When is enough enough?

How does the decision-making process stop? Lo and Wang propose that a large-scale interconnected network encompassing parietal cortex, basal ganglia and motor structures controls the balance between speed and accuracy. A hallmark of higher brain function is the ability to contemplate the world rather than to respond reflexively to it. Indeed, the roots of cognition rest in the brain's ability to process information in a time frame that is not governed by immediate changes in the environment or the need to move.