Beyond Episodic AI: Cognitive Field Networks for Biologically Inspired Persistent Cognition

Abstract

Cognitive Field Theory describes cognition as memory-dressed collective dynamics, in which slow relaxation modes support a persistent cognitive field. By connecting non-Markovian memory dynamics to discrete recurrent state evolution through an extended state, we develop a Cognitive Field Network (CFN), a recurrent Transformer architecture with hidden-field re-entry, \( Φ_{n+1} = F_θ(X_{n+1},Φ_n) \). Rather than prescribing an explicit memory operation, the CFN allows the full token-resolved hidden field to re-enter the next computational cycle. We find that learning organizes this pathway into a functional channel for persistent, content-dependent internal states, with temporal persistence systematically controlled by the recurrent training horizon. The learned dynamics generalize beyond this horizon: semantic continuation sustains the recurrent state without explicit answer replay, whereas unsupported states exhibit finite passive relaxation. Periodic re-exposure to relevant input renews the surviving field, producing an approximately stationary nonzero regime over extended recurrent trajectories. Unrelated-input and recurrence-off controls fail to reproduce this behavior, while near-paraphrased input produces weaker renewal, revealing the dependence of persistence on both field re-entry and input relevance. These findings connect memory-dressed field formation, input-driven reorganization, and recurrent state continuity within a unified dynamical framework. The CFN thus provides an experimentally controllable platform for studying persistent, history-dependent cognition without a separately prescribed memory system.

arXiv comment42 pages, 13 figures