During natural behavior, animals actively gather information that is relevant for learning or
actions; however, the mechanisms of active sampling are rarely investigated. We tested …

In natural behavior, animals have access to multiple sources of information, but only a few of
these sources are relevant for learning and actions. Beyond choosing an appropriate action …

Our decisions often balance what we observe and what we desire. A prime candidate for
implementing this complex balancing act is the basal ganglia pathway, but its roles have not …

Decision formation and attention are two fundamental processes through which we select,
respectively, appropriate actions or sources of information. Although both functions have …

The cingulate cortex contributes to complex, adaptive behaviors, but the exact nature of its
contributions remains unresolved. Proposals from previous studies, including evaluating …

In stable environments, decision makers can exploit their previously learned strategies for
optimal outcomes, while exploration might lead to better options in unstable environments …

Action is controlled by both motivation and cognition. The basal ganglia may be the site
where these kinds of information meet. Using a memory-guided saccade task with an …

Decision making is thought to be guided by the values of alternative options and involve the
accumulation of evidence to an internal bound. However, in natural behavior, evidence …

Decision theory proposes that humans and animals decide what to do in a given situation by
assessing the relative value of each possible response. This assessment can be computed …

In natural behavior we actively gather information using attention and active sensing
behaviors (such as shifts of gaze) to sample relevant cues. However, while attention and …