This paper is a preliminary discussion of a new paradigm for the general architectural, information representation, operational and design strategy for a biologically-inspired, general purpose neurocomputer based on pulse-coded neural network methods. It presents both hardware and foundational “psychological” machine structure, and discusses key issues raised by this new paradigm. The model is based on experimental findings from both neuroscience and from developmental psychology, and proposes that the key differences between a general purpose neurocomputer and a general purpose digital computer lie in the operational characteristics of the machine that come from attempting to mimic the processes discovered by these sciences. Like most discussions of computer architecture, the model presented here is generally qualitative rather than quantitative. It does however provide a general framework for subsequent quantitative and mathematical research.
