1. There was one Elephant—a new Elephant—an Elephant’s Child—who was full of ‘satiable curiosity, and that means he asked ever so many questions.
He asked his tall aunt, the Ostrich, why her tail-feathers grew just so, and his tall aunt the Ostrich spanked him with her hard, hard claw. He asked his tall uncle, the Giraffe, what made his skin spotty, and his tall uncle, the Giraffe, spanked him with his hard, hard hoof. He asked his aunt, the Hippopotamus, why her eyes were red, […];
Good evening, it is a pleasure to be here. Continuing on from Yaoda’s beautiful presentation, I will speak about the parietal cortex of the monkey, and I think that you will see that I will reach a very similar conclusion regarding a content-rich, multi dimensional task representation. My particular story will focus on the lateral intraparietal area and the orienting of visual attention, which is of course a key function of the parietal lobe.
The Elephant’s Child …filled all Africa with his 'satiable curiosities. … He asked questions about everything that he saw, or heard, or felt, or smelt, or touched …
The Elephant’s Child,
Rudyard Kipling, 1902

2. One fine morning this 'satiable Elephant's Child asked a new fine question. He asked, "What does the crocodile have for dinner?" Then everybody said, "Hush!" in a loud and dretful tone....
At last things grew so exciting that his dear families went off one by one in a hurry to the banks of the great grey-green, greasy Limpopo River, […], to borrow new noses from the Crocodile. When they came back nobody spanked anybody any more; and ever since that day, O Best Beloved, all the Elephants you will ever see, besides all those that you won’t, have trunks precisely like the trunk of the ‘satiable Elephant’s Child.
Good evening, it is a pleasure to be here. Continuing on from Yaoda’s beautiful presentation, I will speak about the parietal cortex of the monkey, and I think that you will see that I will reach a very similar conclusion regarding a content-rich, multi dimensional task representation. My particular story will focus on the lateral intraparietal area and the orienting of visual attention, which is of course a key function of the parietal lobe.
The Elephant’s Child,
Rudyard Kipling, 1902

3. the willingness to ask questions
Curiosity
the willingness to ask questions
potentially transformative in the long term
strange motivation
high costs
Good evening, it is a pleasure to be here. Continuing on from Yaoda’s beautiful presentation, I will speak about the parietal cortex of the monkey, and I think that you will see that I will reach a very similar conclusion regarding a content-rich, multi dimensional task representation. My particular story will focus on the lateral intraparietal area and the orienting of visual attention, which is of course a key function of the parietal lobe.
unforeseeable benefits
value comes (long) after learning

4. Berlyne, A theory of human curiosity
“Few phenomena have been the subject of more protracted discussion than human knowledge. Yet this discussion has usually paid little attention to the motivation underlying the quest for knowledge, with the result that two important questions still confront us.
The first question is why human beings devote so much time and effort to the acquisition of knowledge. Sometimes there is some obvious drive to whose satisfaction knowledge can contribute. But strangely enough, many of the queries that inspire the most persistent searches for answers [...] are of no manifest practical value or urgency.
The second question […] is why, out of the infinite range of knowable items in the universe, certain pieces of knowledge are more ardently sought and more readily retained than others.”
Good evening, it is a pleasure to be here. Continuing on from Yaoda’s beautiful presentation, I will speak about the parietal cortex of the monkey, and I think that you will see that I will reach a very similar conclusion regarding a content-rich, multi dimensional task representation. My particular story will focus on the lateral intraparietal area and the orienting of visual attention, which is of course a key function of the parietal lobe.
Berlyne, A theory of human curiosity
British Journal of Psychology, 45, 3: 180, 1954

5. A difficult question
Good evening, it is a pleasure to be here. Continuing on from Yaoda’s beautiful presentation, I will speak about the parietal cortex of the monkey, and I think that you will see that I will reach a very similar conclusion regarding a content-rich, multi dimensional task representation. My particular story will focus on the lateral intraparietal area and the orienting of visual attention, which is of course a key function of the parietal lobe.

6. Decision making Cognition How does cognition shape decisions?
Motivation, Emotions
Primary rewards (food, water, sex, safety)
How does cognition shape decisions?
How does motivation engage cognition?
Cognition seems unnecessary
Motivation seems unnecessary
Good evening, it is a pleasure to be here. Continuing on from Yaoda’s beautiful presentation, I will speak about the parietal cortex of the monkey, and I think that you will see that I will reach a very similar conclusion regarding a content-rich, multi dimensional task representation. My particular story will focus on the lateral intraparietal area and the orienting of visual attention, which is of course a key function of the parietal lobe.
Cognition
Attention, Memory, Representations
Instructed

7. Good evening, it is a pleasure to be here
Good evening, it is a pleasure to be here. Continuing on from Yaoda’s beautiful presentation, I will speak about the parietal cortex of the monkey, and I think that you will see that I will reach a very similar conclusion regarding a content-rich, multi dimensional task representation. My particular story will focus on the lateral intraparietal area and the orienting of visual attention, which is of course a key function of the parietal lobe.