Skip to main content

Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles and JavaScript.

  • Letter
  • Published:

Cortical Synapses and Reinforcement: a Hypothesis

Abstract

MOST theories of learning assume some change in the synaptic conductivity of cortical pathways1,2. Facilitation by use alone, however, will not account for the most characteristic feature of learning—that what is learned are those motor responses which lead to a satisfactory or adaptive state of affairs for the organism3–5.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution

Access options

Buy this article

Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Kandel, E. R., and Spencer, W. A., Physiol. Rev., 48, 65 (1968).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  2. Burns, B. D., The Uncertain Nervous System (Edward Arnold, London, 1968).

    Google Scholar 

  3. Thorndike, E. R., Animal Intelligence (Macmillan, New York, 1911).

    Google Scholar 

  4. Skinner, B. F., The Behaviour of Organisms (Appleton-Century-Crofts, New York, 1938).

    Google Scholar 

  5. Young, J. Z., A Model of the Brain (Oxford University Press, Oxford, 1964).

    Google Scholar 

  6. Beurle, R. L., Phil. Trans. Roy. Soc., B, 240, 55 (1957).

    ADS  Google Scholar 

  7. Beurle, R. L., in Principles of Self-Organization (Pergamon Press, Oxford, 1961).

    Google Scholar 

  8. Pringle, J. W. S., Behaviour, 3, 174 (1951).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  9. Broadbent, D. E., Behaviour (Eyre and Spottiswoode, London, 1961).

    Google Scholar 

  10. Konorski, J., Conditioned Reflexes and Neuron Organisation (Cambridge University Press, London, 1948).

    Google Scholar 

  11. Hebb, D. O., The Organization of Behaviour (Wiley, New York, 1949).

    Google Scholar 

  12. Gerard, R. W., Amer. J. Psychiat., 106, 161 (1949).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  13. Rusinov, V. S., Abstr. Nineteenth Intern. Physiol. Congr., Montreal (1953).

  14. Morrell, F., Ann. NY Acad. Sci., 92, 860 (1961).

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  15. Anden, N. E., Dahlström, A., Fuxe, K., Larsson, K., Olson, L., and Ungerstedt, U., Acta Physiol. Scand., 67, 313 (1966).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  16. Olds, J., and Milner, P. M., J. Comp. Physiol. Psychol., 47, 419 (1954).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  17. Stein, L., Fed. Proc., 23, 836 (1964).

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  18. Schrödinger, E., Mind and Matter (Cambridge University Press, London, 1958).

    MATH  Google Scholar 

  19. Griffith, J. S., The Neural Basis of Conscious Decision (Bedford College, London, 1967).

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

CROW, T. Cortical Synapses and Reinforcement: a Hypothesis. Nature 219, 736–737 (1968). https://doi.org/10.1038/219736a0

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Revised:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/219736a0

This article is cited by

Comments

By submitting a comment you agree to abide by our Terms and Community Guidelines. If you find something abusive or that does not comply with our terms or guidelines please flag it as inappropriate.

Search

Quick links

Nature Briefing

Sign up for the Nature Briefing newsletter — what matters in science, free to your inbox daily.

Get the most important science stories of the day, free in your inbox. Sign up for Nature Briefing