Seminari Generali

The geometry of abstraction

by Stefano Fusi (Zuckerman Institute - Columbia University)

Europe/Rome
Aula Conversi (Dipartimento di Fisica - Ed. G.Marconi)

Aula Conversi

Dipartimento di Fisica - Ed. G.Marconi

Description
Abstract: Neurons in the mammalian brain often exhibit complex, non-linear responses to multiple task variables (mixed selectivity). Despite the diversity of these responses, it is often possible to observe an interesting structure in the representational geometry: task-relevant variables tend to be encoded in approximately orthogonal subspaces. This is a signature of low dimensional disentangled representations, it is typically the result of a process of abstraction, and it allows a linear readout to readily generalize to novel situations. We show that these representations are observed in cognitive areas of the brain of human and non-human primates performing a variety of different tasks.
 
 
 

 
Organised by

Irene Rosana Giardina