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  • A Mechanistic Account of Wide Computationalism
    Rev.Phil.Psych. (2017) 8:501–517 DOI 10.1007/s13164-016-0322-3 A Mechanistic Account of Wide Computationalism Luke Kersten1 Published online: 24 October 2016 # The Author(s) 2016. This article is published with open access at Springerlink.com Abstract The assumption that psychological states and processes are computational in character pervades much of cognitive science, what many call the computational theory of mind. In addition to occupying a central place in cognitive science, the computa- tional theory of mind has also had a second life supporting Bindividualism^, the view that psychological states should be taxonomized so as to supervene only on the intrinsic, physical properties of individuals. One response to individualism has been to raise the prospect of Bwide computational systems^, in which some computational units are instantiated outside the individual. BWide computationalism^ attempts to sever the link between individualism and computational psychology by enlarging the concept of computation. However, in spite of its potential interest to cognitive science, wide computationalism has received little attention in philosophy of mind and cognitive science. This paper aims to revisit the prospect of wide computationalism. It is argued that by appropriating a mechanistic conception of computation wide computationalism can overcome several issues that plague initial formulations. The aim is to show that cognitive science has overlooked an important and viable option in computational psychology. The paper marshals empirical support and responds to possible objections. 1 Introduction Jerry Fodor once claimed that: Bquite independent of one’s assumptions about the details of psychological theories of cognition, their general structure presupposes underlying computational processes^ (1975, p.28).
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  • Processing and Integration of Sensory Information in Spatial Navigation
    Processing and Integration of Sensory Information in Spatial Navigation Dissertation zur Erlangung des Grades Doktor der Naturwissenschaften (Dr. rer. nat.) im Fachbereich Humanwissenschaften der Universität Osnabrück vorgelegt von Caspar Mathias Goeke Osnabrück, im November 2016 Supervisors 1st Supervisor: Prof. Dr. Peter König University of Osnabrück, Osnabrück, Germany 2nd Supervisor: Prof. Dr. Klaus Gramann Technical University of Berlin, Berlin, Germany 3rd Supervisor: Prof. Dr. Bernhard Riecke Simon Fraser University, Vancouver, Canada Additional Supervisor: Prof. Dr. Gordon Pipa University of Osnabrück, Osnabrück, Germany Curriculum Vitae Caspar Goeke Schepelerstr. 21, [email protected] 49074 Osnabrück +49 157 5521 5307 Germany Journal Articles Goeke, C., König, S. U., Meilinger, T., & König, P. (submitted). Are non- egocentric spatial reference frames compatible with enacted theories? Scientific Reports König, S. U., Schumann, F., Keyser, J., Goeke, C., Krause, C., Wache, S., … Peter, K. (in press). Learning New Sensorimotor Contingencies: Effects of Long- term Use of Sensory Augmentation on the Brain and Conscious Perception. PloS One. Goeke, C. M., Planera, S., Finger, H., & König, P. (2016). Bayesian Alternation during Tactile Augmentation. Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience, 10, 187. Goeke, C., Kornpetpanee, S., Köster, M., Fernández-Revelles, A. B., Gramann, K., & König, P. (2015). Cultural background shapes spatial reference frame proclivity. Scientific reports, 5. Goeke, C. M., König, P., & Gramann, K. (2013). Different strategies for spatial updating in yaw and pitch path integration. Front Behav Neurosci,7. Conference Contributions A Bayesian Approach to Multimodal Integration between Augmented and Innate Sensory Modalities, Osnabrück Computational Cognition Alliance Meeting, Osnabrück, Germany 2014 Cultural impact on strategy selection mechanisms, Annual Meeting of Experimental Psychologists, Gießen, Germany, 2014.
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  • Fast and Loose Semantics for Computational Cognition
    Logical Formalizations of Commonsense Reasoning: Papers from the 2015 AAAI Spring Symposium Fast and Loose Semantics for Computational Cognition Loizos Michael Open University of Cyprus [email protected] Abstract tics. The questions that arise, the alternatives that one could Psychological evidence supporting the profound effort- have adopted, and the prior works that are relevant to such an lessness (and often substantial carelessness) with which endeavor, are much too numerous to be reasonably covered human cognition copes with typical daily life situations in the constraints of one paper. We view this work as a start- abounds. In line with this evidence, we propose a formal ing point for a fuller investigation of this line of research. semantics for computational cognition that places em- phasis on the existence of naturalistic and unpretentious Perception Semantics algorithms for representing, acquiring, and manipulat- ing knowledge. At the heart of the semantics lies the re- We assume that the environment determines at each moment alization that the partial nature of perception is what ul- in time a state that fully specifies what holds. An agent never timately necessitates — and hinders — cognition. Inex- fully perceives these states. Instead, the agent uses some pre- orably, this realization leads to the adoption of a unified specified language to assign finite names to atoms, which are treatment for all considered cognitive processes, and to used to represent concepts related to the environment. The the representation of knowledge via prioritized implica- set of all atoms is not explicitly provided upfront. Atoms are tion rules. Through discussion and the implementation encountered through the agent’s interaction with its environ- of an early prototype cognitive system, we argue that ment, or introduced through the agent’s cognitive processing such fast and loose semantics may offer a good basis for mechanism.
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  • Investigations on Cognitive Computation and Computational Cognition
    DIPARTIMENTO DI SCIENZE DELL’INFORMAZIONE DOTTORATO DI RICERCA IN INFORMATICA DELLA SCUOLA DI DOTTORATO IN INFORMATICA – XXII CICLO TESI DI DOTTORATO DI RICERCA INF/01 Investigations on cognitive computation and computational cognition Isabella Cattinelli Relatore: Prof. N. Alberto Borghese Correlatore: Prof. Eraldo Paulesu Il Direttore della Scuola di Dottorato in Informatica: Prof. Ernesto Damiani ANNO ACCADEMICO 2009–2010 ii iii Abstract This Thesis describes our work at the boundary between Computer Science and Cognitive (Neuro)Science. In particular, (1) we have worked on methodological improvements to clust- ering-based meta-analysis of neuroimaging data, which is a technique that allows to collec- tively assess, in a quantitative way, activation peaks from several functional imaging studies, in order to extract the most robust results in the cognitive domain of interest. Hierarchi- cal clustering is often used in this context, yet it is prone to the problem of non-uniqueness of the solution: a different permutation of the same input data might result in a different clustering result. In this Thesis, we propose a new version of hierarchical clustering that solves this problem. We also show the results of a meta-analysis, carried out using this algo- rithm, aimed at identifying specific cerebral circuits involved in single word reading. More- over, (2) we describe preliminary work on a new connectionist model of single word reading, named the two-component model because it postulates a cascaded information flow from a more cognitive component that computes a distributed internal representation for the input word, to an articulatory component that translates this code into the corresponding sequence of phonemes.
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  • Overt Selection and Processing of Visual Stimuli
    Overt Selection and Processing of Visual Stimuli Dissertation zur Erlangung des Grades “Ph.D. in Cognitive Science” im Fachbereich Humanwissenschaften der Universitat¨ Osnabruck¨ vorgelegt von Jose´ P. Ossandon´ D. Osnabruck,¨ im November 2015 Supervisor: Prof. Dr. Peter Konig¨ University of Osnabruck,¨ Osnabruck,¨ Germany Additional reviewers: Prof. Dr. Frank Jakel¨ University of Osnabruck,¨ Osnabruck,¨ Germany Dr. rer. nat. Tobias Heed University of Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany The human understanding when it has once adopted an opinion ... draws all things else to support and agree with it. And though there be a greater number and weight of instances to be found on the other side, yet these it either neglects and despises, or else by some distinction sets aside and rejects, in order that by this great and pernicious predetermination the authority of its former conclusions may remain inviolate. Novum Organum FRANCIS BACON Going beyond accepted data is not very different from filling gaps, except that interpola- tions are limited to the next accepted data point; extrapolations, however, have no end point in what is known or assumed, so extrapolations may be infinitely daring, and so may be dramatically wrong. Perception as hypothesis RICHARD L. GREGORY Abstract To see is to act. Most obviously, we are continuously scanning different regions of the world with the movement of our eyes, head, and body. These overt movements are intrinsically linked to two other, more subtle, actions: (1) the prior process of deciding where to look; and (2) the prediction of the sensory consequences of overt movements. In this thesis I describe a series of experiments that investigate different mechanisms underlying the first process and that evaluate the existence of the second one.
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  • NSF Workshop on Integrating Approaches to Computational Cognition
    NSF Workshop on Integrating Approaches to Computational Cognition Supplementary Material: Examples of Existing Work Bridging CS and ML The report from this workshop1 focuses on future gains that can be expected from cooperation between the machine learning (ML) and cognitive science (CS) research communities. There are numerous examples of recent research that point to this potential. Of many lines of research that could be used as illustrations, we give in this appendix a few examples selected by the workshop participants, noting that this is a small selection of both the research in the field and the research of the workshop members. Griffiths How should we represent the features of complex objects? When we look at the objects around us, the features that are relevant for deciding what an object is or how to use it seem obvious. But these features aren't as obvious to computers as they are to people, and the ease with which we identify the features of objects means that most psychological experiments assume the features of objects are simply available to observers. Griffiths and Ghahramani (2006) show how sophisticated statistical methods can be used to identify the features of objects from their appearance. This statistical approach solves two problems at once - identifying what the features are, and how many features need to be used. The model, named the Indian Buffet Process, was motivated by issues that come up in cognitive science, but has had a significant impact in machine learning. In subsequent work, we have examined how this idea can be used to explain how people identify the features of objects and how computers can do a better job of automatically forming representations of objects that are more similar to those formed by people.
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  • What Is Artificial Intelligence?
    This is an open access article licensed under the Creative Commons BY-NC-ND License. Journal of Artificial General Intelligence 11(2) 52-56, 2020 Submitted 2019-10-11 DOI: 10.2478/jagi-2020-0003 Accepted 2019-11-07 What Is Artificial Intelligence? William J. Rapaport [email protected] Departments of Computer Science and Engineering, Philosophy, & Linguistics, and Center for Cognitive Science University at Buffalo The State University of New York Buffalo, New York, USA Editors: Dagmar Monett, Colin W. P. Lewis, and Kristinn R. Thorisson´ Wang (2019) claims to define AI in the sense of delimiting its research area. But he offers a definition only of ‘intelligence’ (not of AI). And it is only a theory of what intelligence is (artificial or otherwise). I offer and defend a definition of AI as computational cognition. 1. The Nature of Definitions Forward-looking (or prescriptive) definitions suggest what researchers ought or want to work on. Backward-looking (or descriptive) definitions are based on what researchers have actually tried to do or succeeded in doing.1 Examples abound in the history of science: Atoms were originally conceived as indivisible; we now know that they are not; electrons were originally conceived as tiny particles, a view now challenged by quantum mechanics. Reconciling such apparently incommensurable definitions or concepts is an open question in philosophy. In the case of AI, there is an obvious candidate for the forward-looking, prescriptive definition (mentioned, but not explicitly cited, by Wang): McCarthy’s definition from the Dartmouth conference that gave the field its name: the conjecture that every aspect of learning or any other feature of intelligence can in principle be so precisely described that a machine can be made to simulate it.
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  • Angela J. Yu [email protected]
    Angela J. Yu [email protected] Research My lab utilizes rigorous and diverse tools to understand the nature of representation and computations that give rise to intelligent behavior, in particular with regard to how the brain copes with uncertainty in inference, learning, decision-making, and social cognition. Using Bayesian statistical modeling tools, control theory, reinforcement learning, information theory, and dynamical systems analysis, we develop mathematical and computational theo- ries that attempt to explain disparate aspects of cognition: perception, attention, decision- making, learning, cognitive control, active sensing, economic choice, and social perception and decision-making. My lab mainly specializes in theoretical modeling, but also utilizes various experimental methods, e.g. behavior, eye-tracking, fMRI, to help develop and vali- date the theoretical concepts. In addition, we collaborate with a number of experimentalists on a range of topics related to human and animal cognition, including neural and psychiatric impairments. Employment University of California San Diego La Jolla, CA 2014 - Present: Associate Professor (2008 - 2014: Assistant Professor), Department of Cogni- tive Science. Director of Computational and Cognitive Neuroscience Laboratory. Founding faculty of the Halicioglu Data Science Institute. Faculty member of the Contextual Robotics Institute, the Institute for Neural Computation, The Temporal Dynamics of Learning Center, the Neurosciences PhD Program, and Affiliate Faculty in Computer Science and Engineering Department. Education Princeton University Princeton, NJ April, 2005 - July, 2008 Post-doctoral fellow in the Center for the Study of Brain, Mind, and Behavior. Sloan-swartz fellow for computational neuroscience. UCL Gatsby Computational Neuroscience Unit London, UK October, 2000 - June, 2005 Ph.D in Computational Neuroscience.
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  • Cognitive Science
    COGNITIVE SCIENCE Cognitive science has emerged in the last few decades as a major discipline that promises to be increasingly important in the 21st century. It focuses on the study of intelligent systems, both real and artificial. Cognitive science is the empirical study of intelligent systems, including the human mind. It is an interdisciplinary science, which combines results from neuroscience, computer science, linguistics, mathematics, philosophy and psychology to the study of language processing, perception, action, learning, concept formation, inference and other activities of the mind with applications for information technology and the study of artificial intelligence. A Cognitive Science graduate, skilled in the analysis of cognitive and decision-making processes, is well-prepared for a rewarding professional future. Semester 1 Semester 2 Studies in Cognitive Sciences Semester 3 1. Foundations of Cognitive Science This course provides an introduction to the study of intelligence, mind and brain from an interdisciplinary perspective. It encompasses the contemporary views of how the mind works, the nature of reason, and how thought processes are reflected in the language we use. Central to the course is the modern computational theory of mind and it specifies the underlying mechanisms through which the brain processes language, thinks thoughts, and develops consciousness. 2. Biological Basis of Behavior Biopsychology is focused on the structure and function of the nervous system. This course will provide the foundation for understanding the biological basis of behavior. It will cover the perspectives, questions, and techniques of neuroscience, brain cell structure and function, neural communication, neurotransmitters, neurological disorders and treatment, brain development, and neural systems responsible for motivation, learning, emotion, stress, sleep, sensation, perception, and consciousness.
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  • Cognitive Ergonomics Lessons: Possible Challenges for USI?
    IPO Annual Progress Report 34 1999 Contents Page 4 General 8 Work Programme 1999 13 Organization IPO 17 User-Centred Design 19 D.G. Bouwhuis and J.B. Long Developments 24 J.B. Long Cognitive ergonomics lessons: Possible challenges for USI? 37 W.A. IJsselsteijn, H. de Ridder and J. Freeman Measuring presence: An overview of assessment methodologies 49 Information Access and Presentation 51 F.L. van Nes Developments 54 F.J.J. Blommaert and TJ.W.M. Janssen The satisfied user 63 G. Klein Teeselink, H. Siepe and J.R. de Pijper Log files for testing usability 73 Multimodal Interaction 75 A.J.M. Houtsma Developments 78 D.J. Hermes and S.L.J.D.E. van de Par Scientific approaches to sound design IPO Annual Progress Report 341999 2 86 M.M.J. Houben, D.J. Hermes and A. Kohlrausch Auditory perception of the size and velocity of rolling balls 94 S.L.J.D.E. van de Par and A. Kohlrausch Integration of auditory-visual patterns 103 Spoken Language Interfaces 105 R.N.J. Veldhuis Developments 111 M.M. Bekker and L.L.M. Vogten Usability of voice-controlled product interfaces 125 C.H.B.A. van Dinther, P.S. Rao, R.NJ. Veldhuis and A. Kohlrausch A measure for predicting audibility discrimination thresholds 133 E.A.M. Klabbers, R.N.J. Veldhuis and K.D. Koppen Improving diphone synthesis by adding context-sensitive diphones 142 J. Hirschberg, D. Litman and M.GJ. Swerts On-line spotting of ASR errors by means of prosody 150 Publications 174 Papers accepted for publication 176 Colophon For information on the use of material from this report, see the last page.
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  • Todd M. Gureckis –
    6 Washington Place Room 859 New York, NY 1003 T (212) 998 3794 B [email protected] Todd M. Gureckis Í gureckislab.org Professional Experience 2014–present Associate Professor, Department of Psychology, Affiliate, Center for Data Science & Center for Neural Science, New York University, New York, NY. 2008–2013 Assistant Professor, Department of Psychology, New York University, New York, NY. 2005–2007 Post-doctoral Research Associate, Department of Psychological and Brain Sci- ences, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN. Visiting Affiliations Spring 2015 Institute of Cognitive and Brain Sciences, University of California, Berkeley, CA. Fall 2014 Booth School of Business, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL. Education 2001–2005 Ph.D., Cognition and Perception, The University of Texas, Austin, TX. 2001–2005 M.A., Cognition and Perception, The University of Texas, Austin, TX. 1997–2001 B.S., Electrical and Computer Engineering, The University of Texas, Austin, TX. Honors and Awards 2017 Visiting Research Fellowship, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia 2016 NYU College of Arts and Sciences Teach/Tech award, for innovation in the application of instructional technology to undergraduate education 2016 Distinguished Alumni Award, Northside Independent School District, San Antonio Texas 2015 Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE), Office of Science and Technology Policy, the White House 2014 Clifford T. Morgan Best Article Award, Memory & Cognition, competitive award from the Psychonomic Society (for Markant,
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  • Syntactic Semantics and the Proper Treatment of Computationalism
    1 Syntactic Semantics and the Proper Treatment of Computationalism William J. Rapaport Department of Computer Science and Engineering, Department of Philosophy, Department of Linguistics, and Center for Cognitive Science University at Buffalo, The State University of New York Buffalo, NY 14260-2500 [email protected] http://www.cse.buffalo.edu/~rapaport Keywords: computationalism, semiotic systems, cognition, syntax, semantics 2 Abstract Computationalism should not be the view that (human) cognition is computation; it should be the view that cognition (simpliciter) is computable. It follows that computationalism can be true even if (human) cognition is not the result of computations in the brain. If semiotic systems are systems that interpret signs, then both humans and computers are semiotic systems. Finally, minds can be considered as virtual machines implemented in certain semiotic systems, primarily the brain, but also AI computers. 1. Introduction This essay treats three topics: computationalism, semiotic systems, and cognition (the mind), offering what I feel is the proper treatment of computationalism. From this, certain views about semiotic systems and minds follow (or, at least, are consistent): First, I argue that computationalism should not be understood as the view that (human) cognition is computation, but that it should be understood as the view that cognition (human or otherwise) is computable (§2). On this view, it follows that computationalism can be true even if (human) cognition is not the result of computations in the brain. Second, I argue that, if semiotic systems are systems that interpret signs, then both humans and computers are semiotic systems (§5.2). Finally, I suggest that minds should be considered as virtual machines implemented in certain semiotic systems: primarily brains, but also AI computers (§6.3).
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