What is the general flow of a cognitive system across domains?

• A. Perception input -> Internal representations -> Actions
• B. Actions -> Representations -> Perception
• C. Representations -> Perception -> Actions
• D. Perception -> Actions -> Representations

Answer: (A)

The idea to grasp is how cognitive processing typically unfolds: perception provides the incoming data, this data is transformed into internal representations that encode what is being perceived, and those representations are used to decide and produce actions. In other words, you sense information, translate it into mental structures (percepts, concepts, rules, working memory), and then act based on what those structures tell you to do. This flow holds across domains—from seeing and hearing to reading or planning—because every domain starts with input, moves through internal encoding, and ends with an output or action. There’s also a feedback aspect in practice: actions and their outcomes can update representations, refining future perception and decisions.