How do humans make sense of the visual world around them? This course will provide an introductory survey of current research, methods, and theories in visual cognition. We will draw upon topics in cognitive psychology, cognitive neuroscience, cognitive neuropsychology, and artificial intelligence.

• Days/Times: TTh 9:00AM - 10:15AM
• Instructor: Li, Donald
• Room: Krieger 111
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 2/25
• PosTag(s): COGS-COGPSY, COGS-COMPCG, COGS-NEURO

This course surveys theory and research concerning how mental processes are carried out by the human brain. Currently a wide range of methods of probing the functioning brain are yielding insights into the nature of the relation between mental and neural events. Emphasis will be placed on developing an understanding of both the physiological bases of the techniques and the issues involved in relating measures of brain activity to cognitive functioning. Methods surveyed include electrophysiological recording techniques such as EEG, ERP, single/multiple unit recording and MEG; functional imaging techniques such as PET and fMRI; and methods that involve lesioning or disrupting neural activity such as cortical stimulation, animal lesion studies, and the study of brain-damaged individuals. Also offered as AS.050.603. It’s strongly recommended that students have background in one of the following courses: AS.050.105 OR AS.200.141.

• Days/Times: TTh 10:30AM - 11:45AM
• Instructor: Bonner, Mick
• Room: Mudd 26
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 57/250
• PosTag(s): COGS-COGPSY, COGS-NEURO

Do children get confused when they grow up exposed to more than one language? Is it possible to forget one’s native language? Are the first and second language processed in different areas of the brain? How does brain damage impact the different languages of a polyglot? Does knowing a second language affect non-linguistic cognitive processing? This course will address questions such as these through an exploration of mental and neural processes underlying bilingual and multilingual language processing. Also offered as AS.050.606.

• Days/Times: TTh 1:30PM - 2:45PM
• Instructor: Yarmolinskaya, Julia
• Room: Krieger 111
• Status: Waitlist Only
• Seats Available: 0/19
• PosTag(s): COGS-COGPSY, COGS-LING

This is a survey course in developmental psychology designed for individuals with some basic background in psychology or cognitive science, but little or none in development. The course is strongly theoretically oriented, with emphasis on issues of nature, and development psychology as well as relevant empirical evidence. The principle focus will be early development, i.e., from conception through middle childhood. The course is organized topically, covering biological and prenatal development, perceptual and cognitive development, the nature and development of intelligence, and language learning. Also offered as AS.050.639.

• Days/Times: TTh 10:30AM - 11:45AM
• Instructor: Yarmolinskaya, Julia
• Room: Krieger 111
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 3/25
• PosTag(s): COGS-COGPSY, COGS-NEURO, BEHB-SOCSCI

When we think about our ability to see, we tend to think about our eyes, but in fact vision happens mostly in the brain. This course explores the remarkable perceptual deficits that occur when the visual regions of the brain are damaged or fail to develop normally, focusing on what these perceptual malfunctions tell us about normal visual perception. Topics include visual system anatomy and physiology; functional specialization in the lower visual system as revealed by cerebral achromatopsia (color blindness resulting from brain damage) and akinetopsia (impaired motion perception); cortical plasticity in the visual system; spatial deficits in perception and action; and the implications of high-level visual deficits, including prosopagnosia (impaired face recognition), Charles Bonnet syndrome (complex visual hallucinations in blind areas of the visual field), blindsight (accurate responding to visual stimuli despite apparent inability to see them), and aphantasia (lack of visual imagery).

• Days/Times: TTh 12:00PM - 1:15PM
• Instructor: McCloskey, Michael E
• Room: Hodson 210
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 15/75
• PosTag(s): NEUR-CG, COGS-COGPSY, COGS-NEURO

Introduces the basic methods and means of analysis used in contemporary syntax investigations, practicing with data from different languages. Also offered as AS.050.620.

• Days/Times: TTh 12:00PM - 1:15PM
• Instructor: Legendre, Geraldine
• Room: Krieger 111
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 6/20
• PosTag(s): COGS-LING

An introduction to the basic principles underlying the mental representation and manipulation of language sounds and their relation to human perception and vocal articulation: how units of sound are both decomposable into elementary features and combined to form larger structures like syllables and words. The role of rules and constraints in a formal theory of phonological competence and in accounting for the range of variation among the world’s languages. Also offered as AS.050.625.

• Days/Times: MW 1:30PM - 2:45PM
• Instructor: Wilson, Colin
• Room: Krieger 111
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 4/40
• PosTag(s): BEHB-SOCSCI, COGS-LING

In-depth examination of the current literature on cognitive development in the context of developmental cognitive neuroscience. Please see course prerequisites. Meets with AS.050.632.

• Days/Times: W 1:30PM - 4:00PM
• Instructor: Landau, Barbara
• Room: Krieger 134A
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 4/15
• PosTag(s): NEUR-CG, COGS-COGPSY, COGS-NEURO

Recent advancements in neuroscience, computational cognitive science and machine learning have led to new possibilities for understanding the mind and brain. With the current neural network modelling and artificial intelligence (AI) techniques, scientists are able to decode neural representation to understand one’s internal mental state. In this course, we will discuss how to utilize the latest technologies, including voxel-wise encoding models, convolutional neural networks (CNNs), generative adversarial networks (GANs) and transformers, to model neural representations with a focus on vision. Students will read latest primary research articles and gain hands-on neural modelling experience. Also offered as AS.050.637

• Days/Times: TTh 1:30PM - 2:45PM
• Instructor: Li, Donald
• Room: Krieger 108
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 7/17
• PosTag(s): COGS-COMPCG, COGS-NEURO, NEUR-CG, NEUR-CP

First language acquisition is natural and seemingly effortless. The situation is reversed when one tries to learn another language. This course discusses in what ways first and second language acquisition (SLA) differ and how individual differences of the learners as well as external factors contribute to the variability observed in rates and ultimate proficiency of second language learning in children and adults. We will discuss such topics as Universal Grammar access in early and late SLA, first language influence, critical periods, possibility of native-like attainment, and language attrition. Also offered as AS.050.649.

• Days/Times: TTh 3:00PM - 4:15PM
• Instructor: Yarmolinskaya, Julia
• Room: Krieger 111
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 1/19
• PosTag(s): COGS-LING, COGS-COGPSY

Introduction to continuous mathematics for cognitive science, with applications to biological and cognitive network models: real and complex numbers, differential and integral multi-variable calculus, linear algebra, dynamical systems, numerical optimization. Recommended course background in Calculus I. This is a basic-level course not appropriate for students with significant math background. tudents who have completed both Calc III (AS.110.202 or AS.110.211) and Linear Algebra (AS.110.201 or AS.110.212 or EN.553.291) or an equivalent combination may not register. Also offered as AS.050.672.

• Days/Times: MWF 3:00PM - 4:15PM
• Instructor: Smolensky, Paul
• Room: Krieger 111
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 11/15
• PosTag(s): COGS-COMPCG, NEUR-CG, NEUR-CP

Language is at the heart of human interaction. What are the linguistic habits that unite or divide us? This First-Year Seminar introduces students to dialects of English speakers around the world. Students will explore the major properties that cross-cut different varieties of English, including regional or socially-driven accents of North America, the United Kingdom, New Zealand and Australia, as well as other World Englishes. Particular attention will be paid to pronunciation, so students will practice the International Phonetic Alphabet and learn acoustic analysis through hands-on activities, but discussion will also focus on dialectal differences in word choice, sentence structure, and linguistic meaning. We will engage with known and emerging varieties of English by drawing on academic sources, multimedia materials, and real-world experience. Who speaks with an accent? Everyone!

• Days/Times: MW 12:00PM - 1:15PM
• Instructor: Staff
• Room: Krieger 134A
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 12/12
• PosTag(s): n/a

Introductory course dealing with theory, methods, and current research topics in the study of language as a component of the mind. What it is to "know" a language: components of linguistic knowledge (phonetics, phonology, morphology, syntax, semantics) and the course of language acquisition. How linguistic knowledge is put to use: language and the brain and linguistic processing in various domains.

• Days/Times: TTh 10:30AM - 11:45AM
• Instructor: Yarmolinskaya, Julia
• Room: Mergenthaler 111
• Status: Reserved Open
• Seats Available: 124/125
• PosTag(s): COGS-LING, COGS-COGPSY

When the brain is damaged or fails to develop normally, even the most basic cognitive abilities (such as the ability to understand words, or perceive objects) may be disrupted, often in remarkable ways. This course explores a wide range of cognitive deficits, focusing on what these deficits can tell us about how the normal brain works. Topics include brain anatomy and causes of brain damage, reading and spelling deficits, unilateral spatial neglect, hemispheric disconnection, cortical plasticity, and visual perception of location and orientation. Students read primary sources: journal articles that report deficits and discuss their implications.

• Days/Times: TTh 12:00PM - 1:15PM
• Instructor: McCloskey, Michael E
• Room: Mergenthaler 111
• Status: Reserved Open
• Seats Available: 124/125
• PosTag(s): COGS-COGPSY, COGS-NEURO

This course provides an introductory survey of the cognitive neuroscience of language – a multidisciplinary field in the intersection of Linguistics, Psycholinguistics, and Neuroscience. We will explore current research on the neural bases of the perception, production, and acquisition or human language in neuro-typical and impaired individuals.

• Days/Times: TTh 1:30PM - 2:45PM
• Instructor: Yarmolinskaya, Julia
• Room: Krieger 111
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 19/19
• PosTag(s): BEHB-BIOBEH, COGS-COGPSY, COGS-NEURO, COGS-LING

This course aims to provide a deeper understanding of cognitive neuroscience methods and theory on certain contemporary topics in the field through a series of labs and activities. Example labs include building psychophysical experiments using PsychoPy, exploring the brain using MRI images using MRIcron and developing artificial neural networks using simBrain. Basic cognitive neuroscience theories will be discussed in class before each lab/activity to bring everyone to the same page. Emphasis will be placed on developing a scientific mindset in approaching problems. You will build your own experiment from your own idea and execute it in-class. No pre-requisite required.

• Days/Times: TTh 9:00AM - 10:15AM
• Instructor: Li, Donald
• Room: Krieger 108
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 24/24
• PosTag(s): COGS-NEURO, BEHB-BIOBEH

This course is an advanced seminar and research practicum course. It will provide the opportunity to learn about fMRI methods used in the field of vision science and for students to have hands-on experience to develop, design and analyze a research study on topics in the cognitive neuroscience field of high-level vision. In the first part of the course students will read recent fMRI journal papers and learn about common fMRI designs and analysis methods; in the second part of the course students will conduct a research study to address a research question developed from readings. Students are expected to write a paper in a short journal article format at the end of the course and to present their results in front of the class. Research topics will vary but with special focus on topics in high-level visual processing.

• Days/Times: TTh 12:00PM - 1:15PM
• Instructor: Li, Donald
• Room: Krieger 111
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 22/22
• PosTag(s): COGS-NEURO, COGS-COGPSY, NEUR-CG

Over the last decade, there has been amazing progress in deep learning AI systems for vision and language, and more and more cognitive neuroscientists are using these tools to study the human brain. This course will give an overview of popular deep learning methods, including convolutional neural networks, recurrent neural networks, variational autoencoders, and transformers, with the goal of addressing two key questions: 1) to what extent do these deep learning systems act like humans, and 2) what questions can they help us answer about the human mind and brain. The class will involve a mix of lectures, hands-on coding assignments, and reading/discussion of primary research articles. The course will focus heavily on vision but will include some topics in language (including large language models) and social cognition.

• Days/Times: TTh 1:30PM - 2:45PM
• Instructor: Isik, Leyla
• Room: Krieger 300
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 20/20
• PosTag(s): COGS-NEURO, COGS-COMPCG, NEUR-CP, NEUR-CG

This course provides an introduction to the fields of first and bilingual language acquisition by looking at questions such as the following: Can the grammar of a native language be learned solely on the basis of noticing statistical correlations among words? How does native language acquisition explain — or is explained by — the universal properties, shared by all languages, of words and grammars? How does being exposed to multiple languages from birth affect language acquisition and what happens when a child is not exposed to any language early in life? This is the first part of a two-part course sequence on first and second language acquisition.

• Days/Times: TTh 3:00PM - 4:15PM
• Instructor: Yarmolinskaya, Julia
• Room: Krieger 111
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 19/19
• PosTag(s): COGS-LING, COGS-COGPSY

An introduction to the emerging field of sociophonetics, which lies at the interface between sociolinguistics and phonetics. Students will learn how to analyze phonetic data in service of research questions motivated by social factors including speakers’ region of origin, gender, ethnicity, or other characteristics. Extensions will be made to articulatory phonetics, speech perception, and phonological formalizations. Knowledge of linguistics and phonology/phonetics, including the International Phonetic Alphabet and basic acoustic phonetics, is strongly recommended. The course will draw material from textbooks, scholarly articles, and hands-on phonetic analysis culminating in final projects on topics chosen by students. It is recommended that students have successfully completed AS.050.325 Phonology I prior to enrollment in this course.

• Days/Times: MW 1:30PM - 2:45PM
• Instructor: Staff
• Room: Gilman 55
• Status: Approval Required
• Seats Available: 20/20
• PosTag(s): COGS-LING

Have you ever wondered about the relationships between language and thought? Philosophers, linguists, psychologists, evolutionary theorists and cognitive scientists have too and this course will survey the current thinking on this matter. Classical papers such as those by Whorf and Sapir, more recent philosophical papers by people such as Fodor and Dennett, and recent empirical work by linguists and psycholingists on the relationship between language and thinking in development and in adults will be covered. Discussions will focus on the theoretically possible relationships between language and thought and the empirical data that speak to these. Juniors and seniors only. Freshmen and sophomores by permission of instructor only.

• Days/Times: W 1:30PM - 4:00PM
• Instructor: Landau, Barbara
• Room: Krieger 134A
• Status: Approval Required
• Seats Available: 15/15
• PosTag(s): BEHB-BIOBEH, COGS-COGPSY, COGS-LING

One of the most foundational concepts in neuroscience is the idea that neural activity encodes information about an animal’s sensory environment and internal mental states. This idea is closely connected to the concept of mental representation in cognitive science and philosophy, whereby the mind is proposed to contain internal symbols that represent things in the external world. There have been many fascinating discoveries about how neural signals encode information, but we are still far from a comprehensive theory of neural representation. Recent major developments in neuroscience and machine learning have opened up a new world of possibilities for investigating the underlying principles of information coding in the brains of humans and other animals. In this course, we will discuss primary research articles on neural representation and information processing, and students will implement computational analyses that address issues in these domains. We will mostly focus on vision as a system that illustrates broader principles of information processing in the human brain. The reading material will include work from philosophy, neuroimaging, electrophysiology, and computational modeling. The topics covered include mental and neural representation, neural tuning, population coding, information theory, encoding and decoding models, dimensionality reduction, computational models, deep learning, and other applications of machine learning in neuroscience. Enrollment is limited to Juniors and Seniors. While this class does not have formal prerequisites, programming experience (e.g., AS 250.205 Introduction to Computing) and mathematical preparation (e.g., AS.110.107 Calculus II) are essential. It is also highly recommended that students have previously taken introductory courses in cognitive or systems neuroscience (e.g., AS.050.203 Neuroscience: Cognitive) and machine learning or neural network modeling (e.g., AS.050.372 Foundations of Neural Network Theory).

• Days/Times: TTh 10:30AM - 11:45AM
• Instructor: Bonner, Mick
• Room: Krieger 111
• Status: Approval Required
• Seats Available: 19/19
• PosTag(s): NEUR-CG, NEUR-CP, NEUR-ST, COGS-COMPCG, COGS-NEURO

This course introduces techniques for computational modeling of aspects of human cognition, including perception, categorization, and induction. Possible topics include maximum likelihood and Bayesian inference, structured statistical models (including hierarchical and graphical models), nonparametric models. The course emphasizes the close connections among data analysis, theory development, and modeling, with examples drawn from language and vision. Also offered as AS.050.671.

• Days/Times: MW 12:00PM - 1:15PM
• Instructor: Wilson, Colin
• Room: Krieger 111
• Status: Open
• Seats Available: 25/25
• PosTag(s): COGS-COMPCG, NEUR-CG, NEUR-CP

The course gives an introduction to computational models of the mammalian visual cortex. It covers topics in low-, mid-, and high-level vision. It briefly discusses the relevant evidence from anatomy, electrophysiology, imaging (e.g., fMRI), and psychophysics. It concentrates on mathematical modeling of these phenomena taking into account recent progress in probabilistic models of computer vision and developments in machine learning, such as deep networks. Also offered as EN.601.485. Required Background: Calculus I and experience in a programming language (Python preferred).

• Days/Times: TTh 9:00AM - 10:15AM
• Instructor: Yuille, Alan L
• Room: Krieger 170
• Status: Approval Required
• Seats Available: 40/40
• PosTag(s): COGS-COMPCG, NEUR-CG, NEUR-ST, NEUR-CP, CSCI-APPL