Precision and neuronal dynamics in the human posterior parietal cortex during evidence accumulation

Primate studies show slow ramping activity in posterior parietal cortex (PPC) neurons during perceptual decision-making. These findings have inspired a rich theoretical literature to account for this activity. These accounts are largely unrelated to Bayesian theories of perception and predictive coding, a related formulation of perceptual inference in the cortical hierarchy. Here, we tested a key prediction of such hierarchical inference, namely that the estimated precision (reliability) of information ascending the cortical hierarchy plays a key role in determining both the speed of decision-making and the rate of increase of PPC activity. Using dynamic causal modelling of magnetoencephalographic (MEG) evoked responses, recorded during a simple perceptual decision-making task, we recover ramping-activity from an anatomically and functionally plausible network of regions, including early visual cortex, the middle temporal area (MT) and PPC. Precision, as reflected by the gain on pyramidal cell activity, was strongly correlated with both the speed of decision making and the slope of PPC ramping activity. Our findings indicate that the dynamics of neuronal activity in the human PPC during perceptual decision-making recapitulate those observed in the macaque, and in so doing we link observations from primate electrophysiology and human choice behaviour. Moreover, the synaptic gain control modulating these dynamics is consistent with predictive coding formulations of evidence accumulation

Dynamics with Infinitely Many Time Derivatives and Rolling Tachyons

Both in string field theory and in p-adic string theory the equations of motion involve infinite number of time derivatives. We argue that the initial value problem is qualitatively different from that obtained in the limit of many time derivatives in that the space of initial conditions becomes strongly constrained. We calculate the energy-momentum tensor and study in detail time dependent solutions representing tachyons rolling on the p-adic string theory potentials. For even potentials we find surprising small oscillations at the tachyon vacuum. These are not conventional physical states but rather anharmonic oscillations with a nontrivial frequency--amplitude relation. When the potentials are not even, small oscillatory solutions around the bottom must grow in amplitude without a bound. Open string field theory resembles this latter case, the tachyon rolls to the bottom and ever growing oscillations ensue. We discuss the significance of these results for the issues of emerging closed strings and tachyon matter.Comment: 46 pages, 14 figures, LaTeX. Replaced version: Minor typos corrected, some figures edited for clarit

Special Libraries, April 1933

Volume 24, Issue 3https://scholarworks.sjsu.edu/sla_sl_1933/1002/thumbnail.jp