Internal representations are models of the body and the world, physically encoded in neural activity and connectivity. Joseph LeDoux defines cognition as the ability to form internal representations and use them to guide behavior. There is a longstanding debate over whether consciousness arises primarily from cortical or subcortical brain systems. Many actions can be “delegated” to nonconscious cognitive processes, which reduces the cognitive load on conscious information processing. But conscious information processing enables greater behavioral control and more flexible responses to stimuli than do nonconscious cognitive processes.