Abstract
Simulander is a feedforward neural network simulating the orientation movement of salamanders. The orientation movement is part of the prey capture behavior; it is performed with the head alone. Simulander is a network which consists of 300 neurons incorporating several cytoarchitectonic and electrophysiological features of the salamander brain. The network is trained by means of an evolution strategy. Although only 100 tectum neurons with fairly large receptive fields are used (“coarse coding”), Simulander is able to localize an irregularly moving prey precisely. It is demonstrated that large receptive field neurons are important for successful prey localization. The removal of a model tectum hemisphere leads to a network which accounts for investigations made in living monocular salamanders. The model also yields an understanding of electrical stimulation experiments in toads.
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Eurich, C., Roth, G., Schwegler, H. et al. Simulander: A neural network model for the orientation movement of salamanders. J Comp Physiol A 176, 379–389 (1995). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00219063
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00219063