Friedemann Pulvermueller (1994) Simple Models First . Psycoloquy: 5(66) Brain Rhythms (7)
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Psycoloquy 5(66): Simple Models First

SIMPLE MODELS FIRST
Reply to Goertzel on Brain-Rhythms

Friedemann Pulvermueller
Hubert Preissl
Werner Lutzenberger
Thomas Elbert

Institut fuer Medizinische Psychologie und
Verhaltensneurobiologie, Universitaet Tuebingen,
Gartenstrasse 29, 72074 Tuebingen, Germany

pumue@language01.medpsych.theoretische-medizin.uni-tuebingen.de

Abstract

Goertzel (1994a) emphasizes that the activation of a cell assembly does not necessarily imply periodic neural activity. He advocates more complex models in which one cell assembly may represent different cognitive entities depending on its mode of activation. We fully agree that more complex theories must be developed that avoid various simplifying assumptions implicit in our model. However, we consider it a good research strategy to start with simple models and to proceed to more complex ones when limitations of the simple models become evident.

Keywords

brain theory, cell assembly, cognition, event related potentials (ERP), electroencephalograph (EEG), gamma band, Hebb, language, lexical processing, magnetoencephalography (MEG), psychophysiology, periodicity, power spectral analysis, synchrony

References