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The emergence of synaesthesia in a Neuronal Network Model via changes in perceptual sensitivity and plasticity
journal contribution
posted on 2023-06-09, 02:01 authored by Oren Shriki, Yaniv Sadeh, Jamie WardJamie WardSynaesthesia is an unusual perceptual experience in which an inducer stimulus triggers a percept in a different domain in addition to its own. To explore the conditions under which synaesthesia evolves, we studied a neuronal network model that represents two recurrently connected neural systems. The interactions in the network evolve according to learning rules that optimize sensory sensitivity. We demonstrate several scenarios, such as sensory deprivation or heightened plasticity, under which synaesthesia can evolve even though the inputs to the two systems are statistically independent and the initial cross-talk interactions are zero. Sensory deprivation is the known causal mechanism for acquired synaesthesia and increased plasticity is implicated in developmental synaesthesia. The model unifies different causes of synaesthesia within a single theoretical framework and repositions synaesthesia not as some quirk of aberrant connectivity, but rather as a functional brain state that can emerge as a consequence of optimising sensory information processing.
Funding
Enhanced Memory Ability: Insights from Synaesthesia; G1116; ESRC-ECONOMIC & SOCIAL RESEARCH COUNCIL; ES/K006215/1
History
Publication status
- Published
File Version
- Published version
Journal
PLoS Computational BiologyISSN
1553-734XPublisher
Public Library of ScienceExternal DOI
Issue
7Volume
12Article number
e1004959Department affiliated with
- Psychology Publications
Full text available
- Yes
Peer reviewed?
- Yes
Legacy Posted Date
2016-07-04First Open Access (FOA) Date
2016-07-14First Compliant Deposit (FCD) Date
2016-07-14Usage metrics
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