Contributed Talk Sessions | Poster Sessions | All Posters | Search Papers

Poster Session C: Friday, August 15, 2:00 – 5:00 pm, de Brug & E‑Hall

How your brain learns penguins are birds - neural patterns of exception learning

Rebekka Heinen¹, Robert Lech, Boris Suchan, Nikolai Axmacher; ¹Ruhr-Universität Bochum

Presenter: Rebekka Heinen

We know that, despite their bird-like appearance, bats are mammals. How does the brain learn such exceptions? We conducted an fMRI study where participants categorized stimuli, including exceptions. We analyzed learning behavior using prototype and exemplar learning models. Initially, both models equally predicted behavior, but the exemplar model later outperformed the prototype model. Combining stimulus similarity patterns from the learning models with a whole-brain searchlight using representational similarity analysis (RSA), we found that the prototype model matched neural patterns in frontal and temporal regions, while the exemplar model matched patterns in the visual cortex. Our findings support the idea of flexible recruitment of multiple learning systems involved in concept learning, based on task demands.

Topic Area: Memory, Spatial Cognition & Skill Learning

Extended Abstract: Full Text PDF