Colloque

Action selection in the premotor cortex

Paul Cisek

Membre a labase

Paul Cisek

Résumé du colloque

The natural world presents an animal not only with information of what is in the world, but also with information on what actions are currently possible. Our hypothesis suggests that the brain automatically uses such information to specify the parameters of several potential actions which are most relevant to the current behavioral context, and then uses additional information to select the action that is most appropriate at a given moment. These specification and selection processes can be observed in the cerebral cortex of a monkey performing a task which requires him to select one of two potential targets for a visually-guided voluntary reaching movement. We have found that while the monkey is presented with two potential movements, directional signals specifying both are simultaneously present in the premotor cortex. That is, he is preparing both movement plans simultaneously. When the cue for selecting one of these movements is given, the directional signals specifying its plan are maintained while the unwanted plan is discarded. These results support a view of behavior as a constant competition among currently available opportunities for interaction with the environment.