COURSE SYLLABUS
Introduction to Cognitive Science
(Thursday 11.00-12.40)
Instructor:
Knoblich, Günther
(email: knoblichg@ceu.edu)
Department of Cognitive Science
Central European University, Fall 2015
PhD in Cognitive Science, 2 Credits
Course e-learning site: http://ceulearning.ceu.edu/course/view.php?id=3236
Office hours: Flexible, talk to me in class or contact me by email
Course Description
This course will give a broad overview of the fundamental assumptions and findings in
Cognitive Science, the interdisciplinary study of the mind. The initial sessions will cover
general ideas that have been driving the study of the human mind. These will include the
view that the mind functions like a digital computer, the view that the mind can be
modeled with artificial neural networks, and the view that the mind should be conceived
of as a dynamical system closely tied to the environment. Later sessions will address
important topics in current Cognitive Science research.
Learning Outcomes
By the end of this course, students will:
 Be able to explain and actively use core concepts in Cognitive Science
 Be able to critically discuss the advantages and disadvantages of different
methods used in Cognitive Science
 Know how the different disciplines constituting Cognitive Science relate to one
another
 Have an overview of the main research questions in Cognitive Science
 Be able to effectively present original research in CS to an audience of peers
Course Requirements
(1) Weekly assignments to be submitted on Wednesdays (50% of the final grade). These
will vary from week to week and will consist answering questions/reflecting on
general readings, coming up with discussion questions, providing opinions etc. There
will be a general word limit of 300 words total for each assignment. Grading criteria:
depth of understanding, structure and conciseness, originality.
(2) Presentations (40% of the final grade). This will be up to two presentations (30
minutes), depending on the number of course attendees. Grading criteria will be:
Quality of content, structure, and exposition.
(3) Contributions to discussion (10%). Attendees are expected to be present during all
sessions and to contribute with questions and comments to the discussions.
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COURSE SCHEDULE
24th September 2015. Introduction
A brief history of Cognitive Science and an overview of the disciplines that
contribute to Cognitive Science. List of topics to be covered in the course.
Practical issues such as assigning presentations to students.
General reading:
Bermudez, J. L. (2014). Cognitive Science: An introduction to the science of the
mind (second edition). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, pp. 1-137.
Assignment (300 words max, deadline 30th September):
In your view, why do we need an interdisciplinary science of the mind? Do you
think that some scientific disciplines are more important than others for
understanding how the mind works? Why?
1st October 2015. Physical Symbol Systems
Physical symbol systems hypothesis and other Cognitive Science accounts that
have proposed to conceptualize the human mind in close analogy to digital
computers.
General reading:
Bermudez, J. L. (2014). Cognitive Science: An introduction to the science of the
mind (second edition). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, pp. 138181.
Newell, A., & Simon, H. A. (1976). Computer science as empirical inquiry:
Symbols and search. Communications of the ACM, 19(3), 113-126.
Assignment (300 words max, deadline 7th October):
TBA
8th October 2015. Notions of Modularity
This session will introduce different notions of modularity that continue to play an
important role in how Cognitive Scientists view the function of mind and brain.
General reading:
Bermudez, J. L. (2014). Cognitive Science: An introduction to the science of the
mind (second edition). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, pp. 276313.
Barrett, H. C. & Kurzban, R. (2006). Modularity in cognition: Framing the
debate. Psychological Review 113: 628-647.
Assignment (300 words max, deadline 14th October):
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TBA
15th October 2015. Neural Networks
This session will provide an overview of neural network accounts and provide
examples for how they have shifted the research focus in Cognitive Science from
symbolic processing to brain-like computing.
General reading:
Bermudez, J. L. (2014). Cognitive Science: An introduction to the science of the
mind (second edition). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, pp. 209275.
Assignment (300 words max, deadline 21st October):
Which brain measures do you find most useful for Cognitive Science research?
Why?
22nd October 2015. Cognitive Neuroscience 1
This session will provide an overview of the different brain imaging methods that
are used in Cognitive Neuroscience.
General reading:
Bermudez, J. L. (2014). Cognitive Science: An introduction to the science of the
mind (second edition). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, pp. 315351.
For students interested in EEG:
Pfurtscheller, G., & Da Silva, F. L. (1999). Event-related EEG/MEG
synchronization and desynchronization: basic principles. Clinical
neurophysiology, 110(11), 1842-1857.
Reading for presentation:
Hesselmann, G., Flandin, G., & Dehaene, S. (2011). Probing the cortical
network underlying the psychological refractory period: a combined EEG–fMRI
study. Neuroimage, 56(3), 1608-1621.
Assignment (300 words max, deadline 28th October):
Give an example for how brain stimulation (tCDS, tACS, or TMS) can lead to
enhancement of cognitive functioning? How convincing do find the evidence?
29th October 2015. Cognitive Neuroscience II
This session will provide examples for how brain imaging methods are used in
current experimental research.
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General reading:
Walsh, V., & Cowey, A. (2000). Transcranial magnetic stimulation and
cognitive neuroscience. Nature Reviews Neuroscience, 1(1), 73-80.
Reading for presentation:
Haynes, J. D., & Rees, G. (2006). Decoding mental states from brain activity in
humans. Nature Reviews Neuroscience, 7(7), 523-534.
Assignment (300 words max, deadline 4th November):
TBA
5th November 2015. Predictive Coding
This session will provide an overview of different brain imaging methods that
have had a continuously increasing impact on Cognitive Science.
General reading:
Clark, A. (2013). Whatever next? Predictive brains, situated agents, and the
future of cognitive science. Behavioral and Brain Sciences, 36(03), 181-204.
Hohwy, J. (2012). Attention and conscious perception in the hypothesis testing
brain. Frontiers in Psychology, 3.
Reading for presentation:
Pellicano, E., & Burr, D. (2012). When the world becomes ‘too real’: a Bayesian
explanation of autistic perception. Trends in cognitive sciences, 16(10), 504-510.
Assignment (300 words max, deadline 11th November):
TBA
12th November 2015. Links between Perception and Action
This session will provide an overview of Cognitive Science research on
perception, action, and the close links between them.
General reading:
Milner, A. D., & Goodale, M. A. (2008). Two visual systems re-viewed.
Neuropsychologia, 46(3), 774-785.
Rizzolatti, G., & Sinigaglia, C. (2010). The functional role of the parieto-frontal
mirror circuit: interpretations and misinterpretations. Nature Reviews
Neuroscience, 11(4), 264-274.
Reading for presentation:
Bruno, N., & Franz, V. H. (2009). When is grasping affected by the Müller-Lyer
illusion? A quantitative review. Neuropsychologia, 47(6), 1421-1433.
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Assignment (300 words max, deadline 18th November):
TBA
19th November Dynamical Systems
This session will address dynamical systems approaches in Cognitive Science
postulating that the mind should be understood as a physical device that is in
constant interaction with its environment. Extreme versions of this approach
negate the concept of representation.
General reading:
Bermudez, J. L. (2014). Cognitive Science: An introduction to the science of the
mind (second edition). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, pp. 403443.
Riley, M. A., Shockley, K., Van Orden, G. (2012). Learning from the body
about the mind. Topics in Cognitive Science, 4, 21-34.
Reading for presentation:
Richardson, M. J., Harrison, S. J., Kallen, R. W., Walton, A., Eiler, B. A.,
Saltzman, E., & Schmidt, R. C. (2015). Self-organized complementary joint
action: Behavioral dynamics of an interpersonal collision-avoidance task.
Journal of Experimental Psychology: Human Perception and Performance,
41(3), 665-679.
Assignment (300 words max, deadline 25th November):
TBA
26th November 2015. Language and Action
General reading:
Barsalou, L. W. (2008). Grounded cognition. Annual Review of Psychology, 59,
617-645.
Pulvermüller, F. (2005). Brain mechanisms linking language and action. Nature
Reviews Neuroscience, 6(7), 576-582.
Reading for presentations:
Boroditsky, L. (2001). Does language shape thought?: Mandarin and English
speakers' conceptions of time. Cognitive psychology, 43(1), 1-22.
Assignment (300 words max, deadline 18th November):
TBA
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3rd December 2015. Gesture and its Relation to Thought
General reading:
Goldin-Meadow, S. (2014) Widening the lens: What the manual modality
reveals about language, learning, and cognition. Philosophical Transactions of
the Royal Society, Series B, 369(1651), 20130295.
Reading for presentations:
Alibali, M. W., Spencer, R. C., Knox, L., & Kita, S. (2011). Spontaneous
gestures influence strategy choices in problem solving. Psychological Science,
1138-1144.
Cook, S. W., Mitchell, Z., & Goldin-Meadow, S. (2008). Gesturing makes
learning last. Cognition, 106(2), 1047-1058.
10th December 2015. Cognition and Sleep
General reading:
Diekelmann, S., & Born, J. (2010). The memory function of sleep. Nature
Reviews Neuroscience, 11, 114-126.
Reading for presentations:
Hu, X., Antony, J. W., Creery, J. D., Vargas, I. M., Bodenhausen, G. V., &
Paller, K. A. (2015). Unlearning implicit social biases during sleep. Science,
348(6238), 1013-1015.
Wagner, U., Gais, S., Haider, H., Verleger, R., & Born, J. (2004). Sleep inspires
insight. Nature, 427(6972), 352-355.
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