1 Towards and Acting , reasoning Darwin : The problem

level and the procedural memory network related to the action itself. The abstract layer forms the “connector hub” in the action space and consists of single neurons coding for different actions at an abstract level (like reach, grasp, push, tool use etc). The abstract action layer is similar to “canonical neurons” found in the pre-motor cortex that are activated at the sight of objects to which specific actions are applicable. Note that these single neurons do not code for the action itself but instead have the capability to trigger the complete procedural memory network responsible for generating the plan to execute the concern action. All connectivity between various networks is learnt by experience. Specific functions of various layers are summarized in the figure itself. The neural connectivity between top level object and action hub’s are learnt gradually as the robot tries out and discovers what all actions are possible with an object (for example a small red