Prototypes, location, and associative networks (PLAN): Towards a unified theory of cognitive mapping

An integrated representation of large-scale space, or cognitive map, called PLAN, is presented that attempts to address a broader spectrum of issues than has been previously attempted in a single model. Rather than examining woyfinding OS ct process separate from the rest of cognition, one of the fundamental goals of this work is to examine how the wayfinding process is integrated into general cognition. One result of this approach is that the model is “heads-up,” or scene-based, because it takes advantage of the properties of the human visual system and, particularly, the visual system’s split into two pathways. The emphasis on the human location or “where” system is new to cognitive mapping and is part of an attempt to synthesize prototype theory, associative networks and location together in a connectionist system. Not all of PLAN is new, however. Many of its parts have anologues in one or another preexisting theory. What makes PLAN unique is integrating the various components into a coherent whole, and the capacity of this resulting system to speak to o wide range of constraints. Our approach emphasizes adaptiveness: thus, our focus on such issues as ease of use and efficiency of learning. The result is a model that has a stronger relationship both to the environment, and to the ways thot humans interact with it, compared with previous models. The resulting model is examined in some detail and compared to other systems.