32 



S. BENT RUSSELL 



This arrangement is of special interest, as with it we can 

 simulate the working of nervous discharges in an animal learn- 

 ing the path around an obstacle. The key SS corresponds to 

 the sensation arising from the situation. MR is turning to 

 right. ML is turning to left. The animal after experience 

 turns to the left we will say at the signal SS. The machine 

 after similar experience acts similarly. 



In table IV a 6-way diverging gang is shown without any 

 diagram. By this arrangement three hydraulic cylinders may 

 be controlled and thus we could govern movements in three 

 directions as in and out, right and left and up and down. After 

 suitable experience the striking of a single key rod would cause 

 movement in two or three directions, as will be seen by a study 

 of the table, if one remembers that the discharge from a trans- 

 mitter increases when it is operated at short intervals. 



Table V represents a tandem converging gang. Si, Mi, and 

 SRi, MR and SR2, MR correspond to channels originally of 

 high conductivity, (first, fourth and fifth rows), while Si, SRi, 

 MR and Si, SR2, MR corresponds to channels originally of low 

 conductivity. Now let the environment be such that the 

 sensation Si is soon followed by the sensation SRi and such 

 that the response MR brings about a sensation SR2, it will be 

 seen that the channel Si, SRi, MR and the channel Si, SR2, 

 MR (second and third rows) will grow at each experience and 

 the result will be that the signal Si will be strongly connected 

 to the response MR or in other words that the transmitters in 

 the second and third rows of the table will give increased 

 discharge. 



TABLE V 

 Tandem Converging Gang 



