Computing with Action Potentials

Most computational engineering based loosely on biology uses contin(cid:173) uous variables to represent neural activity. The engineering view is equivalent to using a rate-code for representing information and for computing. An increas(cid:173) ing number of examples are being discovered in which biology may not be using rate codes. Information can be represented using the timing of action potentials, and efficiently computed with in this representation. The "analog match" problem of odour identification is a simple problem which can be efficiently solved using action potential timing and an un(cid:173) derlying rhythm. By using adapting units to effect a fundamental change of representation of a problem, we map the recognition of words (hav(cid:173) ing uniform time-warp) in connected speech into the same analog match problem.