Unsupervised learning in second-order neural networks for motion analysis

This paper demonstrates how unsupervised learning based on Hebb-like mechanisms is sufficient for training second-order neural networks to perform different types of motion analysis. The paper studies the convergence properties of the network in several conditions, including different levels of noise and motion coherence and different network configurations. We demonstrate the effectiveness of a novel variability dependent learning mechanism, which allows the network to learn under conditions of large feature similarity thresholds, which is crucial for noise robustness. The paper demonstrates the particular relevance of second-order neural networks and therefore correlation based approaches as contributing mechanisms for directional selectivity in the retina. (C) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.