文档介绍：46060Rogers 6/4/04 2:47 PM Page 1
ognition Semantic
“This book deals with one of the central questions in cognitive science: What is the nature of Semantic Cognition
semantic knowledge? putational framework that Rogers and McClelland propose, A Parallel Distributed Processing Approach
while elegant in its simplicity, provides deep insights into the development (and loss, with Timothy T. Rogers and James L. McClelland
brain damage) of category structure, causal knowledge, and anization. In pro-
viding both a mechanistic processing account as well as an interpretation of the principles This groundbreaking monograph offers a mechanistic
underlying the mechanism’s properties, Rogers and McClelland explain a wide range - theory of the representation and use of semantic
plex phenomena that have hitherto resisted a unified account. This is a very important book.” knowledge, integrating the strengths and ing
—Jeff Elman, Professor of Cognitive Science, University of California, San Diego many of the weaknesses of hierarchical, categorization-
based approaches, similarity-based approaches, and
“This important book pushes connectionism into the true heartland of cognitive science: the approach often called “theory theory.” Building on
human semantic cognition. Through an elegant weave of empirical reviews and specific PDP earlier models by Geoffrey Hinton in the 1980s and
models, topics in adult cognition, cognitive development, and neuropsychology are brought David Rumelhart in the early 1990s, the authors pro-
together and putational principles revealed. Destined to e an influen- pose that performance in semantic tasks arises
tial landmark in the field, the book will be essential reading for a wide range of cognitive through the propagation of graded signals in a system
scientists.” of interconnected processing units. The representations
—Mark Johnson, Director of the Centre for Brain and Cognitive Development, University of used in perform