Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Sensorimotor Coordination And The Structure Of Space, Gin Mccollum

Gin McCollum

Embedded in neural and behavioral organization is a structure of sensorimotor space. Both this embedded spatial structure and the structure of physical space inform sensorimotor control. This paper reviews studies in which the gravitational vertical and horizontal are crucial. The mathematical expressions of spatial geometry in these studies indicate methods for investigating sensorimotor control in freefall.

In freefall, the spatial structure introduced by gravitation – the distinction between vertical and horizontal – does not exist. However, an astronaut arriving in space carries the physiologically-embedded distinction between horizontal and vertical learned on earth. The physiological organization based on this distinction collapses …

Sensory And Motor Interdependence In Postural Adjustments, Gin Mccollum

Gin McCollum

The sensory reafference from a movement depends upon the movement, and the movement chosen depends upon the available senses, as demonstrated by vestibular patients who abandon certain movements. Often, one variable is assumed to be dependent whereas the other is independent; however, sensory and motor dynamics in posture are interdependent as conditions upon each other. This paper applies conditional dynamics to characterize the global structure of interdependence between sensory states and motor strategies in fast postural adjustments. The mathematical formalism incorporates rich but disparate experimental, clinical, and theoretical results about sensory and motor control of posture.

The control structures presented …

The Stomatogastric Nervous System: A Formal Approach, Patrick D. Roberts, Gin Mccollum

Gin McCollum

A discrete mathematical formalism (d-space) which is specifically designed to investigate discrete aspects of behavior is applied to the foregut of decapod crustacea. This approach differs from continuous modeling techniques in that the analysis determines a structure in which the observed behavior of the foregut is constrained. A notation for the implementation of the formalism is developed as well as a coordinate system natural to the functioning of the gastric mill. The formalism is used to organize previous observations that suggest potential courses of further experimental investigation. A detailed analysis of observed chewing modes of the gastric mill is presented, …