Title: A neural model of hippocampal-parietal interactions in spatial memory
Speaker: Suzanna Becker
Speaker Info: McMaster University
Brief Description:
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Abstract:
In this talk, I will describe a computational model of the neural mechanisms in the parietal and temporal lobes that support spatial navigation, imagery, and episodic recall. Long-term allocentric representations of scenes are stored in the hippocampus and associated with object and texture information in the surrounding medial temporal lobe. Viewpoint-dependent representations are generated in the parietal part of the model to enable construction of an imagined retinotopic scene and generation of appropriate body movements. Bidirectional interactions between the hippocampal and parietal modules allows translation between allocentric and egocentric representations, with dynamical interactions between recalled episodic memories and viewer-centered mental images. Damage to the parietal part of the model produces symptoms of hemispatial neglect, including neglect in mental imagery that rotates with the imagined perspective of the observer, as in the famous Milan Square experiment with parietally lesioned patients reported by Bisiach and Luzatti (1978). This is joint work with Neil Burgess at UCL.Date: Friday, February 2, 2001