Robust Short-Term Memory without Synaptic Learning Johnson, Samuel Marro Borau, Joaquín Torres Agudo, Joaquín J. Learning Long-term memory Memory Neural networks Neurons Scale-free networks Synapses Topology Short-term memory in the brain cannot in general be explained the way long-term memory can – as a gradual modification of synaptic weights – since it takes place too quickly. Theories based on some form of cellular bistability, however, do not seem able to account for the fact that noisy neurons can collectively store information in a robust manner. We show how a sufficiently clustered network of simple model neurons can be instantly induced into metastable states capable of retaining information for a short time (a few seconds). The mechanism is robust to different network topologies and kinds of neural model. This could constitute a viable means available to the brain for sensory and/or short-term memory with no need of synaptic learning. Relevant phenomena described by neurobiology and psychology, such as local synchronization of synaptic inputs and power-law statistics of forgetting avalanches, emerge naturally from this mechanism, and we suggest possible experiments to test its viability in more biological settings. 2014-03-24T10:13:28Z 2014-03-24T10:13:28Z 2012 info:eu-repo/semantics/article Johnson, S.; Marro, J.; Torres Agudo, J.J. Robust Short-Term Memory without Synaptic Learning. Plos One, 8(1): e50276 (2012). [http://hdl.handle.net/10481/31056] 1932-6203 doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0050276 http://hdl.handle.net/10481/31056 eng http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/ info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 License Public Library of Science (PLOS)