A model in which local parallel processors assemble to produce goal-directed behavior.   A performance bottleneck comes from the routing stage, which learns to map inputs onto motor representations.  This is very much like mixed-selectivity models of cortex.

Zylberberg, A., Slezak, D. F., Roelfsema, P. R., Dehaene, S., & Sigman, M. (2010). The brain’s router: a cortical network model of serial processing in the primate brainPLoS computational biology6(4), e1000765.

For more about mixed selectivity see:
Fusi, S., Miller, E.K., and Rigotti, M. (2016) Why neurons mix: High dimensionality for higher cognition.  Current Opinion in Neurobiology. 37:66-74  doi:10.1016/j.conb.2016.01.010. View PDF »

Rigotti, M., Barak, O., Warden, M.R., Wang, X., Daw, N.D., Miller, E.K., & Fusi, S. (2013) The importance of mixed selectivity in complex cognitive tasks. Nature, 497, 585-590, doi:10.1038/nature12160. View PDF »

About the Author


The Miller Lab uses experimental and theoretical approaches to study the neural basis of the high-level cognitive functions that underlie complex goal-directed behavior. ekmillerlab.mit.edu