# Neural Plasticity Lets Culture Extend Ape Cognition by John R. Skoyles > “Human culture and human cognition exists because the brain's neural plasticity allows learned symbolic associations to substitute for the innate inputs and outputs of already evolved ape cognitions, a process that extends greatly their functionality.” > **— John R. Skoyles**, *2004 Edge Annual Question, response passage* ## Sources and Context - **Original Edge response:** [Skoyles' Law — John R. Skoyles](https://www.edge.org/response-detail/11508) — a verbatim passage from John R. Skoyles's 2004 Annual Question response, expressing the author's position at the time. The linked response supplies its surrounding context. - **Local archival entry:** [[research/Edge 2004 Full Quotation Curation|Edge 2004 Full Quotation Curation]] (EDGE2004-034). ## Related Articles and Collections - **Collection:** [[collections/Edge|Edge]] - **Collection:** [[collections/Machine Succession|Machine Succession]] - **Article:** [[articles/The Evolutionary Roots of Silicon Valley|The Evolutionary Roots of Silicon Valley]] - **Article:** [[articles/Digital Darwinism and the Invisible World of Machine Evolution|Digital Darwinism and the Invisible World of Machine Evolution]] - **Article:** [[articles/The Synthetic Cambrian Explosion as a Technological Speciation Event|The Synthetic Cambrian Explosion as a Technological Speciation Event]] ## Related Topics - [[wiki/Neural Plasticity|Neural Plasticity]] ## Share on Social Media ``` “Human culture and human cognition exists because the brain's neural plasticity allows learned symbolic associations to substitute for the innate inputs and outputs of already evolved ape cognitions, a process that extends greatly their functionality.” — John R. Skoyles, 2004 Edge Annual Question https://bryantmcgill.com/simple-reminders-john-skoyles-neural-plasticity-lets-culture-extend ```