Lateral cortical inhibition without lateral inhibitory connections

The authors consider how a set of neurons forming a cortical column, none of which individually can competitively distribute its activity, can function collectively to produce competitive distribution of activation. To address this issue, they describe a model cortical column composed of three populations of excitatory neurons that collectively distribute their activity competitively. The idea of competitive distribution and the neural circuitry that could bring it about are described. Computer simulation results, implications, and testable predictions of the theory are presented