Nicholas P. Timms
Submitted: April 2026 : Published: 29th April 2026
Abstract
The neurophysiological mechanisms by which the dorsal premotor cortex (PMd) integrates internally stored mnemonic representations with perceptual data to execute goal-directed decisions remain a subject of intense scientific inquiry. This paper presents a novel interdisciplinary synthesis that bridges cortical electrophysiology with the theoretical biophysics of analogue gravity to explain memory-guided decision-making during transitive inference tasks. We propose that the continuous state space of the PMd cortical network functions as an effective spacetime metric, wherein abstract variables—such as the symbolic distance between ranked items—dictate the geometric curvature of the neural manifold. Within this framework, macroscopic low-frequency oscillations, particularly in the beta band, act as structural metric modulators that establish spatial curvature and biophysical resistance. Conversely, high-gamma activity, which reflects local population spiking and evidence accumulation, operates as a massless scalar field that propagates through this dynamically curved cognitive space. Crucially, this synthesis reconceptualizes cognitive errors and decision stalling not as mere statistical misfires, but as fundamental topological failures. During incorrect choices, disorganized beta power creates an infinite metric curvature, forming a “cognitive event horizon” that permanently traps information flow and prevents the decision variable from reaching the motor execution threshold. Ultimately, this paradigm establishes a unified, wave-based biophysical language for understanding information propagation across the nervous system, challenging discrete digital metaphors of cortical computation.
