Transcript COGS Program Spring 2017 - Cognitive Science Department

State of the Program
Undergraduate Program in
Cognitive Science
Spring 2017
State of the Program
• Everything is Awesome!
Size and Make-up of Majors
• 59 active COGS majors (33 M, 26 F)
• By year (active only)
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9 seniors
10 juniors
20 sophomores
14 freshmen
• By major:
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COGS: 26
COGS/CSCI: 28
COGS/GSAS: 1
Other COGS duals: 4 (PSYC, CSYS, DIS)
Curriculum
COGS Core Courses
• Intro to Cognitive Neuroscience (or Behavioral
Neuroscience)
• Sensation and Perception
• Metaphysics & Consciousness (Knowledge and
Rationality and Phil of AI no longer offered)
• Cognitive Modeling (or Programming for AI and
Cog Sci or Intelligent Virtual Agents or Affective
Computing)
• Intro to AI (or Game AI or Learning & Advanced
Game AI as a substitute)
Senior Thesis
• Find a Faculty Member to do your Thesis with:
Your Thesis Faculty Advisor
• Fill out thesis form with Thesis Faculty Advisor
(bring to Registrar before add deadline)
• Thesis Faculty Advisor will lay out requirements
of thesis
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Meetings
Literature Research
Experimental Research
Write-Up
• You do not have to do thesis in last semester
Online Courses
• Udacity (~40 courses, mostly CSCI, self-paced,
wide variety of course lengths)
– Introduction to AI, Artificial Intelligence for Robotics,
The Design of Everyday Things
• Coursera (500+ courses; wide variety)
– Artificial Intelligence, Neural Networks, Computational
Neuroscience, Natural Language Processing, etc.
• EdX (100+ courses, various fields)
• Possibility of getting 1-2 credits Independent
Study for successful completion of courses (Add
Deadline: Monday, 1/30)
Wednesday Issues in Cognitive
Science Seminar
• It is possible for undergraduates to receive
1 credit through the Issues in Cognitive
Science Lecture Series:
– Write 1 page response paper about talk for 6
talks of your choice
– Register for COGS 2940/4940 “Issues in
Cognitive Science”
– Restricted to COGS majors or minors or dual
majors with PHIL or PSYC
Speakers This Semester
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February 8, Bolek Szymanski, Computer Science, RPI
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February 15, Selmer Bringsjord, Cognitive Science, RPI
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“Is Westworld Our (Near) Future?”
April 12, Ashok Goel, Georgia Tech
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Social Cognitive Networks
Computational Design and Creativity
April 19, Gary Latham, School of Management, University of Toronto
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Goal Setting and Organizations
– March 11, Liane Gabora, Psychology, University of British Columbia
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Cognitive Models for Creativity
All other talks this semester are by COGS graduate students
For a complete schedule of speakers go to Speaker Series on the Cognitive
Science department home page
If you think of a potential speaker, let me know!
Research
Undergraduate Research
• Cog Sci students are strongly encouraged
to do hands-on research
• Undergraduate Research Program (URP)
– http://www.rpi.edu/dept/urp
– Fill out URP form:
• You have to write a 500 word proposal!
• for course credit (deadline = course add deadline =
January 30)
– Also fill out an Independent Study/URP Registration form
• for $ (February 3)
• Research can be used for Senior Thesis
Summer URP (SURP) at RPI
• Competitive program
– Applications reviewed by multiple faculty
• $4000 stipend for 10-week summer
research
• Need to find faculty member willing to
support research efforts during 10-week
period
• Deadline: February 17!
• SURP
Other Summer Programs
• Undergraduate Summer Fellowship
Program in Vision Science, University of
Rochester
• June 5-August 5
• Deadline: February 15
And Another One …
• Visiting Undergraduate Research
Program, University of Indiana
– Highly selective year-long program for seniors
– Work directly with faculty member
• Deadline: April 3
And Another One …
• Summer Computing Research Experience
in Data Science UMass Amherst
• $5,000 stipend for 10 weeks
• Deadline: January 27!
And Another One …
• Summer Workshop in Cognitive and Brain
Sciences, University of Delaware
• June 5-16
• Travel, Stipend, Room and Board provided
• Deadline: March 1, 2017
Overview Research Groups and
Labs
• PandA Lab
– (Dr. Brett Fajen … represented by Sean Barton, grad student)
• CogWorks Lab
– (Dr. Wayne Gray … represented by John Lindstedt and
Catherine Sibert, grad students)
• RAIR Lab
– (Dr. Selmer Bringsjord … represented by Naveen Sundar …
post-doc?)
• Sim Lab
– (Dr. Mei Si … represented by Zev Battad, grad student)
• Visual Reasoning
– (Dr. Bram van Heuveln)
Visual Reasoning
Research Page
Paperwork
• Declare or add Cognitive Science Major
– Fill out Change of Major form
– Curriculum Coordinator: Betty Osganian (Sage 4301)
• 1 credit for Issues in Cognitive Science lectures
– Fill out Independent Study form
• COGS 2940/4940 “Issues in Cognitive Science”
• Senior Thesis
– Find thesis advisor
– Fill out Thesis Registration form
• URP
– Fill out URP form
– For credit:
• Fill out Independent Study form as well
• Credits to be determined by project advisor
• Deadline = Course Add Deadline: Monday, 1/30
– For $ (URP matches up to $400):
• Find faculty member with $!
• Deadline: Friday, 2/3