Novelty detection is the mechanism by which an intelligent organism is able to identify an incoming sensory pattern as being hitherto unknown.
If the pattern is sufficiently salient or associated with a high positive or strong negative utility, it will be given computational resources for effective future processing.
The principle is long known in neurophysiology, with roots in the orienting response research by E. N. Sokolov[1] in the 1950s.
Early neural modeling attempts were by Yehuda Salu.
[3][4] In technology, the principle became important for radar detection methods during the Cold War, where unusual aircraft-reflection patterns could indicate an attack by a new type of aircraft.