= Associative memory in neural networks
= Associative memory
{synonym}
An <associative memory> retrieves a stored pattern from a related cue. An incomplete cue supplies only some coordinates; a corrupted cue supplies some wrong coordinates. A <Hopfield network> implements retrieval by making intended patterns stable states with surrounding <basins of attraction>. This turns correction into a collective computation: no unit needs to know the entire desired answer. A cue outside the appropriate <basin of attraction> can retrieve another pattern or an unintended stable state.
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