Toward basic principles for emotional processing: What the fearful brain tells the robot

This chapter examines the basic principles governing emotional processing. It re-evaluates the concept of the limbic system and identifies the amygdala as a crucial component of the system involved in the acquisition, storage, and expression of fear memory. Amygdala acts as a species-specific danger detector that can be quickly activated by threatening stimuli, and that can be modulated by higher cognitive systems. The amygdala influences the cognitive system by way of projections to arousal centres that control the way actions and perceptions are performed.