AP/PHIL2160 3.0 M: Minds, Brains and Machines
Offered by: PHIL
(Cross-listed to: AP/COGS2160 3.0M )
Session
Summer 2019
Term
S2
Format
LECT
Instructor
Calendar Description / Prerequisite / Co-Requisite
An introduction to the study of human cognition and the interdisciplinary field of cognitive science. Questions covered include: What is artificial intelligence? Is it possible that we will someday build computers that think? Does language affect thought? Do we think in language or pictures? How is conscious experience related to the brain?
Course Website
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Professor Verena Gottschling
Office Location: S436 Ross Building
Phone Number: (416) 736-2100 Ext. 77553
Office Hours: Wednesdays 1:30 – 2:30
What is thinking and intelligence? What is the mind ad how is it related to the brain? And what does either of them have to do with Artificial Intelligence in machines? This is an inter-disciplinary course that is designed to familiarize you with the central questions, topics, debates, methods, and techniques involved in studying cognition and the mind. The new area of research that studies the mind and mental processes is known as cognitive science, and it combines various disciplines,
including Philosophy, Psychology, Linguistics, Neuroscience, and Artificial Intelligence.
This course is an introduction to Cognitive Science. You will learn about the many productive interactions among these different disciplines we have witnessed in the past several decades: many interesting results, as well as a number of open questions and stimulating controversies.
Jose Luis Bermudez, Cognitive Science: An Introduction to the Science of the Mind (1st Edition), Cambridge University Press.
This edition of the textbook is freely available from the library website (Scott Library) and can be downloaded there. In addition several papers, available online at the library
Final essay 35%
Midterm 25%
Papers 30%
Participation 10%
Penalties of missed assignments are left to my discretion.
Lecture and class discussion
The specific objectives of the course are that students will be able to:
- Develop some overview about different views how Cognitive Science research is done in the different disciplines
- Learn about some of the main topics and debates in the field
- Provide knowledge about the recent debates regarding the relationship between theoretical foundations in Cognitive Science disciplines
- Academic Honesty
- Student Rights and Responsibilities
- Religious Observance
- Grading Scheme and Feedback
- 20% Rule
No examinations or tests collectively worth more than 20% of the final grade in a course will be given during the final 14 calendar days of classes in a term. The exceptions to the rule are classes which regularly meet Friday evenings or on Saturday and/or Sunday at any time, and courses offered in the compressed summer terms. - Academic Accommodation for Students with Disabilities
