The generative grammar of the brain: a critique of internally generated representations

The past decade of progress in neurobiology has uncovered important organizational principles for network preconfiguration and neuronal selection that suggest a generative grammar exists in the brain. In this Perspective, I discuss the competence of the hippocampal neural network to generically express temporally compressed sequences of neuronal firing that represent novel experiences, which is envisioned as a form of generative neural syntax supporting a neurobiological perspective on brain function. I compare this neural competence with the hippocampal network performance that represents specific experiences with higher fidelity after new learning during replay, which is envisioned as a form of neural semantic that supports a complementary neuropsychological perspective. I also demonstrate how the syntax of network competence emerges a priori during early postnatal life and is followed by the later development of network performance that enables rapid encoding and memory consolidation. Thus, I propose that this generative grammar of the brain is essential for internally generated representations, which are crucial for the cognitive processes underlying learning and memory, prospection, and inference, which ultimately underlie our reason and representation of the world.