Despite decades of research, we still lack an understanding of the basic computations employed by neural circuits and specifically in cortical circuits. To address this lacuna, we take a unique perspective by studying neural computations in reptiles and amphibians. This choice is motivated by the realization that brains and the neuronal coding schemes therein are products of hundreds of millions of years of brain evolution. Reptiles are key to understanding brain evolution as their close ancestors were the first to developed a layered cortex and complete the transition to terrestriality.