Giving metabolism its due

The commentators point out elaborations and challenges to incorporating metabolic considerations into cognitive modeling. We agree with many of them and highlight that these issues can only be addressed when we actively try to include metabolism while evaluating and generating models. The main message of our response is thus that metabolic considerations are epistemically valuable, regardless of the particular modeling approach, conceptualization, or specific ontological commitments regarding cognition. Yet, the commentator's contributions also reveal that metabolism alone is never the decisive factor in cognitive modeling, and that its value for particular projects needs to be demonstrated in the modeling process, rather than assumed from the outset.