The Continuity of Context: A Role for the Hippocampus

Tracking moment-to-moment change in input and detecting change sufficient to require altering behavior is crucial to survival. Here, we discuss how the brain evaluates change over time, focusing on the hippocampus and its role in tracking context. We leverage the anatomy and physiology of the hippocampal longitudinal axis, re-entrant loops, and amorphous networks to account for stimulus equivalence and the updating of an organism's sense of its context. Place cells have a central role in tracking contextual continuities and discontinuities across multiple scales, a capacity beyond current models of pattern separation and completion. This perspective highlights the critical role of the hippocampus in both spatial cognition and episodic memory: tracking change and detecting boundaries separating one context, or episode, from another.

Automated summary

The passage discusses the importance of tracking moment-to-moment change in input and detecting change sufficient to require altering behavior for survival. It focuses on how the brain evaluates change over time, with a special emphasis on the role of the hippocampus in tracking context and updating an organism's sense of its surroundings. The role of place cells in tracking contextual continuities and discontinuities is highlighted, showcasing the critical role of the hippocampus in spatial cognition and episodic memory.