Brain simulations as performed today in computational neuroscience
rely on analytical methods i.e., mainly differential equations, to model physical
processes. The question then arises: will cognitive abilities of real brains
spontaneously emerge from these simulations, or should they be encoded and
executed on top of them, similarly to the way computer software runs on
hardware? Towards this later goal, a new framework linking neural dynamics to
behaviors through a virtual machine has been reported and is used here to model
brain functionalities in two domains, namely evolutive cases of analogical
reasoning and a simple case of meta-cognition. It is argued that this approach to
brain modeling could lead to an actualization of the concept of behaviorism as a
model for the development of cognition.