I'm currently an undergrad student double majoring in cognitive science and computer science, and I was thinking of adding an emphasis or a minor. I'm currently choosing between applied math or physics but overall I just wanted to hear from people who are experienced what they would recommend? Before anyone tells me what I'm doing is not worth it, it's okay. Whether these minors/emphasis or additional majors actually help me in my academic journey is not really important to me. I just really like this topic and learning different things in this area of study. I'm not really set on adding a minor, maybe an emphasis. I was looking into adding a computational modeling emphasis to my cognitive science major. I'm not really sure. I'm not too worried about graduating as soon as I can, I just wanna learn as much as I can. My original major was cognitive science, and I just added my computer science major last semester. I'm also in a cognitive mechanics lab, so I guess I could also just ask my PI. But I wanna know what other people think! I want to go to grad school for comp neuro so I just wanna know what topics I should look into for that. :p

https://preview.redd.it/wpxyfbda7fvc1.jpg?width=1131&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=e92ae3a9af61fe0a10f74eb220bb495fb3abc027

I'm writing my Master's thesis in Cognitive science on Formal argumentation and how well it matches the function of human reasoning. In this quick survey, you are tasked to evaluate interesting argumentation scenarios and judge whether an argument is acceptable. Thank you in advance to those who participate and make the future of social AI possible. https://people.cs.umu.se/~tkampik/argsurvey/Webappsurvey.html

Paper: https://arxiv.org/abs/2403.17101

Abstract:

We look at consciousness through the lens of Theoretical Computer Science, a branch of mathematics that studies computation under resource limitations. From this perspective, we develop a formal machine model for consciousness. The model is inspired by Alan Turing's simple yet powerful model of computation and Bernard Baars' theater model of consciousness. Though extremely simple, the model aligns at a high level with many of the major scientific theories of human and animal consciousness, supporting our claim that machine consciousness is inevitable.

Hi everyone.

I'm familiar with the research on how people can mentally correct or fill in the gaps in otherwise understandable texts. However, this recent post made me wonder: How exactly is it that we can misread individual words while still grasping the overall meaning of the sentence?

Is it the exact same thing as when mentally correcting typos? This seemed slightly different than that, since here the typo leads to another meaningful (albeit inappropriate for the context) abbreviation. The unscientific consensus in the comments seems to be that many people misread the abbreviation, but still understood the sentence fine.

Paper: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41593-024-01607-5

Preprint: https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2022.02.22.481293

Code: https://github.com/ReidarRiveland/Instruct-RNN/

Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=miEwuSz7Pts

Abstract:

A fundamental human cognitive feat is to interpret linguistic instructions in order to perform novel tasks without explicit task experience. Yet, the neural computations that might be used to accomplish this remain poorly understood. We use advances in natural language processing to create a neural model of generalization based on linguistic instructions. Models are trained on a set of common psychophysical tasks, and receive instructions embedded by a pretrained language model. Our best models can perform a previously unseen task with an average performance of 83% correct based solely on linguistic instructions (that is, zero-shot learning). We found that language scaffolds sensorimotor representations such that activity for interrelated tasks shares a common geometry with the semantic representations of instructions, allowing language to cue the proper composition of practiced skills in unseen settings. We show how this model generates a linguistic description of a novel task it has identified using only motor feedback, which can subsequently guide a partner model to perform the task. Our models offer several experimentally testable predictions outlining how linguistic information must be represented to facilitate flexible and general cognition in the human brain.

I applied to a couple of unis for masters hoping to work in Neuro-AI under some professor there and get a good GPA plus research experience to eventually apply for a PhD in neuroscience since my undergrad GPA is very low and I dont have a formal background in neuroscience. I had high hopes for a uni in Canada since my prospective supervisor there was perfectly matching my research interests, knew the current prof I worked under personally and had also approved my application but unfortunately I was informed today that the department rejected my application because of my GPA.

I am currently waiting for decisions for 2 more masters programs Trento cognitive science and Brain and Cognitive Sciences at UPF Barcelona.

What are some other masters programs in unis with comp neuro researchers in Europe (not US since its very expensive) where I can still apply to in the current cycle.

My stats

6.62/10 GPA B.Tech Electronics and Telecommunication Tier 2 uni in India(19-23)

My Research Experience

My Research Experience

1 yr of research exp under a prof at an ivy league uni

1 yr on a funded project with an Italian uni where I did my thesis too

2 yrs or research experience in my unis AI research Center

6 Months at a Healthcare startup.

Pubs- 3 under review

This is probably the last time I will be applying since if I don't get in this time its solely because of my GPA, which can't be changed so no point in trying again next year or anything.

I'm writing a methods section. I analyzed some EEG data with time-frequency methods. I did this using Morlet wavelets (specifically with the mne.time_frequency morlet tools).

I just want to double-check that I know what I did. Basically for a given frequency, the package defines a Morlet representing that frequency. Then, the package goes through an EEG time series (t = 0 to end), and at each position, it defines a window and takes the dot product between the signal and the defined Morlet. Is this right? Also, can this be said to be a "sliding window" approach and/or be "convolving the time series with the Morlet"?

Also, this dot product is taken between the Morlet and the actual signal, right? I'm not taking some dot product with the output of a FFT somehow, correct? I saw the below quote in a paper and it confused me

Time–frequency measures were computed by multiplying the fast Fourier transformed (FFT) power spectrum of single-trial EEG data with the FFT power spectrum of a set of complex Morlet wavelets and taking the inverse FFT.

Thanks

im interested in going into hci or ux research/design. i could go to ucsd and do cogsci with specialization design and interaction OR go to ucla and do cogsci with specialization is computing.

i think ucsd has a more well rounded cogsci program and offers a better learning experience. ucla offers the prestige and the better social life, but their cogsci leans more towards bio. i am also a transfer student so i want to enjoy this 2-year college experience to the fullest.

which one would you guys choose?

I’ve been accepted to both UCLA and Cal for cognitive science! I am beyond excited, but also extremely anxious to make my choice. At UCLA, I have been accepted to the Pre-college of Cognitive Science, which is basically just Cognitive Science, but undeclared. At Cal, I’ve been accepted into the College of Letters and Science, which basically is the same thing as an undeclared major at UCLA, except you have more freedom to choose your major.

I’m having a really hard time choosing between the two schools, so I thought that I’d come to reddit for some advice!

At UCLA, I would be able to have the freedom to explore the neuroscience and psych aspects of cognitive science more. There is also a computer science emphasis route for the cognitive sci major that I would most likely take if I went to UCLA. I would like to take classes related to machine learning/ AI, but I’ve heard that at both UCLA and Cal, cog sci majors do not get priority when registering for these classes. An additional plus for me is that UCLA is close to home (2 hours away), and there is a 4 year housing guarantee.

At Berkeley, the cog sci major is still flexible, but it seems like there is a bit more of an emphasis on computer science (which is one of the best in the nation). The data science program at Cal is also world renowned. My main concern is the extreme “cutthroat” stigma/ attitude concerning the academics at Cal. I’m genuinely scared that if I go to Cal, my GPA will be ruined and I’ll be at the bottom of my class. Obviously, college should NOT be easy (and UCLA is also probably super challenging - I just have some kind of weird complex towards Cal), but I’m just intimidated by the rigor of classes and academic excellence of my possible classmates. Also, Cal only has a 1 year housing guarantee, so I would have to try to find housing after my first year.

I love the locations and “vibes” of both schools! I am now just mainly concerned about the actual curriculum of each school, and which one would best set me up for success early in my career. I would really appreciate any advice that anyone could give to me, especially as you all are in the field that I’m aspiring to join!

There are many books out there on how to learn, some based on personal experiences of successful people (I immediately cross those out), and some based on research, mostly from the field of congitive science.

For example, I just finished reading Make it Stick and it's a good book but it was published in 2014 which means it's missing at least a decade of latest research, and it was written before replication crisis was in such a big focus so, for example, the book cites heavily from Thinking, Fast and Slow which has had some chapters completely discredited and further analysis showed most other chapters have very shaky empirical basis.

I am certain if Make it Stick were written today it wouldn't make references to Thinking, Fast and Slow.

I have searched far and wide but books that aren't huge bestsellers don't have such in-depth analysis for me to know what I'm getting myself into.

Tl;dr How do I find recently published trustworthy books on learning/studying that have minimal errors and most of the science they're based on is sound (or at the very least, authors warn when it's uncertain).

I would like to know how to check this myself, but any suggestions for good books on this topic are also welcome!

Paper: https://arxiv.org/abs/2311.09589

Abstract:

This review motivates and synthesizes research efforts in neuroscience-inspired artificial intelligence and biomimetic computing in terms of mortal computation. Specifically, we characterize the notion of mortality by recasting ideas in biophysics, cybernetics, and cognitive science in terms of a theoretical foundation for sentient behavior. We frame the mortal computation thesis through the Markov blanket formalism and the circular causality entailed by inference, learning, and selection. The ensuing framework -- underwritten by the free energy principle -- could prove useful for guiding the construction of unconventional connectionist computational systems, neuromorphic intelligence, and chimeric agents, including sentient organoids, which stand to revolutionize the long-term future of embodied, enactive artificial intelligence and cognition research.

Are there papers about the brain that are examining "possible surgical and pharmacological intervention that alters certain sectors of the cerebral cortex and that alters the part of the brain that process hormones."

If so, where can I find them? Another Reddit user told me about them.

Hey, I first posted this on r/gaming but I didnt have enough karma, and I figured I might be better off on this sub anyway.

I feel pretty tired lately. When I'm tired, I usually play games to relax. However, I'm wondering if these games aren't secretly way more taxing on my energy than I realized. The sounds, the visuals, the constant bombardment of stimuli is sometimes getting to me, and I'm starting to think that some games (especially those what I call 'homework games' like the ones in the title), with their maths, planning, constant interuptions and things that need immediate attention, may not be recharging my energy at all.

On the other hand, I can play them for hours on end without really noticing the time. If they were really that taxing, wouldn't I have to turn them off at some point? What does it say that I'm playing cognitively demanding games when I'm too tired to, for example, put in some extra work hours? For now I've decided to uninstall most SP games (MP games with friends bring me too much joy to give up), seeing if that'll make a difference.

Does anyone else have experience, sources or knowledge on this?

Considering majoring in this after taking an intro class & enjoying it

What job do you have?/are you satisfied with your life?/etc

I want to keep my brain functioning at as high a level as possible as well as hopefully improving my cognitive function. Please let me know what I can do to improve these habits from a neuroscience perspective, even if it's only in a minuscule way. Thank you!

Exercise

Read

Cold Shower

No Caffeine

No Sugar

3 L water

8 hours of sleep

5 minutes of quiet time

5 minutes of quiet time/meditation/nsdr

Let me start by thanking anyone who takes the time to respond to this post. So, for context, I am a Bachelor's of Design student (currently in my final year) with a specialization in Graphics and Visual Communication and a minor in Modern Media. I would like to pursue a Master's degree in Cognitive Science/HCI in Germany. Is Cognitive Science a significant part of HCI? How do the two differ? Besides Computer interaction, I have seen a link to CS for both. Would a CS background be needed? Is a degree in Psychology mandatory? Would it be sufficient if I am read up on Psychology in general? What are your thoughts? What pathways would pursuing Cognitive Science lead to? Does anyone know how good the master's programs are in Germany?

PS: I am extremely interested in understanding people's psyche, behavioral models, influencing them, developing frameworks to inculcate habits, creating better user experiences, sustainability, etc.

Hi! I’m an undergraduate psychology student with an interest in psychedelics and existentialism. I’m conducting a study to investigate psychedelic-induced mystical experience and its relationship to a recently termed psychological trait called “Existential Humility”. This will be the first of its kind to officially investigate the relationship between these two areas of study. 

With that being said, I need to recruit individuals both with and without a past psychedelic experience. I kindly request that you take 10 minutes out of your day to complete this anonymous survey. Your response will help contribute to a growing academic literature on the psychology of psychedelics. More info is included in the survey. You must be 18 years of age or older and in the U.S. to participate.

Here’s the link: https://kusurvey.ca1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_266OEveFUaDkFzE

Thank you for your participation!

Contact information:

ethanduncan@ku.edu

University of Kansas

If you have any additional questions about your rights as a research participant, you may call (785) 864-7429 or write the Human Research Protection Program (HRPP), University of Kansas, 2385 Irving Hill Road, Lawrence, Kansas 66045-7563, email irb@ku.edu.

Hi everyone! I'm currently a student of pedagogy and I'm interested in exploring various perspectives within the field. Recently, I came across the name Paul Thagard and his work, but I'm not quite sure if it would be relevant or beneficial for me in my studies. I was wondering if anyone here is familiar with Paul Thagard and his works, and if they could provide me with some insight into how his ideas and theories could help enrich my understanding of pedagogy. Are there any specific works by Thagard that are particularly relevant or recommended for students of pedagogy? I appreciate any help I can get in navigating this! Thanks in advance!

I am currently a biotechnology undergraduate student and will apply for a master's degree next year. I am thinking of getting my master's degree in Germany or Italy. However, I want to focus on a field such as psychology, clinical psychology, neuropsychology, or cognitive science. Which field would be more logical to combine with biotechnology? Or is there a particular university and field you recommend? I would be very happy if you could help me because I am very undecided.

i am looking for advice on whether i should choose berkeley or ucla for cognitive science. i am interested in doing software engineering/id design in the future. any insight on the major, classes, campus life, etc. for either school would be appreciated!

for reference, i know that berkeley is probably better in terms of academics and job opportunities but i personally am leaning towards la more just bc of the environment and campus life.

More specifically, any papers/authors that discuss this issue in detail?

Everything I've read references Dehaene et al.'s model, but it's early form assumes there's a direct channel between abstract magnitudes represented in the mind and different number formats, which, AFAIU, doesn't account for issues like digit-swapping? Conversely, AFAIU, McCloskey's model is considered a bit too extreme?

In idiot terms, what happens to the digits as they are combined into whole numbers and where can I read research on this?

I'm not sure if I'm finding outdated references to Dehaene, or not finding the latest research that addresses this better. TIA.

What kind of internships could a Cognitive Science college student potentially get into if they're inclined towards the computational aspects of the discipline?