The evolution and implications of population and modular neural coding ideas.

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses the neural coding ideas that reveals interesting and surprising steps in each that illuminate and clarify the others. The major aspects of these models allow most to be placed roughly into two major categories: population coding and modular coding. These are orthogonal modes of thinking; each throws the other into high relief. Within each the role of the temporal course of neural activity can be important. Different researchers use the same terms in different ways, different terms are used for very similar or identical ideas, and terms are often simply not defined. A standardization of useful definitions provides a coherent account of the ideas. The development of ideas is constrained by the nature of the language.