I have been arguing for some time now that control theoretic notions are
indeed applicable to the brain - that there are parts of the brain that
control other parts of the brain. Not being a neuroscientist, my arguments
have depended on: (1) a careful examination of the connectionist learning
algorithms and the discovery that they indeed use control theoretic notions,
that they couldn't get away from it, and (2) an external observation of the
living systems that have brains (humans, animals) and the discovery that
their brains control the rest of the system (a profound discovery indeed by
any scientific standard and it certainly deserves a Nobel prize!!). A
control theoretic approach resolves many of the inherent problems of
connectionism.
This note is to enquire whether there have been any studies in
neuroscience/neurobiology to show that some parts of the brain control other
parts. I understand that the modulatory transmitters have their own
characteristic sources in the midbrain. For example, dopamine originates
from the ventral tegmentum and the substantia nigra; serotonin from the
raphe nucleus; norepinephrine from the locus ceruleus; and acetylcholine
from the nucleus basalis.
My question is: if these neuromodulatory sources or other relevant regions
of the brain were lesioned, what would be the impact on the functioning of
the brain? Would it have a wide impact on the functioning of the brain, or
would it just result in the loss of one or more particular functions of the
brain? Any references and summaries of studies would be highly appreciated.
With regards,
Asim Roy
Arizona State University