Cognitive Psychology

PSYC 2100:  Introduction to Learning and Behavior
Credits:  3
Prerequisites:  None
Enrollment Restrictions:  None
Description of course contents:  The course will examine historical and current theories that explain how different types of learning provide the foundation for most, if not all forms of an organism's behavior. We will cover these theories by carefully examining the most important research experiments that contributed to our current understanding of the principles and concepts that shape our behavior. The lecture content will focus heavily on experimental findings derived from research of learning processes in human and non-human species. The concept of Learning will be explored from the perspective of theories of Classical Conditioning, Operant Conditioning, and more recent theories of the organization of behavior derived from human studies.
Instructor:  Best

PSYC 2150:  Introduction to Cognition
Credits:  3
Prerequisites:  None
Enrollment Restrictions:  None
Description of course contents:  Cognition is the activity of knowing: the acquisition, organization, and use of knowledge. Emphasizing fundamental issues, this course introduces such basic content areas in cognitive psychology as perception, memory, language, cognitive development, and philosophy of science.
Instructor:  Willingham

PSYC 2300:  Introduction to Perception
Credits:  3  (Optional lab: 1 Credit)
Prerequisites:  None
Enrollment Restrictions:  None
Description of course contents:  Study of selected topics in perception, particularly visual perception; the role of stimulus variables, learning and motivation of perception.
*If course is full in SIS:  Please use the online waitlist. Do not contact the professor.
Instructor:  Dennis Proffitt

PSYC 3005-1:  Research Methods & Data Analysis I
Credits:  4  (Required lab)
Prerequisite:  PSYC 1010 or any 2000-level PSYC course
Enrollment restrictions:  To be officially enrolled in PSYC 3005, registration is required for BOTH the lecture and a lab section. Otherwise, you will be dropped from the class.  Instructions on how to add the lecture or lab section or how to change lab sections will be given during the first lecture.
Description of course contents:  Introduction to research methods in psychology, integrating statistical analysis. Emphasis on descriptive statistics and non-experimental research methods. Use of computers for data analysis, experimentation, and report writing. This course is the first part of a two-part series (3005 and 3006).
*If course is full in SIS:  An online waitlist may be started. Please do not contact the professor.
Instructor:  Freeman

PSYC 3005-2:  Research Methods & Data Analysis I
Credits:  4  (Required lab)
Prerequisite:  PSYC 1010 or any 2000-level PSYC course
Enrollment restrictions:  To be officially enrolled in PSYC 3005, registration is required for BOTH the lecture and a lab section. Otherwise, you will be dropped from the class.  Instructions on how to add the lecture or lab section or how to change lab sections will be given during the first lecture.
Description of course contents:  Introduction to research methods in psychology, integrating statistical analysis. Emphasis on descriptive statistics and non-experimental research methods. Use of computers for data analysis, experimentation, and report writing. This course is the first part of a two-part series (3005 and 3006).
*If course is full in SIS:  An online waitlist may be started. Please do not contact the professor.
Instructor:  Mikami

PSYC 3006:  Research Methods & Data Analysis II
Credits:  4  (Required lab)
Prerequisite:  PSYC 3005 (with C- or better or C beginning with Class of 2010)
Enrollment Restrictions:  Psychology Majors and Minors; CogSci Majors
To be officially enrolled in PSYC 3005, registration is required for BOTH the lecture and a lab section. Otherwise, you will be dropped from the class.  Instructions on how to add the lecture or lab section or how to change lab sections will be given during the first lecture.
Description of course contents:  Second part of a two-part series. Emphasis on inferential statistics (t-tests and ANOVA) and issues in experimentation.
*If course is full in SIS:  An online waitlist may be started. Please do not contact the professor.
**Course May Meet Second Writing Requirement**
Instructor:  Schmidt

PSYC 4500-6:  Acquisition of Syntax In Language Development
*Note:  PSYC 4500-6 may be used to fulfill either the Cognitive Psychology or the Linguistics area requirement, but not both.
Credits:  3
Prerequisites:  None
Enrollment Restrictions:  4th year Psychology Majors/Minors and Cognitive Science and Linguistics Majors
Description of course contents:  We will investigate the acquisition of syntax in language development from empirical and theoretical perspectives. Questions about what it means to know language and how language is acquired will be explored in depth, along with discussions involving acquisition/development of language, which will include sign language and development of homesigned "language".
Instructor:  Wood

PSYC 4500-9:  How Animals Perceive the World
Credits:  3
Prerequisites:  PSYC 220 or PSYC 230 or PSYC 215  
Enrollment Restrictions:  4th year Psychology Majors/Minors and Cognitive Science Majors
Description of course contents:  It is a common misconception that humans have more highly evolved sensory systems than other animals; however, this is not the case. Perceptual systems evolved to maximize the functioning of the animal with minimal energetic cost. As a result, perceptual systems differ with respect to the animals’ needs and goals given their natural habitat. In fact, insects and birds can see more colors than humans to identify different varieties of flowers, and most nocturnal animals, including dogs and cats, have superior night vision. In this class, we will explore the animal kingdom to understand how sensory systems differ in comparison to humans’ and how these differences reflect the habitat and lifestyle of the organism.
Instructor:  Linkenauger

PSYC 5160:  Emotion and Cognition
Credits:  3
Prerequisites:  None       
Enrollment Restrictions:  4th year Psychology Majors/Minors and Cognitive Science Majors; GSAS
Description of course contents:  The cognition-emotion seminar covers the connection between thinking and feeling in two ways. The first part asks about the causes of emotion, and the second asks about the consequences of emotion.  Part 1 concerns the nature and definition of emotion and the role of cognitive appraisals in their elicitation and intensity. Distinctions will be made among concepts such as affect, emotion, mood, and temperament.  Part 2 concerns the consequences of emotion for cognition, experience, and behavior.  Of interest will be such topics as the effects on judgment and decision-making, processing and performance, and memory and attention, and the role of culture.
Instructor:  Clore

PSYC 5500-5:  Neuroplasticity and Perception/Cognition/Behavior
*Note:  PSYC 5500-4 may be used to fulfill either the Cognitive Psychology or the Neuroscience area requirement, but not both.
Credits:  3
Prerequisites:  PSYC 3006 or Graduate Student
Enrollment Restrictions:  4th year Psychology Majors/Minors and Cognitive Science Majors; GSAS
Description of course contents:  This course begins by examining the long-held view that functions are localized in particular places in the brain, fixed by adulthood, After reviewing the history of these ideas we will examine the tide of research challenging that view:  how imagination and virtual reality might change thinking; how memory can be enhanced; correction of language disabilities with training; how sensory deprivation might be corrected through other senses; phantom limbs; how culture can modify a perceptual system; rehabilitation of stroke victims; etc. Students interested in all areas of psychology should find much of interest in this course.
Instructor:  Lillard


 

Neuroscience

PSYC 2200:  Introduction to Psychobiology
* Note:  PSYC 2200 or BIOL 3170 credits may count for the major, but not both.
Credits:  3
Prerequisites:  None
Enrollment Restrictions:  None
Description of course contents:  One approach to understanding human behavior is to consider ourselves from a biological perspective. This course attempts to do so by examining how the brain guides behavior. The first portion is an overview of the structure and function of the central nervous system. With this knowledge, we then examine how the brain controls a variety of higher behaviors, including learning and memory, sex, emotions and sleeping.
Instructor:  Hill

PSYC 4500-2:  Neurobiology of Learning and Memory
Credits:  3
Prerequisites:  PSYC 2200 or PSYC 4200
Enrollment Restrictions:  4th year Psychology Majors /Minors and Cognitive Science Majors
Description of course contents:  This seminar will examine the neural basis of
learning and memory.  We will study brain systems that mediate different types of learning and memory as well as the cellular and molecular mechanisms that allow these systems to acquire and store information.  The course will begin with a historical overview of learning and memory research in psychology and transition into modern studies in behavioral neuroscience.  Topics will include memory consolidation, neural plasticity, cellular competition for memory storage, the role of neurogenesis in learning and memory and mechanisms of retention and forgetting.  We will also discuss disorders that produce memory impairments in humans and current attempts to model these in animals and develop treatments.  Students will learn how to read and interpret scientific articles, present their ideas in a group setting and critically analyze current theories in memory research. 
Instructor:  Wiltgen

PSYC 5500-1:  Critical Period Plasticity
Credits:  3
Prerequisites:  PSYC 4200/7200 or Instructor Permission
Enrollment Restrictions:  4th year Psychology Majors/Minors, Cognitive Science Majors, and Neuroscience Majors; Graduate Standing
Description of course contents:  A survey of recent literature examining
cellular and molecular mechanisms of plasticity that is observed during
development of many brain structures.
Instructor:  Erisir

PSYC 5500-5:  Neuroplasticity and Perception/Cognition/Behavior
*Note:  PSYC 5500-4 may be used to fulfill either the Cognitive Psychology or the Neuroscience area requirement, but not both.
Credits:  3
Prerequisites:  PSYC 3006 or Graduate Student
Enrollment Restrictions:  4th year Psychology Majors/Minors and Cognitive Science Majors; GSAS
Description of course contents:  This course begins by examining the long-held view that functions are localized in particular places in the brain, fixed by adulthood, After reviewing the history of these ideas we will examine the tide of research challenging that view:  how imagination and virtual reality might change thinking; how memory can be enhanced; correction of language disabilities with training; how sensory deprivation might be corrected through other senses; phantom limbs; how culture can modify a perceptual system; rehabilitation of stroke victims; etc. Students interested in all areas of psychology should find much of interest in this course.
Instructor:  Lillard

BIOL 3170: Introduction to Neurobiology
*Note: PSYC 2220 OR BIOL 3170 credits may count for the major, but not both.
Credits: 3
Prerequisites:  BIOL 2010 and BIOL 2020
Description of course contents:  Analyzes the concepts of general neurobiology, including basic electrophysiology and electrochemistry, origin of bioelectric potentials, sensory, motor, integrative and developmental neurobiology, and conceptual models of simple learning.
Instructors:  Mellon, Provencio, Kawasaki

BIOL 4330:  Wiring the Brain
Credits:  3
Prerequisites:  BIOL 3000 and BIOL 3010, BIOL 3170, or PSYC 2200
Description of course contents:  This course will cover the current state of knowledge for how neurons form connections in the brain. The course will initially focus on how relatively simple model systems have provided the critical clues as to how specific synaptic connections form. This will be followed by a discussion of how this knowledge can be applied to the understanding and treatment of human neural disorders. About a quarter of the course will be standard lectures and the remainder student-led discussion of primary literature.
Instructor:  Condron

Linguistics

ANTH 3450:  Native American Languages
Credits:  3
Prerequisites:  LNGS 3250
Description of course contents:  Introduces the native languages of North America and the methods that linguists and anthropologists use to record and analyze them. Examines the use of grammars, texts and dictionaries of individual languages and affords insight into the diversity among the languages.
Instructor:  Danziger

ANTH 5410:  Phonology
Credits:  3
Prerequisites:  LNGS 3250
Description of course contents:  An introduction to the theory and analysis of linguistic sound systems. Covers the essential units of speech sound that lexical and grammatical elements are composed of, how those units are organized at multiple levels of representation, and the principles governing the relation between levels.
Instructor:  Dobrin

ANTH 5420:  Theories of Language
Credits:  3
Prerequisites:  None
Description of course contents:  Survey of modern schools of linguistics, both American and European, discussing each approach in terms of historical and intellectual context, analytical goals, assumptions about the nature of language, and relation between theory and methodology.
Instructor:  Contini-Morava

ANTH 5549:  Mind in Language
Credits:  3
Prerequisite:  Any Linguistics course
Description of course contents:  Anthropologists report that across societies, different cultural attitudes exist as to the acceptability of speculating on what is taking place in another person's mind. In certain cultural settings, speculation of this kind is considered completely inappropriate: something to be politely avoided. Meanwhile, however, linguistic theories about how conversation works rely heavily on the premise that in order to function successfully, conversational interactants must constantly seek out and interpret the unstated intentions of their conversation partners. How can we reconcile the linguistic account with the anthropological observations? This seminar course covers the relevant literature from ethno-psychology and linguistic pragmatics and considers the relationship of cultural philosophies of language, including our own, to the actual conduct of interaction. Because figurative language forms (e.g., metaphor, irony) seem especially to require intention-guessing for their interpretation, the course includes significant consideration of the role and range of such forms in different cultural contexts.
Instructor:  Danziger

LNGS 3250:  Introduction to Linguistic Theory and Analysis
Credits:  3
Prerequisites:  None
Description of course contents:  Introduces sign systems, language as a sign system, and approaches to linguistics description. Emphasizes the application of descriptive techniques to data.
Instructor:  Elson

PSYC 4500-6:  Acquisition of Syntax In Language Development
*Note:  PSYC 4500-6 may be used to fulfill either the Cognitive Psychology or the Linguistics area requirement, but not both.
Credits:  3
Prerequisites:  None
Enrollment Restrictions:  4th year Psychology Majors/Minors and Cognitive Science and Linguistics Majors
Description of course contents:  We will investigate the acquisition of syntax in language development from empirical and theoretical perspectives. Questions about what it means to know language and how language is acquired will be explored in depth, along with discussions involving acquisition/development of language, which will include sign language and development of homesigned "language".
Instructor:  Wood

SPAN 3200:  Introduction to Spanish Linguistics
Credits:  3
Prerequisites:  
Description of course contents:  This course offers a rigorous introduction to the formal study of the Spanish language. Topics include: articulatory phonetics, phonology, morphology, syntax, semantics, historical linguistics and dialectology. Taught in Spanish.
Instructor:  Staff

Philosophy

PHIL 2420:  Introduction to Symbolic Logic
Credits:  3
Prerequisites:  None
Description of course contents:  Introduces the concepts and techniques of modern formal logic, including both sentential and quantifier logic, as well as proof, interpretation, translation, and validity.
Instructor:  Humphreys

PHIL 3330:  Philosophy of Mind
Credits:  3
Prerequisite:  PHIL 132 recommended.
Description of course contents:  Studies some basic problems of philosophical psychology.
Instructor:  Langsam

PHIL 5420:  Symbolic Logic (Advanced)
Credits:  3
Prerequisite:  PHIL 242 or equivalent
Description of course contents:  Examines various results in metalogic, including completeness, compactness, and undecidability. Effective computability, theories of truth, and identity may also be covered. 
Instructor:  Cargile

Computer Science

All Computer Science courses are acceptable except CS 1010 and CS 1020.  ECE 2066: Science of Information will count for credit but does not fill the CS area requirement.

The most common introductory-level Computer Science courses for Cognitive Science majors are:

CS 1110:  Introduction to Programming  (Previously CS 101)

CS 1120:  From Ada and Euclid to Quantum Computing and the World Wide Web     (Previously CS 150)

CS 2102:  Discrete Mathematics I  (Previously CS 202)

*Note:  CS 1120 is strongly recommended as the first CS course for Cognitive Science majors.