 In this way the representation is supported by a gradually sparser response, resulting in an adaptive reduction in metabolic requirements and increased efficiencies in information transmission through the neural hierarchy.This could be the result of lateral inhibition within representational levels in a competitive Hebbian learning system, where strong connections get stronger and inhibit the weaker connections.Much of the evidence for this comes from primate studies of the inferotemporal cortex and single cell recordings with long training periods.