MLP - A multilayer perceptron (MLP) is a network of perceptrons (artificial neurons) arranged in a feed-forward-only topology. The feed-forward topology is often a requirement, imposed on a neural network due to limitations in the learning algorithms used.






The feed-forward limitation leads to a topological layering of the neurons in the network. This, in turn, leads to hidden layers, another topological feature of MLPs

Generally, while natural brains do organize, geometrically, into layers, they also allow for a great deal of topological feedback between layers and through the outside world between inputs and outputs. For more about these types of organizational features, see the entry here for Inward and Outward Propagation.