Controlled Semantic Cognition: Precision Recordings Converge With in Silico Experiments to Reveal the Inner Workings of the Anterior Temporal Lobe Hub

The anterior temporal lobe (ATL) is crucial for learning and storing concepts, yet the inner workings of its multiple cytoarchitectonically distinct subregions remain a "black box." Moreover, it is not yet clear how this region interacts with a distributed network of brain regions to access context-specific information. However, two recent papers have made crucial steps forward, while adopting radically different approaches. One (Jackson et al., 2021) used in silico experimentation to ask how a system can meet the core requirements of controlled semantic cognition, comparing multiple theoretical architectures on their ability to meet these demands. The other (Tiesinga et al., 2023) performed in vivo intracortical recordings with unprecedented coverage and spatial precision, comparing cytoarchitectonic ATL subregions. In this perspective, we bridge these recent in silico and in vivo explorations of controlled semantic cognition, demonstrating their remarkable convergence. Thereby, we expose the inner workings of the ATL semantic hub and the regulating effect of frontal regions, while highlighting the crucial next challenges. The result is a neuroanatomically precise mechanistic model of controlled semantic cognition.