Do Not Let the Beginning Trap you! On Inhibition, Associative Creative Chains, and Hopfield Neural Networks

Creative thinking stems from the cognitive process that fosters the creation of new ideas and problem‐solving solutions. Artificial intelligence systems and neural network models can reduce the intricacy of understanding creative cognition. For instance, the generation of ideas could be symbolized as patterns of binary code in which clusters of neurons synchronize their firing and store information inside a neural network, forming connections based on correlation. The Hopfield neural network (HNN) is a simple model known for its biological plausibility in storing and retrieving neuron patterns. We implemented certain modifications to HNN as a step toward the larger framework of creative thinking‐based association. These modifications included introducing pattern weights control, which provides a robust representation for content addressable memory and conceptual links in stored data. We identified two mechanisms controlling the transition from analytical to associative‐based thinking. The first mechanism refers to the activation threshold of neurons, which acts as an on/off switch for the network. The second was the inhibition of stored concepts, similar to an on/off switch that guides the network to search for associative links and when to stop. Our findings suggest that neurons step back from the contextual focus and find alternatives when analytical thinking is insufficient. These alternatives are linked to seemingly unrelated ideas, using inhibition as an analogy to the hyperparameters. Using hyperparameters to inhibit the stored patterns, we could control the creation of associative links.