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arXiv · 2105.05714

Representation in Dynamical Systems

Matthew Hutson
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Abstract

The brain is often called a computer and likened to a Turing machine, in part because the mind can manipulate discrete symbols such as numbers. But the brain is a dynamical system, more like a Watt governor than a Turing machine. Can a dynamical system be said to operate using "representations"? This paper argues that it can, although not in the way a digital computer does. Instead, it uses phenomena best described using mathematic concepts such as chaotic attractors to stand in for aspects of the world.

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Matthew Hutson. 2021-05-12. Representation in Dynamical Systems. https://arxiv.org/abs/2105.05714

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