Fall 2017- Syllabus and Course Schedule
Psych. 310, Cognition
Professor - Erik Nilsen
Human Computer Interaction Lab, BioPsy 121
Lecture Tues., Thursday 1:50 - 3:20 PM,
Lab Sections - Wed. 9:50 - 11:20 a.m. or 12 - 1:30 p.m.
Readings and texts to be announced in class and specified on syllabus. Obtaining them is your responsibility. One book required.
Altruism: The Power of Compassion to Change Yourself and the World By Matthieu Ricard
Connection to Class Moodle Site for Assignments and Class Communication
Course Overview
This course is designed to give you hands-on experience in scientific thinking,
reasoning, and experimentation in the area of cognitive psychology. You will
read about and participate in classic experiments in human cognition, critically
evaluate these experiments, discuss their implications, as well as examine recent
approaches (cognitive science, neural networks, evolutionary psychology) to
cognition. In short, the course will allow you to directly work on and experience
the types of tasks facing a modern-day research scientist in cognitive psychology.
Course Expectations and
Assignments
This course will involve reading a great deal of primary source journal articles.
It is expected that you will (thoughtfully) read the material before
the class session. I also expect active participation in all class discussion
and activities. Attendance is expected at all class sessions and is essential
for all lab days. These are days where the emphasis will be on experiential
learning which cannot be made up for in other ways. If you have a known conflict
with any of these dates, talk with me at least two weeks in advance and alternative
arrangements (read more work ; ^ ) can be made.
Grading
35% Reaction Papers
Before specified class sessions in which we discuss an article, you are to read it and write some comments on the article. This can include a brief summary of the stated purpose of the article, how well the authors fulfilled that purpose, and what methods they used. You can also write any questions about concepts that were either unclear in the article or which need further elaboration. If you find any connection with other articles we have discussed in class or from your own experience, include these insights as well. Each paper should be less than 3 pages and take no more than one hour to write (above and beyond the reading time). The papers will be used to inform class discussions, and some of them will undergo peer and/or instructor review.
35% Lab Reports
The lab section of this course is meant to provide hands on experience in cognitive psychology. Students will conduct experiments directly related to the principles learned in the lecture portion of the course. These experiments will be done online using a variety of sources from the internet including the CogLab 2.0 software. Students will also provide written reports (Using APA guidelines) of experimental findings collected throughout the semester.
15% Class Participation
Consistent contributions to in-class activities, class discussion, group work is expected. If you are not in class, you cannot participate! If you are here in body only, but have not prepared your mind, it may be duly noted!
15% Individual Research Project
For the final project you will be writing a complete APA empirical scientific paper. We will discuss a couple of options for completing this assignment.
My overarching goals for Psy 310 are for you to acquire an understanding of the various theoretical perspectives, and research methods associated with cognitive psychology and to apply this understanding by formulating an individual research project. The learning objectives for this class include:
For the journal article and book discussions and laboratory exercises:
1. Explaining cognitive psychologists’ perspectives on the study of mental processes by:
2. Engaging in high-level discussion in response to scholarly readings by:
For the individual research project:
3. Demonstrating independence and intellectual maturity in the production of knowledge by:
Fall 2017 Office
Hours - Tuesday, Thursday 11:15 a.m. - 12:15 p.m., Bio/Psych
#236. I have an open door policy. Feel free to drop in at other times. If my door is open, I am available to chat. If it is closed, I am either gone or working on a project with a deadline. Leave a message on my white board or with the departmental administrative assistant. |
Day & Date |
Topic |
T Sept. 5 |
Introduction - Memory and Name Games! Get your Name Anagram (and post it on your Moodle Profile page) Peruse the World Memory Championship Website. The 2017 World competition will be held this December 7th - 14th!! Here is a list of a huge number of Memory World Records.
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W Sept. 6 |
No class meeting today. The lab is open if you want to work on Lab #1 Mnemonic Techniques
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Th Sept. 7 | Morris (2005) Strategies for Learning Proper Names: Expanding Retrieval Practice, Meaning and Imagery.
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T Sep. 12 |
Beaton et. al. (2005) Facilitation of receptive and productive foreign vocabulary learning using the keyword method: The role of image quality. Linkword Languagescommercial site derived from research on mnemonics and language learning.
Moe (2005) Stressing the Efficacy of the Loci Method: Oral Presentation and the Subject-generation of the Loci Pathway with Expository Passages Kondo (2004) Changes in brain activation associated with use of a memory strategy: a functional MRI study.
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W Sep. 13 |
Maguire (2002) Routes to remembering: the brains behind superior memory Lab #1.5 Exceptional Memory Film Fest! No advance preparation required for this lab except being able to recite the Presidents! Autistic man is a "Living Camera" Simon Reinhard setting world record for memorizing card deck (with awesome soundtrack)! Alez Mullen, memory athlete, explains how it is done! (view first 4 minutes)
Einstein's Brain Glial Cells Rock! Real Rain Man Kim Peak Brain Man Daniel Tammet learns Icelandic in a week!
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Th Sep. 14 |
Alpha and Omega of Memory Research Read Chapters 1 - 3 of Hermann Ebbinghaus' landmark Dissertation on Memory. Hermann Ebbinghaus (1885) Über das Gedchtnis: Untersuchungen zur experimentellen Psychologie. English Translation (Memory: A Contribution to Experimental Psychology) REACTION PAPER (submit on moodle by 5 p.m. today) For chapters 1 - 3, your reaction paper should highlight how he defined memory and it's measurement and what experimental procedures and operational definitions he used to make the study of memory possible from an empirical, scientific standpoint.
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T Sep. 19 |
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W Sep. 20 |
Hunt (1995) The subtlety of distinctiveness: What von Restorff really did Kishiyama (2004) The von Restorff Effect in Amnesia: The Contribution of the Hippocampal System to Novelty-Related Memory Enhancements
Lab #2 Serial Memory Lab
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Th Sep. 21 |
Amping Up Our Memory - Cognitive Enhancers and Nootropics are onr the bleeding edge of science and pseudoscience. Hot off the academic press, here is a shortish overview article on Types of Cognitive Enhancers that are available today. It has been accepted for publication but not published yet.
Here is another short article with a bit of overlap and a different perspective.
News Report that Electrical Brain Stimulation may enhance memory! Original Article from Science August 2014! Memory Palace TED talk! We will watch this in class
Remember This. by Joshua Foer, National Geographic Magazine, Nov. 2007. Read this essay in advance and be ready to discuss it in class along with your own memory foibles!
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T Sep. 26 |
Read the classic paper by George Miller entitled: The Magical Number Seven, Plus or Minus Two: Some Limits on Our Capacity for Processing Information. This paper, written in 1956, helped launch the information processing paradigm in psychology and his 7+/- 2 chunks in STM is certainly the most widely cited "number" in memory research. I am asking you to read the original. This is very dense reading. To help us understand it better I am assigning each of you one of the sections to summarize (in writing) and present orally in class. Be sure to define any terms that need it and to explain any graphs that are in your section. You may need to do a bit of outside research to fully understand the material, try to put it into your own words. You will have 15ish minutes at the beginning of class to ask Erik questions and discuss the material before presenting it to the class. The section assignments are given below.
Baddeley 1994 The Magical number seven: Still magic after all these years? I suggest you read this one first.
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W Sep. 27 |
Read CogLabWorkingMemoryLab3.pdf in preparation for the lab today. (distributed via e-mail and in class readings Google Drive folder) Ted Talk on Working Memory Good News Neuroracer Research to Train Working Memory in older folks using Dual Task Video Game Bad News Your Smartphone Reduces Your Brainpower, Even If It’s Just Sitting There. Magazine Article | Original Research Paper Lab #3 Working Memory Capacity
Lab write up is found on the class moodle site. It is due (submitted on the moodle by noon Wednesday, Oct. 4th)
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TH Sep. 28 |
Introduction to Neural Network approach to Cognition. Read through this and try the exercises. We will review it in class. Here is short overview of the role of connectionist modeling in psychology. Try out this Neural network simulation and another Neural Network Playground! Neural network representation of gangs from "West Side Story"! An assortment of online Neural Network demo's. - Read about the Human Face Detection Project at Carnegie Mellon University. This paper describes a novel Computer Vision approach incorporating a neural network to recognize faces in pictures submitted by anyone on the Web.
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T Oct. 3 |
Neural Networks make the big time in a Psychological Review Article. Cohen (1990) "On the control of automatic processes: A parallel distributed processing account of the stroop effect." Reaction Paper: (post on Moodle) We will assign groups to lead the discussion for each of the simulation studies.
Simulation 1 - Ashley, Cesar, Olivia, Paradise,
Simulation 2 Alaina, Emma, Mikayla, Maggie,
Simulation 3 Abbie, Miya, Shin
Simulation 4 Jackie L, Sheridan, Rosa,
Simulation 5 Ellie, Annika, Jackie C.
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W Oct. 4 |
Facial Emotion - Truth and Deception Ron Gutman's Ted Talk on the Power of Smiles! Ekman (2003) Darwin, Deception, and Facial Expression Blow(2006) Perception of Robot Smiles and Dimensions for Human-Robot Interaction Design. Kaspar Robot used to help Autistic kids learn to recognize facial expressions of emotion. Here is a Robotic Head that is firmly in the Uncanny Valley IMHO! And a pair of Japanese Robots whose creators say have crossed to the other side of the Uncanny Valley?! You decide! Smile Experiment (do not access before class) Psychology Today article on the science of smiling (Proceed with caution) Paul Ekman's F.A.C.E web page including a demo of METT
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TH Oct. 5 | Read
about TD-Gammon, a Neural Network Backgammon Expert that learns
without input from Humans! Search the web and online research databases for two recent examples (2009 or later) of the use of neural network/connectionist,PDP modeling. One of the examples should be focused on theory development and the other on an applied topic. Be prepared to give a brief overview of the research in class today using the computer projection unit to show us your "finds". (Post on moodle before classtime today) |
T Oct. 10 |
Dandeneau (2007). Cutting Stress Off at the Pass: Reducing Vigilance and Responsiveness to Social Threat by Manipulating Attention. MindHabits Software to improve your self-esteem, work productivity and yes, maybe even your dating success!
Obama-McCain "When I see your Smile" Music Video Body Language Analysis of Presidential Debate (2008) Stephen Colbert analyses smiles of Romney and Obama in 1st Pres. debate (juicy goodness starts at 1:49) More 2016 Debate Non Verbal Analysis to appear here! |
W Oct. 11 |
Nothing due today, but be sure to submit your Thought Experiment Lab assignment to the Moodle before you leave for fall break.. (due on moodle by 5 p.m.Thursday) Ok guys, for your "lab write up" this week, I want you to come up with a thought experiment based on the theory and research findings of the Dandeneau article assigned for Tuesday, Oct. 4th and using the Mindhabits Software that we tried out in class on Tuesday..
Introduction to Mind Mapping Concept and Software to support it. WikiPedia Page entry on Mind Mapping. 3 articles to read and be ready to discuss were sent to you via e-mail
Several online Mapping Software tools are discussed and linked at
here are a few links to online mind mapping tools |
TH Oct. 12th |
No class today, but use Today and the fall break to read through the first 3 chapters of the Altruism Book (pages 1 - 55) be ready to discuss it in class next Tuesday. Erik will give you a word cloud that shows key concepts from the introduction to the book. Your assignment for next Tuesday is to create a concept map of the key terms and the relationships among them for one of the 3 chapters of your choosing. Feel free to use a software tool or to do it freehand with markers or crayons on a large sheet of paper. Be ready to present and discuss your mind map with others in the class. |
T Oct. 17 |
Altruism - Class discussion and Mind Map Exchange Read Chapters Intro - 3 |
Th Oct. 19 |
Altruism - Class discussion and individual presentations Read Chapters 3 - 4 Link to Altruism Primary Source Critical Analysis Forum for presenters and responders. Presenters submit entry by class time today. Responders entries are due by the end of the following day. |
T Oct. 24 |
Altruism - Class discussion and individual presentations Read Chapters 5 - 7 Link to Altruism Primary Source Critical Analysis Forum for presenters and responders. Presenters submit entry by class time today. Responders entries are due by the end of the following day. |
W Oct.. 25th | Moral Decision Making and Trolleyology The Principle (Doctrine) of Double Effect goes back to Thomas Aquinas' writings in 1274! examples of it's application to real life ethical quandaries like euthanasia. and the use of Military Drones. Trolleyology Overview Video1, and Video 2 Article to Read Hauser et al. 2007 a bit of background on Lawrence Kohlberg's theory of moral development |
Th Oct. 24 |
Altruism - Class discussion and individual presentations Read Chapters 8 - 12 Link to Altruism Primary Source Critical Analysis Forum for presenters and responders. Presenters submit entry by class time today. Responders entries are due by the end of the following day. |
T Oct. 31 | False Memory Introduction Bernstein(2005). False beliefs about fattening foods can have healthy consequences. Alda/Loftus video clip (33:08 - 40:12) Garoff-Eaton (2006). Not All False Memories Are Created Equal: The Neural Basis for False Recognition. (read this one online as the color figures don't reproduce) Greenberg (2004). President Bushs False Flashbulb Memory of 9/11/01. and Hillary's bosnia oops! Moodle Assignment By class time today, each of you should find an example of a "famous person's false memory", and post the web address and a 2 paragraph description on the Moodle forum entitled <FALSE MEMORIES>. Use 1 paragraph to describe the false memory and another one to analyze it from the perspective of a memory researcher, giving them the benefit of a doubt that they are not just engaging in a bald-faced lie. |
W Nov. 1 | False Memories - In the Labs and Beyond!!
Loftus (2003). Make Believe Memories. Wade (2002). A picture is worth a thousand lies: Using false photographs to create false childhood memories.
Lab #4 False Memory (data collection and lab writeup due Wed. Nov. 8th) |
Th Nov. 2nd | Altruism All Class Activity TBDPossibilities include (1) Debate on the Existence of Altruism, (2) Mind Mapping - Round 2, (3) Analysis of current events through the lens of the book's perspective.
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Tu Nov. 7 | Altruism Small Group Presentations |
W Nov. 8th | Turning in False Memory Data and Workshop on Preparing Final Project Proposal. |
Th Nov. 9 | Altruism Small Group Presentations |
Tu Nov. 14 | Exploring the Somatic Marker Hypothesis Cognitive Neuroscientists use case studies, neural network modeling and laboratory-based gambling tasks to understand the role of emotion and cognition in risky decision-making. In this section we will be reading an assortment of papers exploring this topic. Wagar (2004) Spiking Phineas Gage: A Neurocomputational Theory of CognitiveAffective Integration in Decision Making. Reaction Paper - In the Wagar article, the authors present a neural network model that is different in several dimensions from the other 3 neural network models that we have studied. Please discuss the differences that you see including (1) the aspects of real neurons that are modeled, (2) The architecture (connections and number and density of neurons) of the neural network, and (3) the way that the neural network is used to address the underlying theory it is testing. Finally, strive mightily, using all of your mental prowess to understand and explain in writing what is going on in figure 4 on page 71! Phineas Gage Video (Halloween version) Short Digital Videos of Path of Tamping Rod Concise and accurate summary of what we know about Phineas Gage. |
W Nov. 15 | In today's lab you will be participating in two experiments related to risky decision making and gambling. Don't read the articles assigned for this coming Thursday ahead of time so that you can come into these experiments unadulterated!! The Iowa Gambling Task is a card game where you have 100 trials to make money. The Game of Dice Task is a dice game where you have 18 trials to make money. The first article below is the first empirical study presenting laboratory evidence for the Somatic Marker Hypothesis (SMH). The 2 followup articles present a back and forth argument about how to interpret the results and what they might mean about the relationship between cogniton and emotion in the Iowa Gambling Task! Be ready to engage in argument and debate over this heated topic, GSR's will raise! Bechara (1997) Deciding Advantageously Before Knowing the Advantageous Strategy. Maia (2004) A reexamination of the evidence for the somatic marker hypothesis: What participants really know in the Iowa gambling task Bechara (2005) The Iowa Gambling Task and the somatic marker hypothesis: some questions and answers |
Th Nov. 16 | Read one of the classic papers in cognitive science by written by Alan Turing in 1950 entitled "Computing Machinery and Intelligence". Turing poses the question"Can machines think?" Here is what one reviewer had to say about the paper when nominating it for the 3rd most influential paper in cognitive science for the 20th century.
Read the paper and write a response paper commenting on the adequacy of the Turing Test "Imitation Game" for determining machine intelligence. Which of the objections that Turing presents do you find the most compelling and why? Which is the least convincing objection? Submit this one on the Moodle assignment entitled Turing Thoughts Come up with an objection of your own to the Turing Test. What would it take to convince you that a Machine was truly intelligent? Be ready to discuss and defend your position!
A recent critique of the Turing Test by Mark Alpern In class today we will play a version of the "Turing Test " and also test your human wits against the machine in a domain specific Turing Test for Poetry Writing. Come prepared to defend humanity!! Read the paper "Computer modeling and simulation of Personality" (digital copy e-mailed to you on Tuesday <ElizaParry.pdf>). Be ready do discuss the following questions in class on Thursday. Compare and contrast the approach of Aldous and Parry in modeling emotions. What do you think about the validity of their approach? Parry has passed a version of the Turing test. Compare this testing format with the unrestricted turing test. Why do you think that Parry is so convincing when Eliza is so lame?
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Tu Nov. 21 | Introduction to HRI Breazeal(2000).pdf Infant-like Social Interactions between a Robot and a Human Caregiver. Smith & Breazeal(2007).pdf The dynamic lift of developmental process.
You have 2 Kismet Papers to Read for Today's class. Class discussion will revolve around how Kismet embodies theories of emotion and expressive states. Pay particular attention to the experiments described (and graphed) of Kismet interacting with faces and stuffed animals! Kismet is a sociable robot being developed at MIT which uses facial expressiveness as a central feature. Browse around the Kismet web site to get a feel for the goals of the project and what they have accomplished to date! Be sure to check out Kismet's "space of emotive facial expressions" and look at the pages concerning social interaction and how Kismet "learns". Leonardo is Kismet's kin that has taken some major steps forward in abilities, most notably, it has arms, understands some language and has a fairly sophisticated representation about the beliefs of others in reference to it's world of faces and objects. check out the Leonardo project web site and this video of Leo learning a new concept from a human! |
T Nov. 28th | Introduction to Sensory-Sensory, Sensory-Motor, and yes, Even Neural-Spiritual interactions, illusions and delusions! Hearing Colors, Tasting Shapes. RamaHubbardSciAm_2003.pdf. Vilayanur S. Ramachandran and Edward M. Hubbard. Scientific American. p 52 - 59. May, 2003. SYNESTHETIC COLORS DETERMINED BY HAVING COLORED REFRIGERATOR MAGNETS IN CHILDHOOD Witthorft(2006).pdf Synesthesia Overview and Case Studies Synesthesia Immersion Video - Colorful Acoustic Letters! Rama - Lama- chandran NOVA video on Secrets of the Mind will be shown in class. Be prepared to be intrigued! Phantom Limb Therapy A controlled pilot study of the utility of mirror visual feedback in the treatment of complex regional pain syndrome (type 1). McCabe(2003).pdf Investigating the efficacy of a virtual mirror box in treating phantom limb pain in a sample of chronic sufferers. Murray(2006).pdf |
W Nov. 29th
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Lab #6 Crossed Connections! Sensory and Tactile Illusions Phantom Fun, Somatosensory Strangeness, and Kinesthetic Quirks. Touching a Rubber Hand: Feeling of Body Ownership Is Associated with Activity in Multisensory Brain Areas. Ehrsson(2005).pdf Rubber Hand Video (don't watch until class time) Even Wiggier Out of Body experience via Virtual Reality First Person Experience of Body Transfer in Virtual Reality
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Th Nov. 30 | Cognitive Psychology speaks to the Political Divide: Why can't we see eye to eye on anything!Short Accessible Overview ArticleThe New Synthesis in Moral Psychology Science 316, 998 (2007); Jonathan Haidt, et al. Hefty multiple study article presenting moral foundations theoryExploring uncomfortable stereotyping of ingroups and outgroups!The Moral Stereotypes of Liberals and Conservatives: Exaggeration of Differences across the Political Spectrum Jesse Graham , Brian A. Nosek, Jonathan Haidt Published: December 12, 2012 |
T Dec. 5 | Cognitive Psychology speaks to the Political Divide: Why can't we see eye to eye on anything!Short Accessible Overview ArticleThe New Synthesis in Moral Psychology Science 316, 998 (2007); Jonathan Haidt, et al. Hefty multiple study article presenting moral foundations theoryExploring uncomfortable stereotyping of ingroups and outgroups!The Moral Stereotypes of Liberals and Conservatives: Exaggeration of Differences across the Political Spectrum Jesse Graham , Brian A. Nosek, Jonathan Haidt Published: December 12, 2012
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W Dec. 6 |
Data Set Creation Session for Final Projects
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Th Dec. 7 | What's so funny, and why, and where? Humor comprehension in older adults. Mak(2007).pdf Humor Modulates the Mesolimbic Reward Centers. Mobbs(2003).pdf Martin, R. A., Puhlik-Doris, P., Larsen, G., Gray, J., & Weir, K. (2003). Individual differences in uses of humor and their relation to psychological well-being: Development of the Humor Styles Questionnaire.Journal of Research in Personality, 37, 48-75. More to Come |
T Dec. 12. |
Final Exam Period
Sat December 16th, 8:30 - 11:30 a.m.
Papers are due in electronic form, uploaded to the moodle by 11:59:59 p.m. on the evening of Tuesday.,
Dec. 19th.
http://webhost.lclark.edu/nilsen/310fa17.html
Created by nilsen@lclark.edu