind are understood to be intertwined and mutually constitutive