Cognitive Science Current Approved Courses
for Fall 2013   

Cognitive Psychology | Neuroscience | Linguistics | Philosophy  | Computer Science 

Link to Class Search in SIS

Previously Approved Courses

 

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:  Williams

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
Prerequisites:  None
Enrollment Restrictions:  None
Description of course contents:  Study of selected topics in perception, particularly visual perception, and the role of stimulus variables, learning and motivation of perception.
Instructor:  Proffitt

PSYC 2301:  Introduction to Perception Lab
Credits:  1
Prerequisites:  None
Enrollment Restrictions:  Simultaneous enrollment in PSYC 2300
Description of course contents:  Lab to accompany the study of selected topics in perception, particularly visual perception, and the role of stimulus variables, learning and motivation of perception.
Instructor:  Proffitt

PSYC 3005-1:  Research Methods & Data Analysis I
Credits:  4  (Required lab)
Prerequisites:  PSYC 1010 or any 2000-level Psychology course and one of the following math courses with a grade of C- or higher: MATH 1210 (Applied Calculus I), MATH 1212 (Applied Calculus I with Algebra), MATH 1220 (Applied Calculus II), MATH 1310 (Calculus I), MATH 1320 (Calculus II), APMA 1090 (Single Variable Calculus I), or APMA 1110 (Single Variable Calculus II). Students with transfer credit or AP credit in one of these courses (e.g., AP Calculus AB, or AP Calculus BC) are exempt from the requirement.
Enrollment restrictions:  None
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).
Instructor:  Morris

PSYC 3005-2:  Research Methods & Data Analysis I
Credits:  4  (Required lab)
Prerequisites:  PSYC 1010 or any 2000-level Psychology course and one of the following math courses with a grade of C- or higher: MATH 1210 (Applied Calculus I), MATH 1212 (Applied Calculus I with Algebra), MATH 1220 (Applied Calculus II), MATH 1310 (Calculus I), MATH 1320 (Calculus II), APMA 1090 (Single Variable Calculus I), or APMA 1110 (Single Variable Calculus II). Students with transfer credit or AP credit in one of these courses (e.g., AP Calculus AB, or AP Calculus BC) are exempt from the requirement.
Enrollment restrictions:  None
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).
Instructor:  TBA

PSYC 3006:  Research Methods & Data Analysis II
Credits:  4  (Required lab)
Prerequisite:  PSYC 3005 (with C or better)
Enrollment Restrictions:  Psychology Majors/Minors and Cognitive Science Majors
Description of course contents:  Second part of a two-part series. Emphasis on inferential statistics (t-tests and ANOVA) and issues in experimentation.
**Course May Meet Second Writing Requirement**
Instructor:  Freeman

PSYC 4005:  Advanced Research Methods & Data Analysis I
*Note:  This class is a substitute for PSYC 3005. 
Credits:  4  (Required lab)
Prerequisite:  PSYC 1010 and any 2000-level PSYC course and one of the following math courses with a grade of C- or higher: MATH 1210 (Applied Calculus I), MATH 1220 (Applied Calculus II), MATH 1310 (Calculus I), MATH 1320 (Calculus II), APMA 1090 (Single Variable Calculus I), or APMA 1110 (Single Variable Calculus II). Students with transfer credit or AP credit in one of these courses (e.g., AP Calculus AB, or AP Calculus BC) are exempt from the requirement.
Enrollment restrictions:  To be officially enrolled in PSYC 4005, 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:  This course is the first of a two-course series which students intending to continue to graduate school after their Bachelors degrees may take to replace Research Methods and Data Analysis I. In this series, we start by laying out foundational mathematical concepts that are common to all or most quantitative methods in Psychology. In the second course of this series, this foundation will be used to introduce specific data analysis techniques as special cases and to introduce some research methods. The topics for this course encompass probability theory, information theory, linear algebra, test theory, and an introduction to modeling.
Instructor:  von Oertzen

PSYC 4290:  Memory Distortions
Credits:  3
Prerequisites:  None
Enrollment Restrictions:  4th year Psychology Majors/Minors and Cognitive Science Majors
Description of course contents:  Although memory is generally accurate, some illusions and distortions in remembering are unavoidable. We will review both neuroscience and cognitive research on a variety of different memory problems, ranging from relatively benign tip-of-the-tongue experiences to untrustworthy eye witness testimony.  Our ultimate goal will be to understand the neural basis and cognitive processes that contribute to these constructive memory phenomena.
Instructor:  Dodson

PSYC 4559-2:  The Arts and Psychology
Credits:  3
Prerequisites:  None
Enrollment Restrictions:  4th years: Psychology Majors/Minors and Cognitive Science Majors
Description of course contents:  The purpose of this course is to introduce students to the application of research and theories developed in the fields of perception, cognition, emotion, personality theory and social psychology to visual art, sculpture and film.
Instructor:  Kubovy

PSYC 4559-4:  Embodied Cognition
Credits:  3
Prerequisites:  None
Enrollment Restrictions:  4th years: Psychology Majors/Minors and Cognitive Science Majors
Description of course contents:  The Embodied Cognition approach promotes the notion that human experiences are grounded in the body. Representative research shows that people have warmer feelings toward someone else if they are holding a warm cup in their hands, moral reasoning is influenced by whether people have just washed their hands, and hills appear steeper when people are fatigued. The course will examine recent research on embodied cognition, identify promising avenues for new investigation, and formulate programs for future research.
Instructor:  Proffitt

PSYC 5160:  Emotion and Cognition
Credits:  3
Prerequisites:  None
Enrollment Restrictions:  4th years: 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 5310:  Developmental Psycholinguistics
*Note:  PSYC 5310 may be used to fulfill either the Cognitive Psychology or the Linguistics area requirement, but not both.
Credits:  3
Prerequisites:  None
Enrollment Restrictions:  4th years: Psychology Majors/Minors and Cognitive Science Majors; GSAS
Description of course contents:  We will examine the development of language from a number of perspectives. In addition to studying the acquisition of speech in children with normal hearing, we will review the acquisition of spoken and signed language in deaf, autistic, mentally retarded, and aphasic individuals. We will also examine the acquisition of language-like systems of communication in nonhuman primates.
Instructor:  Bonvillian

PSYC 5559-1: Cognitive Aging
Credits:  3
Prerequisites:  None
Enrollment Restrictions:  4th year Psychology Majors/Minors and Cognitive Science Majors; GSAS
Description of course contents:  Survey of topics related to the effects of aging on cognition, including historical background, methodological issues, the role of health, disuse, and environmental change, and neurobiological factors.
Instructor:  Salthouse

PSYC 5720: Fundamentals of Item Response Theory
Credits:  3
Prerequisites:  PSYC 3006 or 4006
Enrollment Restrictions:  4th year Psychology Majors/Minors and Cognitive Science Majors; GSAS
Description of course contents:  This course is designed to introduce you to the basic concepts of item response theory (IRT) and their application to substantive psychological problems of measuring traits and abilities using tests, scales, and measures. IRT techniques are extremely useful for evaluating existing measures and developing new measures. These methods can be used with a variety of assessments, in many areas, such as psychology, education, health, and business, where measures of cognitive ability, achievement, attitudes and traits are of interest. We will also explore topics such as differential item functioning (DIF), where items are used differently by different groups (e.g., gender, age, ethnicity, SES, etc.).
 
By the end of this semester you should be able to: a) understand and apply the principles of IRT in your own research and in evaluating the research of others, b) perform and interpret IRT model analyses for dichotomous and polytomous data, using various IRT programs, and c) communicate IRT research findings to an audience of psychologists.
Instructor:  Schmidt

EDHS 4300:  Psycholinguistics and Communication 
*Note:  PSYC 4300 may be used to fulfill either the Cognitive Psychology or the Linguistics area requirement, but not both. Either PSYC 4110: Psycholinguistics (Loncke) or EDHS 4300: Psycholinguistics and Communication (Loncke) may be taken for credit, but not both.
Credits:  3
Prerequisites:  None
Description of course contents:  This course focuses on the psychological processes that underlie the acquisition and the use of language. There is an emphasis on the interaction between linguistic skills and other cognitive skills. Topics include learnability, microgenesis of speech, bilingualism and variation, and a psycholinguistic approach to breakdowns (i.e., language pathology).
Instructor:  Loncke

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Neuroscience

PSYC 2200:  Neural Basis of Behavior
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 4200:  Neural Mechanisms of Behavior
* Note:  PSYC 4200 OR BIOL 3170 credits may count for the major, but not both.
Credits:  4
Prerequisites:  PSYC 2200 or Instructor Permission
Enrollment Restrictions:  Psychology Majors /Minors, Cognitive Science Majors, and Neuroscience Majors
Description of course contents:  Lectures and discussions on molecular and cellular aspects of neural mechanisms as they relate to behavior. Topics will include neuroanatomy, neurophysiology, neurotransmitters and receptors, neuropharmacology, cortical organization and function, plasticity and neurodegenerative diseases.    
Instructor:  Erisir

PSYC 5260:  Brain Systems Involved in Learning and Memory
*Note:  PSYC 5260 may be used to fulfill either the Neuroscience or the Cognitive Psychology area requirement, but not both.
Credits:  3
Prerequisites:  PSYC 2200 or PSYC 4200  
Enrollment Restrictions:  4th year Psychology Majors/Minors and Cognitive Science Majors; Neuroscience Majors; GSAS
Description of course contents:  Studies the major theories, findings, and conceptual issues important to an analysis of the neuronal mechanisms that underlie memory storage.
Instructor:  Williams

PSYC 5265:  Functional Neuroanatomy
Credits:  3
Prerequisites:  PSYC 4200 or BIOL 3170   
Enrollment Restrictions:  4th years: Psychology Majors/Minors, Cognitive Science Majors, and Neuroscience Majors; GSAS
Description of course contents:  An overview of the structure of the vertebrate nervous system with an emphasis on the mammalian brain.
Instructor:  Brunjes

BIOL 3170:  Introduction to Neurobiology
* Note:  BIOL 3170 OR PSYC 4200 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:  Condron

BIOL 4340:  Experimental Foundations of Neurobiology
Credits:  3
Prerequisites:  BIOL 3170 or an equivalent course
Description of course contents:  The course content will focus on three areas of neurobiological research: conduction of the nervous impulse, sensory physiology, and synaptic physiology.
Instructor:  Mellon

EDLF 5500-3: Neurobiological Perspectives on Learning and Instruction*Note:  EDLF 5500-3 may be used to fulfill either the Neuroscience or the Cognitive Psychology area requirement, but not both.
Credits:  3
Prerequisites: 
Enrollment Restrictions:  
Description of course contents:  This seminar will introduce students to the basic principles and methods of educational neuroscience and related biological disciplines. Readings will cover topics such as stress hormones and classroom learning, neuromyths, genetic influences on the development of reading skills, and implications of evolutionary theory for understanding the importance of recess, the value of mixed-age school settings, and the benefits of cooperative learning.
Instructor:  Berch

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Linguistics

ANTH 2400:  Language and Culture
Credits:  3
Prerequisites:  None
Description of course contents:  This course will be a survey of topics having to do with the relationship between language, culture, and society. We will consider both how language is described and analyzed by linguists and how evidence from language can shed light on a variety of social, cultural, and cognitive phenomena. Topics include: nature of language, origins of language, how languages change, writing systems, use of linguistic evidence to make inferences about prehistory, the effects of linguistic categories on thought and behavior, regional and social variation in language, and cultural rules for communication.
Instructor: TBA 

ANTH 5420:  Theories of Language
Credits:  3
Prerequisites:  Instructor permission
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

EDHS 4300:  Psycholinguistics and Communication 
*Note:  PSYC 4300 may be used to fulfill either the Cognitive Psychology or the Linguistics area requirement, but not both. Either PSYC 4110: Psycholinguistics (Loncke) or EDHS 4300: Psycholinguistics and Communication (Loncke) may be taken for credit, but not both.
Credits:  3
Prerequisites:  None
Description of course contents:  This course focuses on the psychological processes that underlie the acquisition and the use of language. There is an emphasis on the interaction between linguistic skills and other cognitive skills. Topics include learnability, microgenesis of speech, bilingualism and variation, and a psycholinguistic approach to breakdowns (i.e., language pathology).
Instructor:  Loncke

LING 3400:  Structure of English
Credits:  3
Prerequisites:  None
Description of course contents:  This course provides students with a foundation in the grammar of the English language. Topics include phonology, morphology, and syntax, with a focus on structural analysis. Students will gain confidence in discussing the form, function, and usage of linguistic structures. These topics will also be related to the teaching and tutoring of English as a second language, including error correction and feedback.
Instructor:  Crabtree

LNGS 3250:  Introduction to Linguistic Theory and Methodology
Credits:  3
Prerequisites:  None
Description of course contents:  Introduces students to language as a system and the theoretical underpinnings of the analytic procedures used by linguists. It proceeds from the assumption that the goal of language is to communicate (i.e., to convey meaning via messages) and investigates assumptions relating to the manner in which it accomplishes this goal.
Instructor:  Elson

LNGS 3251:  Introduction to Linguistic Theory and Methodology Discussion
Credits:  1
Prerequisites:  Simultaneous enrollment in LNGS 3250
Description of course contents:  Discussion for the course which introduces students to language as a system and the theoretical underpinnings of the analytic procedures used by linguists. It proceeds from the assumption that the goal of language is to communicate (i.e., to convey meaning via messages) and investigates assumptions relating to the manner in which it accomplishes this goal.
Instructor:  TBA

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Philosophy

PHIL 2420:  Introduction to Symbolic Logic
Credits:  3
Prerequisites:  None
Description of course contents:  A basic introduction to the concepts and techniques of modern formal logic. The aim of this course is to give the student a working knowledge of both sentential and quantifier logic. The emphasis is on developing an ability to carry out proofs within these systems and on developing an ability to translate sentences of natural language into symbolic notation. The course will acquaint the student with the concepts of formula, proof, interpretation, and validity. Students will use logic software that will allow them to develop greater expertise with the material.
Instructor:  Humphreys

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Computer Science

All Computer Science courses are acceptable except CS 1010 and CS 1020.  Note:  ECE 2066:  Science of Information will count for major credit but does not fulfill 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)

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