Perceptual Development and Learning: From Behavioral, Neurophysiological, and Morphological Evidence to Computational Models

Abstract

An intelligent system has to be capable of adapting to a constantly changing environment, It therefore, ought to be capable to learning from its perceptual interactions with its surroundings. This requires a certain amount of plasticity in its structure. Any attempt to model the perceptual capabilities of a living system or, for that matter, to construct a synthetic system of comparable abilities, must therefore, account for such plasticity through a variety of developmental and learning mechanisms. This paper examines some results from neuroanatomical, morphological, as well as behavioral studies of the development of visual perception; integrates them into a computational framework; and suggests several interesting experiments with computational models that can yield insights into the develo0ment of visual perception.