The most common behavioral observation in decision-making, experienced both in our daily lives and in laboratory settings, is that easy decisions (where we are likely to choose the correct response) are done quickly, whereas difficult decisions (less likely to choose correctly) are much slower. An appealingly simple model was proposed in the behavioral literature many decades ago to account for this observation. This model, sometimes known as the “gradual accumulation of evidence” model, has been used to explain many behavioral data sets. Does the brain implement something well approximated by this model? If so, how does the brain’s network of neurons actually carry out the implementation? We have been using using a combination of computational and experimental approaches with rats to try to answer these questions.

Part of a symposium to celebrate the work of Professor Sir David MacKay FRS. The symposium was held over the period 14-15 March 2016.

http://divf.eng.cam.ac.uk/djcms2016/