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Valentino Braitenberg: From neuroanatomy to behavior and back

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  • Published: 13 March 2013
  • Volume 108, pages 527–539, (2014)
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Valentino Braitenberg: From neuroanatomy to behavior and back
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  • Mario Negrello1 nAff2 
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Abstract

This article compiles an expose of Valentino Braitenberg’s singular view on neuroanatomy and neuroscience. The review emphasizes his topologically informed work on neuroanatomy and his dialectics of brain-based explanations of motor behavior. Some of his early ideas on topologically informed neuroanatomy are presented, together with some of his more obscure work on the taxonomy of neural fiber bundles and synaptic arborizations. His functionally informed interpretations of neuroanatomy of the cerebellum, cortex, and hippocampus, are introduced. Finally, we will touch on his philosophical views and the inextricable role of function in the explanation of neural behavior.

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Author information

Author notes
  1. Mario Negrello

    Present address: Department of Neuroscience, Erasmus MC, Rotterdam, The Netherlands

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Computational Neuroscience Laboratory, Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology, Onna Prefecture, Japan

    Mario Negrello

Authors
  1. Mario Negrello
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Mario Negrello.

Additional information

This article forms part of a special issue of Biological Cybernetics entitled “Structural Aspects of Biological Cybernetics: Valentino Braitenberg, Neuroanatomy, and Brain Function”.

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Open Access This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits any use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author(s) and the source are credited.

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Negrello, M. Valentino Braitenberg: From neuroanatomy to behavior and back. Biol Cybern 108, 527–539 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00422-012-0533-3

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  • Received: 22 April 2012

  • Accepted: 15 October 2012

  • Published: 13 March 2013

  • Issue Date: October 2014

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00422-012-0533-3

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Keywords

  • Neuroscience
  • Neuroanatomy
  • History
  • Braitenberg
  • Behavioral function
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