1.3 Classical conditioning

What is it? the learning of an association between one stimulus and another stimulus.

This mechanism can best be illustrated through a famous experiment by the Nobel Prize-winning physiologist Ivan Pavlov.

What is it for? Sensitivity to a cue that an event is about to happen allows you to prepare for that event.

Q: what is the optimal timing between the conditional stimulus and un-conditional stimulus? It turns out it’s not best when they’re simultaneous, rather the connection best when the conditioned stimulus comes immediately before the unconditioned stimulus. This makes sense if you think that neurological system underlying classical conditioning is built so that you can prepare and anticipate.