A cognitive analysis computer device is programmed to a) receive a set of streaming input data from one or more sensors; b) perform spatial abstraction on the set of streaming input data to divide the set of streaming input data into a plurality of input pathways; c) route the set of streaming input data from a plurality of input pathways to a plurality of output pathways based on a context mapping; d) for each output pathway, perform temporal abstraction on the received input values to generate an output value for the corresponding output pathway by accumulating output values from a plurality of sets of streaming input data until at least one output value of the plurality of output values on the plurality of output pathways exceeds a predetermined threshold; and e) compare the plurality of output values to one or more stored sets of data to determine a match.