{
"papers": [
{
"n": 0,
"doi": "10.1038/nn.3645",
"value": "supports diffusing-bump description",
"method": "single-unit recording + bump-attractor model fit",
"metric": "support for canonical diffusing bump-attractor dynamics in PFC delay activity",
"n_analyzed": "monkey single units (Funahashi-style oculomotor delayed-response)",
"ci_or_error": null,
"text_access": "abstract_only",
"n_definition": "single units recorded from monkey dlPFC",
"scope_region": "dorsolateral prefrontal cortex",
"study_system": "rhesus monkey dlPFC, oculomotor delayed-response",
"taxonomic_level": "subregion",
"scope_population": "delay-tuned PFC units",
"value_source_sentence": "Our results support a diffusing bump representation for spatial working memory instantiated in persistent prefrontal activity.",
"experimental_conditions": "spatial working memory delay; model-derived trial-by-trial predictions"
},
{
"n": 2,
"doi": "10.1093/cercor/bhab079",
"value": "more complex than canonical bump attractor (single-network) model",
"method": "single-unit recording across long delays",
"metric": "support for canonical bump-attractor description of long-delay PFC activity",
"n_analyzed": "neurons across 2 macaques",
"ci_or_error": null,
"text_access": "abstract_only",
"n_definition": "macaque subjects with multiple recorded units",
"scope_region": "FEF and dlPFC",
"study_system": "macaque FEF and dlPFC, long (5-15 s) delays",
"taxonomic_level": "subregion",
"scope_population": "memory-active single units",
"value_source_sentence": "These dynamics are more complex than the dynamics of a canonical bump attractor network model (either decaying or nondecaying) but more constrained than the dynamics of fully heterogeneous memory models.",
"experimental_conditions": "long-delay oculomotor delayed-response"
},
{
"n": 0,
"doi": "10.1073/pnas.1619449114",
"value": "supports stable mnemonic subspace consistent with attractor coding",
"method": "population state-space analysis",
"metric": "support for stable attractor-like mnemonic subspace in PFC",
"n_analyzed": "hundreds of single neurons across monkeys, two tasks",
"ci_or_error": null,
"text_access": "abstract_only",
"n_definition": "single units recorded from monkey lateral PFC",
"scope_region": "lateral prefrontal cortex",
"study_system": "monkey lateral PFC, two parametric WM tasks",
"taxonomic_level": "subregion",
"scope_population": "all recorded PFC neurons",
"value_source_sentence": "We found that the high-dimensional state space of PFC population activity contains a low-dimensional subspace in which stimulus representations are stable across time during the cue and delay epochs, enabling robust and generalizable decoding compared with time-optimized subspaces.",
"experimental_conditions": "oculomotor delayed-response and vibrotactile delayed discrimination"
}
],
"audit_issues": [
{
"dimension": "scope_region",
"description": "Three macaque PFC recordings cover dlPFC (Wimmer 2014), FEF+dlPFC (Wimmer 2021), and lateral PFC (Murray 2017). Region scope is not identical.",
"entries_affected": [
"10.1038/nn.3645",
"10.1093/cercor/bhab079",
"10.1073/pnas.1619449114"
]
},
{
"dimension": "metric_definition",
"description": "All three rows report qualitative levels of support for attractor descriptions, not commensurable numerical scores.",
"entries_affected": [
"10.1038/nn.3645",
"10.1093/cercor/bhab079",
"10.1073/pnas.1619449114"
]
}
],
"audit_verdict": "CAVEAT",
"comparison_id": "primate-pfc-bump-attractor-support",
"comparison_name": "Cross-study evidence for canonical bump-attractor description of primate PFC persistent activity",
"comparison_type": "cross-study conflict",
"what_it_reveals": "Whether single-area canonical bump-attractor dynamics are sufficient to describe primate PFC delay-period activity: Wimmer/Compte 2014 supports it via diffusion–behavior coupling; Spaak/Constantinidis 2021 finds dynamics more complex than canonical bump models over long delays; Murray/Bondy/Constantinidis 2017 supports a stable mnemonic subspace consistent with attractor coding.",
"homogeneity_check": {
"caveats": [
"All three studies are macaque PFC recordings during oculomotor-class WM tasks, but recording regions (dlPFC vs FEF+dlPFC vs lateral PFC), delay lengths, and analysis methods differ; values are qualitative claims rather than commensurable numbers."
],
"n_definition_uniform": "false",
"scope_region_uniform": "false",
"taxonomic_level_uniform": "true",
"scope_population_uniform": "true"
},
"suggested_plot_type": "forest plot",
"mandatory_caption_caveats": [
"Recording regions differ (dlPFC; FEF+dlPFC; lateral PFC); delay lengths and analysis pipelines differ; values are qualitative summaries, not numerical scores."
]
}