Fall 2011 Colloquium Series
CGSC 8410 Perspectives in Learning, Perception and Cognition.
(preliminary information)
Celia Wolk Gershenson
Thursdays 4:00-5:30 PM
Room: N119 Elliott Hall
(The schedule of colloquium presentations will be available by September 8)

• Sept. 8 4:00-4:45 PM: Orientation for those registered for CGSC 8410 only.
• Sept. 15 4:00-5:30 PM: First Colloquium presentation.

The objectives of the course are to provide exposure to current knowledge in the many-faceted field of cognitive sciences. The weekly presentations are designed to encompass the wide range of research areas that comprise the cognitive sciences. The course is in the form of a colloquium series. Each session consists of a 40-50 minute presentation followed by a question and discussion period. Enrolled students are required to attend all colloquia, read references provided, (the references of which available online at http://www.cogsci.umn.edu/calendar/colloquia.htm), and actively participate in discussion sessions. Students will submit a five to six page paper at the end of the semester in lieu of a final examination.

ANTH/EEB 3002: Sex, Evolution and Behavior
08:15 A.M. - 09:30 A.M., Tu, Th (09/06/2011 - 12/14/2011) ,
AndH 250 , TCWESTBANK
Instructor: Mike Wilson
Meets with: EEB 3002 section 001
Evolutionary theory provides unique insights into fundamental aspects of human behavior, including sex differences, courtship, marriage, reproduction, aggression and cooperation. In this course, lectures, reading and discussion of primary literature help students develop a critical understanding of the theory, methods, and findings of this rapidly growing field.

EEB/ANTH 4329: Primate Ecology and Social Behavior
(A-F; prereq BIOL 1009 or BIOL 2002 or BIOL 3411 or ANTH 1001 or instr consent )
10:40 A.M. - 11:30 A.M. , M,W (09/06/2011 - 12/14/2011)
McNH 146, St. Paul
Instructor: Mike Wilson
This course, which is cross-listed in Anthropology and Ecology, Evolution and Behavior,
examines the evolution of social behavior in primates, including humans, with special
reference to how ecology influences social behavior.

Note: This course is taught only every 2 years, so interested students should seize the opportunity!

An introduction to primate ecology and social behavior for upper level undergraduates and graduate students with a good background knowledge in evolutionary biology. Primates are used as a model system to explore basic questions in animal and human behavior including factors influencing sociality and group composition, mating systems, the prevalence of altruistic, cooperative and aggressive behavior, the strength of social bonds in different species, and the evolution of intelligence and culture.
Class Time: 63% Lecture, 10% Film/Video, 20% Discussion, 6% Field Trips.
Work Load: 50 pages reading per week, 15 pages writing per term, 3 exams, 1 papers, 1 presentations.
-002 DIS , 11:45 A.M. - 12:35 P.M. , M (09/06/2011 - 12/14/2011) , Ecology 150 , STPAUL
-003 DIS , 11:45 A.M. - 12:35 P.M. , W (09/06/2011 - 12/14/2011) , Ecology 150 , STPAUL

EE 4389W Introduction to Predictive Learning
Tue Thur, 12:45 to 2:00pm,  KHKH 3-111
Instructor: Vladimir Cherkassky
TA: Han-Tai Shiao
 This course is appropriate for graduate students who are interested to learn more about data-analytic modeling but do not intend to specialize in machine learning research.

Advances in computer and database technology motivate the need for estimating dependencies (models) from the historical data. Often the common goal (of modeling) is to estimate a model providing good generalization, i.e. good prediction for future data. Such methods have been developed in various fields such as statistics, machine learning, neural networks, data mining, signal processing etc.

syllabus...

IDSC 8711 Cognitive Science
01:30 P.M. - 05:00 P.M. , F (09/06/2011 - 12/14/2011) ,
CarlSMgmt 1-136 , TCWESTBANK ,
Instructor: Paul E. Johnson , johns021@umn.edu 4 credits
Prereq: Business admin PhD student or instr consent
Description: We increasingly perform tasks using knowledge that we individually do not possess. Decisions and the solution to problems are as likely to arise from the interaction among people (and among people and artifacts), as they are to result from the capacity of a single individual. The use of various physical, social and intellectual resources to perform tasks has given us many benefits. It has also given us the ability to act without reflection (the philosopher A. N. Whitehead observed that civilization advances by extending the number of things we can do without thinking about them).

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LINGUISTICS 8920: Topics in Language and Cognition

Wednesday: 4:30-6:25 PM, Elliott S225
Instructor: Jeanette Gundel gunde003@umn.edu
Ling 8920 examines topics in language and cognition from a linguistic perspective. This year's class will focus primarily on how interaction of linguistic knowledge with other cognitive systems results in disruption of language use in individuals with different pathologies, (including Autism, Alzheimer's Disease, and Schizophrenia.) Other topics may also be covered, depending on student interest.
Combined lecture and seminar discussion. Weekly reading assignments and comments on readings; final paper/project (maximum 15 pages).
Prerequisite: Ling 3001 or 5001, Introduction to Linguistics
Intended audience: graduate students and advanced undergraduates with an interest in language and cognition.
The class meets an elective requirement for the Cognitive Science major or minor.
Please contact instructor for more information.

NSC 5040 Brain Networks: From Connectivity to Dynamics
01:30 P.M. - 03:30 P.M. , Tu,Th (09/06/2011 - 12/14/2011) ,
Amirikian,Bagrat , 4 credits ,
Application of emerging science of complex networks to studies of the brain. Network approaches that provide fundamental insights into the integrative nature of brain function and its relation to the brain structure. Organization of brain networks and dynamics at multiple spatial scales, ranging from the microscale of single neurons and synapses, to mesoscale of anatomical cell groupings and their projections, and to the macroscale of brain regions and pathways. Experimental studies, including electrophysiology, voltage-sensitive dye imaging, electroencephalography, magnetoencephalography, and functional magnetic resonance imaging, that allow mapping network elements and structural/functional connectivity between them at different temporal and spatial scales will be considered. Experimental/theoretical perspectives.
Class will be held in Brain Sciences Center, Room 4S 133 (BSC Library), VA Medical center, 1 Veterans Drive, Minneapolis 55417

NSCi 8217 Systems and Computational Neuroscience
01:00 P.M. - 02:30 P.M. , Tu (09/06/2011 - 12/14/2011) ,
JacH 6-135 , TCEASTBANK,
Instructor: Geoffrey M. Ghose
Prereq: 5561 or instr consent
Description: The course will be in journal club format, in which participants present and discuss recent original research papers. All interested students, faculty members, and postdocs are encouraged to attend. The course typically attracts participants from a variety of departments and perspectives. Students enrolled in the course will be expected to lead ,the discussion of 1 or 2 papers each session. The course meets from 1:00-2:30 in Jackson 6-135 every Tuesday.
Class URL: http://www.ghoselab.cmrr.umn.edu/classes.html

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PSY 5960 SEC 001: The Psychology of Attention
Mondays, 12:30-3pm, Elliott N668 (09/06/2011 - 12/14/2011)
Instructor: Yuhong Jiang http://jianglab.psych.umn.edu
Targeted audience: Graduate students interested in Attention. Combined lecture and seminar discussion. Selection, multitasking, training/learning in attention, brain basis, contemporary topics and research of attention. There are no exams, but there will be weekly one-page written homework and other assignments. The final project involves designing an experiment and collecting data on at least one person (programming skills would be handy, but it is not required).

PSY 5993 Section 39 Research Laboratory in Psychology
-039 LAB (09/06/2011 - 12/14/2011) , TCEASTBANK ,
Neal F. Viemeister , 3 credits ,
Research Project on Auditory Perception
The Psychoacoustics Laboratory performs research in human auditory perception aimed at identifying the relationship between physical sounds and our psychological experience (perception) of those sounds and the relationship between perception and the physiology of the auditory system. Students enrolled in this section will participate in introductory lectures in auditory perception as well as gain research experience by designing and performing an experiment. The experiments will be closely related to the active research being conducted in the Psychoacoustics Lab (http://www.psych.umn.edu/psylabs/acoustic/).