Previous research has found that individual neurons can become tuned to specific concepts or categories. We can have "cat" neurons, and "car" neurons, and even an “Angelina Jolie” neuron. A new monkey study, however, reveals that although some neurons were more attuned to car images and others to animal images, many neurons were active in both categories. More importantly, these "multitasking" neurons were in fact the best at making correct identifications when the monkey alternated between two category problems. The work could lead to a better understanding of disorders such as autism and schizophrenia in which individuals become overwhelmed by individual stimuli.
Task determines whether better for neurons to generalize or specialize
Reference
Cromer, J. A., Roy, J. E., & Miller, E. K. (2010). Representation of Multiple, Independent Categories in the Primate Prefrontal Cortex. Neuron, 66(5), 796-807. Retrieved from http://www.cell.com/neuron/abstract/S0896-6273(10)00370-3
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