Chapter 8, Why Context? Summary and Analysis

People automatically supply missing letters or syllables in text streams of language, especially when the context is clear but part of the stimulus is missing. Contexting is embedded in the central nervous system in the processes that are allied to the input from visual and auditory receptors. The human species is more equipped than other species with the ability to work with patterns.

The more specialized a cell becomes, the less potential information it carries. The higher vertebrate forms show more cells that are less specialized in their output, and it is this that leads to the greater potential for feature extraction in these species. Contexting mechanisms are inherent in the basic structure of the human eye. The central portion of the retina comprises the fovea and the macula; the macula apparently serves as a contexting mechanism...