COMPUTER MODELING OF NEURAL BASIS OF MENTAL OPERATIONS

The motor cortex is highly involved in the planning and performance of voluntary movements. The paradigm consisting of reaching a visual target has made the study of such complex processes possible by focusing on concrete aspects of the phenomenon that can be modeled. Analytical optimization techniques and neural networks will be used to test a mathematical model of reaching movement in three dimensions. The networks will investigate the dynamics and the kinematics of motor movement representation in the cortex. Posteriorly, available neurobiological data will be used to assess the validity of this theory.