Proposal for a new B.S. in Cognitive Science at Rensselaer

Transcription

1 Proposal for a new B.S. in Cognitive Science at Rensselaer This proposal was prepared by a committee comprised of the following members of the Cognitive Science Department:! Nick Cassimatis (Committee Chair 9/06 6/07)! Brett Fajen (Committee Chair 9/04-9/06)! Bram van Heuveln (Committee Chair 6/07 Current)! Mike Kalsher! Mike Schoelles 1

2 Contents: Introduction and Rationale... 3 Vision: Past, Present, and Future... 3 The Demand for a B.S. in Cognitive Science at Rensselaer... 7 Possible Career Paths for a B.S. in Cognitive Science... 8 Goals Student Outcome Goals Program Goals Proposed Curriculum Rationale for the Proposed Curriculum Organization of the Proposed Curriculum Satisfaction of Institute and School Requirements Feasibility of the Proposed Curriculum New Courses and Changes to Existing Courses Dual Majors Resources Faculty and Physical Resources Program Support Resources Program Governance Curriculum and Academic Policy Growth and Development of the Program Program Assessment Reviews of the Proposed Program Appendix A: Course Syllabi Appendix B: Memo from Bob Ingalls, Executive Officer, Computer Science Department

3 Introduction and Rationale Cognitive science is the scientific study of the mind/brain as it relates to intelligence, reasoning, decision making, memory, learning, language, perception, and action. This young and emerging interdisciplinary field lies at the intersection of psychology, computer science, philosophy, neuroscience, linguistics, and anthropology. Cognitive science promises to be the next basic science, in line with physics, chemistry, and biology, as much of the research being conducted is aimed at discovering fundamental principles that underlie all minds, whether they are human minds, animal minds, or artificial minds. Further, just as the technologies based on physics, chemistry, and biology have had a tremendous impact on our lives, technology based on our understanding of cognitive systems has the potential to profoundly change the way we live and who we are. From using knowledge of human cognition to build cognitively ergonomic tools and environments, to building devices to repair and augment cognitive skills and capacities, to creating artificially intelligent computers and robots, the applications of this discipline are right in line with Rensselaer s rhetorical slogan Why not change the world?. We feel that the time is ripe to offer a B.S. in Cognitive Science, and that the Cognitive Science Department at Rensselaer is perfectly positioned to offer one of the very best degree programs of its kind in the world. Vision: Past, Present, and Future We see the offering of an undergraduate degree in Cognitive Science as the logical next step in the historical progression of the Cognitive Science department that has unfolded during the past decade. In 1996, the formerly separate Psychology Department and Philosophy Department officially merged into the Philosophy, Psychology, and Cognitive Science (PP&CS) Department, acknowledging the rich potential interaction between two of the main pillars in the study of mind. During the same year, this interaction culminated in the creation of the Minds & Machines Program, an interdisciplinary dual degree program in cognitive science. Students in the program were asked to pick one major from the Minds category (Philosophy or Psychology), and one major from the Machines category (e.g. Computer Science or Computer and Systems Engineering). Graduates from the Minds & Machines Program have moved on to graduate programs in cognitive science, to advanced research and development centers studying artificial intelligence, and to industries applying the knowledge about minds to such things as humancomputer interfaces or computer-generated characters in games. Recent years have seen a surge in the number of students interested in the program, demonstrating the success of the program, and the room for an official undergraduate degree in Cognitive Science. In 2002, building on the success of the Minds & Machines program, the department s name was officially changed to the Cognitive Science Department, and in the Fall of 2003, the department received New York State approval for a new Ph.D. Program in Cognitive Science. Currently, there are about 30 to 40 undergraduate programs in cognitive science in the country. Much of this number depends on what gets counted as a cognitive science program. For one thing, many universities and colleges offer a minor, certificate, or concentration, but not a B.S. Also, most cognitive science programs are not offered by a dedicated cognitive science department, but are instead either interdisciplinary programs or programs housed within the department of Psychology (e.g. CMU and UCLA), Philosophy (e.g. Minnesota State), 3

4 Neuroscience (e.g. UT Dallas), or other department. In fact, at this point there are only 5 Cognitive Science Departments in the country: the well-established departments at Johns Hopkins and UC San Diego, our very own and young department at RPI, and two even younger departments (from 2006 and 2007 respectively) at Case Western and UC Merced. There are six other stand-alone departments that can be counted as dedicated cognitive science departments but, tellingly, do not go by the name Cognitive Science: the Cognitive and Neural Systems department at Boston University, the Department of Cognitive and Linguistic Sciences at Brown, the Department of Linguistics and Cognitive Science at the University of Delaware, the department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences at MIT, the Brain and Cognitive Sciences department at the University of Rochester, and the Cognitive Sciences Department at UC Irvine. Indeed, the different degrees and majors offered by various academic institutes can range from Cognitive and Brain Science (Tufts) to Linguistics and Cognitive Science (SUNY Albany). This wide variety in the nature of cognitive science programs is reflective of the fact that cognitive science is a young field, which has two important consequences. For one thing, the creation of programs - let alone whole departments - dedicated to cognitive science is a difficult process. Thus, many existing programs have been established within already existing departments, and are thereby finding themselves firmly tied to a specific perspective on the field, such as cognitive psychology, artificial intelligence, cognitive neuroscience, or cognitive linguistics. Other programs have been developed as an effort of several departments, but even such inter-departmental programs can still leave out important disciplines relevant to cognitive science. And finally, we should note that even the dedicated Cognitive Science departments at Johns Hopkins and UCSD have a clear emphasis on computational linguistics and neuroscience. A second consequence of cognitive science being such a young field is that it is still trying to define itself. Thus, some researchers regard cognitive science and cognitive psychology as one and the same, others see artificial intelligence as the eminent domain of cognitive science, and still others see cognitive science as a mere footnote to neuroscience. Obviously, these intellectual differences as to what cognitive science exactly is can also help explain the variety in curriculum and emphasis between the different cognitive science programs. Fortunately, as cognitive science has matured as an intellectual field of study over the past few decades, the relevant fields have begun to emerge themselves. As evidenced by the growing commonalities between the different definitions and curricula of cognitive science, cognitive science is an inherently interdisciplinary study, and rests on three main pillars: philosophy, psychology, and computer science: Philosophy: Philosophers have thought for a long time about the nature of mind, and the philosophy of mind is still one of the biggest and most vibrant areas of philosophy, offering many different views, perspectives, and theories on the mind. Second, being such a young science, cognitive science can benefit greatly from the further development of basic ideas, concepts, perspectives, and accompanying terminology, as well as the critical analysis and evaluation of such conceptual frameworks. Philosophy provides one with the skills to perform all these important asks. 4

5 Psychology: Being the science of the human mind, psychology is obviously a key component to cognitive science. However, there are two important ways in which cognitive science goes beyond psychology. First of all, cognitive science aims to be a science of all cognitive systems. Thus, while many cognitive scientists do focus on human cognition, as the human mind is the most complex and interesting cognitive system that we currently know, cognitive science also includes animal cognition, machine cognition, and any other form of cognition that we ever may encounter or create. Second, psychology by itself tends to be primarily descriptive: it offers psychological principles, but rarely tries to really explain why such principles exist. Even cognitive psychology, a subfield of psychology that often tries to create underlying computational models for cognitive phenomena, rarely makes further connections between their findings and underlying neurological processes or external biological, physical, social, or evolutionary pressures. One goal of cognitive science is to provide all these links into a unifying framework. Computer Science: Currently, the most promising framework for studying cognitive systems is the computational framework: cognition is seen as the execution of computational algorithms as implemented by the brain or other medium. This framework has been around for some 50 years, and was basically the starting point of artificial intelligence as well as cognitive science. Also, even this framework turns out to be mistaken, computational models of cognition can still provide (and have already provided) valuable insights into cognition. Neuroscience, linguistics, and anthropology are important contributors too, but all three have specific perspectives that may not apply to cognitive systems in general, which is why they are seen as having secondary importance: Neuroscience: There is clearly an important connection between the brain and the mind, and cognitive scientists would like to know what that connection is. The subfield of cognitive neuroscience tries to explain this connection. However, one reason why many cognitive scientists do not focus on this connection is that the (human or animal) brain is seen as just one way to implement the computational algorithms underlying cognition. Indeed, artificially produced cognitive systems may use completely different materials and architectures. As cognitive science aims to be a science of all cognitive systems, many cognitive scientists therefore see neuroscience only of secondary importance to their field/ Linguistics: There is also a strong connection between cognition and language, but again it is unclear what exactly this connection is. The field of cognitive linguistics tried to figure this out, and should be part of cognitive science. However, as with neuroscience, many of the findings of cognitive linguistics apply only to very specific cognitive systems (usually humans). Anthropology: Anthropological aspects of cognition include the social, cultural, and evolutionary pressures on cognitive systems. We can refer to the area at the intersection of anthropology and cognitive science as cognitive anthropology, and while traditionally this area of cognitive science has been somewhat neglected, current developments in the field now start to see this area as an integral part of the field. However, like neuroscience and linguistics, many of its findings have limited applicability to cognitive systems in general. 5

6 Interesting connections also exist between cognitive science and the fields of biology, education, and mathematics: Biology: Obvious intersections between biology and cognitive science exist through the brain and through evolution. However, modern theories in cognitive science are also starting to stress the cognitive importance of the biological and anatomical nature of cognitive agents. Education: Education is obviously a field where findings from cognitive science can be usefully applied, but findings in education can also inform cognitive science researchers. Mathematics: Cognitive systems are some of the most complex systems around, and will therefore require a wide array of mathematical tools for analysis. Applications of cognitive science can be found in many fields including, but not limited to, arts (how is some piece of art cognitively perceived?), management (how do we manage the interaction between different cognitive systems?), architecture (what makes a space functional and pleasing?), gaming (how can we make virtual characters cognitively plausible?), IT (what makes for an effective interface?), and medical engineering (how can we repair or augment one s cognitive skills?). A final and special field of study that we should mention is robotics: Robotics: We see robotics as an important test bed of cognitive theories, and a place where the many aspects of, and perspectives on, cognition can be studied. The study of robotics from the perspective of cognitive science is called cognitive robotics, and should be of increasing importance to cognitive science. We believe that we are ready to go ahead and start an excellent cognitive science program. Given the expertise in philosophy, psychology, and computational sciences of the faculty within the department, combined with the traditional emphasis on science and engineering within the Institute as a whole, we feel that we can offer a cognitive science undergraduate program that is firmly balanced on the three main pillars of cognitive science. Thus, our students will think about the major philosophies of mind, learn psychological theories and research methods, and be trained to use a variety of computational, technical, quantitative, formal, and mathematical skills to generate and test models of cognition. As discussed earlier, our program will be one of very few programs that offer such a solid balance of disciplines. For the future, we believe it is important that the department keep its current depth in philosophy, psychology, and computer science as exemplified by its current strength in computational cognitive modeling. However, we also believe that some additional breadth and strength to the undergraduate program could be provided by hiring additional faculty with expertise in cognitive anthropology, cognitive robotics, cognition and education, cognitive neuroscience, and cognitive linguistics,. Ultimately, we foresee a program that will not only prepare students for entrance into leading graduate programs or careers in industry and government, but also be regarded as a benchmark for future cognitive science programs around the world. 6

7 At this point, we should address two concerns: Will students choose to follow this program? And, if they do, will this program help them with a viable career path? In the next two sections we will explain why we think that the program will be quite popular, and also why we believe that our proposed program in cognitive science will make our students marketable. Both of these beliefs will be backed up by concrete evidence. The Demand for a BS in Cognitive Science at Rensselaer To demonstrate that, once in place, students will choose to study cognitive science as their (primary or secondary) major, we can first of all point towards the deep interest in cognitive science among Rensselaer undergraduates as evidenced by the existing Minds & Machines program. In the words of three Minds & Machines students: Cognitive science is the perfect combination of things that I am interested in. I like computer science and psychology and philosophy and linguistics Cognitive science links all of these together Cognitive science is a union of both hard and soft science, theory and application, basic and applied research. One can get an extremely powerful education in computer science and AI while at the same time relating that knowledge back to how the human mind works. When I came into the school, I was originally an Arts major, and I d decided to pick up a Psychology minor along the way. In my first semester, I took 3 cognitive science courses: Minds and Machines, Sensation and Perception, and Intro. to Cognition and Gaming. At once I knew I d want to spend the rest of my life in the field it s extremely exciting, and the professors who specialize in cognitive science at this campus are phenomenal. I think this field, as Professor Selmer Bringsjord puts it, is irresistible. The general idea of Cognitive Sciences has always intrigued me (even before I knew it actually existed or what it was called). Studying and eventually doing research or development in that field would be the closest thing to a childhood dream job I think I could find. These statements were taken from a recent survey given to the Minds & Machines students about the possibility of a new B.S. in Cognitive Science. The response was extremely positive. Asked whether they would prefer to major in Cognitive Science rather than their current major, the majority of students said that they would (or that they would dual major in Cognitive Science and Computer Science). One student responded: Without question. As an incoming student, I would have drooled over the course list. As a junior, I m still drooling. I wish I could have had Intro to AI and Behavioral Neuroscience as required courses. And there are some computer science courses I ve taken that feel like they ve been distractions from the intersection of Comp Sci + Philosophy. 7

8 When asked what would attract them to the B.S. in Cognitive Science, several students pointed to the rigorous, challenging curriculum. Others were drawn by the interdisciplinary nature of the curriculum. For example, one student wrote: What draws me to the cog sci curriculum is that it embodies more than just computer science. I for one am not someone who could survive on Coding alone! Adding something like philosophy or psychology to the mix (to me anyway) makes everything (college and code) more fun. The popularity of a cognitive science undergraduate degree was further confirmed by looking at already existing cognitive science degree programs. While exact and exhaustive data was not available to us, our research found that about half of the current programs were developed over the past 10 years, indicating a clear surge in the popularity of cognitive science as a discipline of study. Moreover, most programs report a steady increase in the number of students going through the program. For example, Dr. Verena Gottschling, Cognitive Science Program Director at York University, writes: we are growing more than expected. The program started small and we have more than 80 students now and expect to have 100 for the fall/winter term 2008/09 Likewise, Dr. Ian Gold, Cognitive Science Program Director at McGill University reports: There is a lot of interest in the program despite the fact that we have done no advertising. I'm quite sure that once students start to hear more about it, we're going to increase our numbers substantially. Possible Career Paths for a BS in Cognitive Science On the employment side, we should first point out that, since cognitive science requires mastery in such a variety of disciplines, the students seeking a degree in cognitive science are likely to be better-than-average students. Again, this claim can be supported by concrete evidence from the Minds & Machines program current Minds & Machines students have an average cumulative GPA of 3.41 while the average for RPI as a whole is and existing cognitive science programs. Other programs in the country report the same. For example, Brian Scholl, director of undergraduate studies in cognitive science at Yale, writes: We attract some of the best students at Yale Likewise, John Gatewood, Director of the Undergraduate Program in Cognitive Science at Lehigh, reports: In terms of going on to graduate programs, cogsci majors have a slightly above-average percentage, but that's probably due to the fact that they tend to be "better students" in the first place (as measured by GPA, college scholars, etc.) 8

9 Second, students that go through our program should end up with a rich skill set that should allow for a wide spectrum of career paths. By going through an interdisciplinary curriculum that touches on many diverse fields of study, we expect our graduates to clearly and effectively communicate, have excellent critical thinking and reasoning skills, collect and analyze empirical evidence and data, generate and test hypotheses, conceptualize and evaluate complex systems, program and use computers, and conduct abstract mathematical analyses. Moreover, our graduates will have a unique understanding of the human mind and how human cognition can effect, and is effected by, its environment. In sum, graduates from our program should be highly skilled and therefore highly marketable. Since the skills of Cognitive Science graduates are so rich and diverse, we foresee graduates from our program to enter all areas of employment, whether this be industry, academics, government, or not-for-profit. More specific career fields include the information industry, human factors engineering, artificial intelligence, human performance testing, and education. Specific job titles may vary from professor to psychologist to lawyer, from computer programmer to user interface designer to technical writer, and from systems analyst to human resource manager to consultant. We also expect a substantial number of the graduates to continue with graduate education. Indeed, one important outcome of developing an undergraduate degree in cognitive science at Rensselaer is that it will simultaneously serve as an incubator to help build the skills students will need to enter our very own graduate programs in cognitive science. Again, because cognitive science is such a young and emerging science, there are currently only a few undergraduate programs in cognitive science, and these programs vary widely in content. As a result, many graduate students who enter our Ph.D. program in cognitive science need to take additional coursework to fill gaps in their backgrounds and acquire skills before becoming effective members of the program. However, students that complete the undergraduate program that we propose will be maximally prepared for our graduate program as well as for any other Cognitive Science graduate program. Graduates from our program need not be restricted to Cognitive Science at the graduate level though. In fact, since cognitive science is such an interdisciplinary field, we expect students to go to graduate programs in Computer Science, Psychology, Philosophy, Neuroscience, Artificial Intelligence, Robotics, Human-Computer Interaction, Decision Sciences, Information Technology, Economics, Linguistics, Anthropology, Education, or Law. Concrete evidence that cognitive science graduates have excellent job opportunities comes again from our Minds & Machines program and from already existing cognitive science programs. Graduates from the Minds & Machines program seem to have little problems finding a job. Many have gone on to either graduate school or the computer industry, and a good number end up doing R&D at places like IBM, Boeing, or Lockheed Martin. Mark McLeod, the cognitive science undergraduate advisor at Carleton University, finds very similar job placements: 9

10 In terms of placements, approximately half of our graduating students have gone on to graduate work in a variety of disciplines (including Cognitive Science, Computer Science, and Psychology). Many of the others went directly to jobs in the high-tech, government, or other R&D sectors. Various coordinators from existing cognitive science programs confirm that cognitive science graduates are doing well in finding jobs. John Gatewood, cognitive science program director at Lehigh, reports: So far as I know, the cognitive science majors have done as well as or better than other liberal arts graduates from Lehigh in terms of getting jobs after graduation Likewise, Brian Scholl, cognitive science program director at Yale, writes: they have gone on many of the top graduate programs in the contributing fields, among other positions. We have also produced many Fulbright scholars, a Rhodes scholar last year, etc. The Career Center at the University of California Berkeley, which conducts an annual career survey of its graduates, and which has one of the largest cognitive science programs in the country, reports an average starting salary of about $55,000 for cognitive science majors, on par or just below many engineering majors. And finally, Minds & Machines alumni Paul Bello, who is now the Cognitive Science Program Officer at the Office of Naval Research, writes: There is a demonstrable need within government and industry for bright young folks interested in how the mind works; and who are capable of employing a wide range of tools, both experimental and computational to making progress on this most important of problems. While a number of doctoral level programs in cognitive science already exist, the very nature of the subject cries out for a strong basic education in the form of an appropriately broad undergraduate curriculum. A well-rounded cognitive scientist ought to be exposed to a bit of everything, including philosophy, psychology, computation, and neuroscience. It may well not be possible to provide all of this background to a graduate student solely through graduate studies. Having spent all ten years of my college education at Rensselaer, I feel somewhat uniquely qualified to opine on the need for an undergraduate program in cognitive science. Having started out in Rensselaer's computer engineering curriculum to do robotics, and having picked up a degree in philosophy along the way while doing a number of undergraduate research projects in artificial intelligence and finishing with a dissertation in cognitive science that included a human-subjects experiment, I can't tell you how often I had wished for a little more structure in my journey through the Institute's many and varied programs. Even when I was officially enrolled in other departments, I spent almost all ten of my years at RPI with unofficial advisors that are now faculty in cognitive science. I'm happy to report that my time at RPI was extremely well-spent, and the varied background that I managed to acquire was seen as one of my greatest assets, both as a research scientist with the Air Force Research Laboratory's Information Directorate, and now as a program officer with the Office of Naval Research. I'm happy to give my highest endorsement to Rensselaer's proposed undergraduate curriculum in cognitive science 10

11 Goals We have developed the following set of goals that reflect the knowledge and skills students will gain as a result of their participation in the proposed undergraduate program in cognitive science. The overall objective is to prepare students either for appropriate positions in the workforce or for more advanced training in a graduate program. Student Outcome Goals Goal 1: Knowledge. Students will demonstrate mastery of the information in several content areas deemed important by the combined cognitive science faculty. These areas include three primary areas and two secondary areas: (1) Psychology: Empirical findings, theories and models of human cognition (2) Philosophy: Theoretical and conceptual foundations of cognitive science (3) Computer Science: Computational models of cognition and artificial intelligence (4) Cognitive Neuroscience: Functioning of the brain as it relates to mind and behavior (5) Cognitive Ecology: Cognitive agent-environment interactions, including perception and action, robotics, language use, and cultural, social, and evolutionary aspects of cognition Goal 2: Skills. Students will demonstrate mastery of a variety of skills important to the field of cognitive science. These skills include: (1) Statistical Evaluation: Entering and organizing data and performing basic statistical analyses with the use of one or more software packages (e.g., SPSS) (2) Programming: The use of at least one programming language (e.g., C++, JAVA, PERL, LISP) that can be used in the production of a cognitive system (3) Computational Modeling: Basic proficiency with at least one cognitive architecture (e.g., ACT-R; SOAR) and writing at least one cognitive model using that architecture (4) Mathematical Analysis: The use of mathematical techniques that can be used to analyze various facets of complex cognitive systems (5) Logical Analysis: The use of formal logics that can be used in the areas of reasoning, problem solving, knowledge representation, and artificial intelligence Goal 3: Communication. Students will produce written, oral, and visual expressions that achieve clear communication of ideas. Goal 4: Research experience. Students will actively participate in a research project in one or more domains within cognitive science. This may involve the design, carry out, analysis, or write-up of the results of an experiment or simulation. Goal 5: Professional Development. Students will develop professionally through coops, internships, networking, attending lectures, conferences, or workshops, and the creation of a professional portfolio of their work. 11

12 Program Goals Goal 1: Achieve recognition of the program as one of the best undergraduate programs in cognitive science in the world, in terms of setting an internationally acknowledged standard in the undergraduate cognitive science curriculum, as well as creating an identity as a world center for basic and applied research in computational cognitive modeling. Goal 2: Attract highly motivated, academically gifted students to the program. Goal 3: Provide students with high quality educational instruction in line with the student knowledge and skills outcome goals. Goal 4: Support research and development projects that have extensive undergraduate student participation. Goal 5: Provide students with state-of-the-art technologies and facilities for instruction and research. Goal 6: Develop a strong community network of Rensselaer alumni in order to promote close interaction among our graduates, as well as between alumni and current students. Goal 7: Provide supportive events, lectures and materials that give dimension to the cognitive science experience. These may include, but are not limited to, activities such as: a. Continue the Great Debates in Cognitive Science lecture series. b. Host conferences sponsored by professional organizations interested in cognitive science research. c. Establish an ongoing colloquium series to develop links with other institutions and industry, and to expose students and faculty to a wide range of perspectives, current issues, and challenges in the field. d. Develop a high end living website that showcases the work of students and faculty. e. Produce a series of publications on current cognitive science research presenting work from within the Rensselaer community and beyond. 12

13 Proposed Curriculum Category No. of courses No. of credits Math/science requirements 6 24 Required core courses (including thesis) Electives 2 8 TOTAL Math and science requirements (6): The courses listed below comprise the math and science requirements for the B.S. in Cognitive Science. The H&SS math and science requirements will be automatically satisfied by the basic and additional math and science requirements listed below. MATH 1500 cannot be used as a substitute for MATH 1010 or MATH MATH 1010 MATH 1020 MATH 2800 CSCI 1100 CSCI 1200 CSCI 2300 Calculus I Calculus II Introduction to Discrete Structures Computer Science I Computer Science II Data Structures and Algorithms Required core courses (11): PSYC 2120 / PHIL 2120 PHIL 2140 PSYC 2310 PSYC 4370 PSYC 4320 CSCI 4150 COGS 4990 Choose one: PSYC 4410 PSYC 4964 Choose one: PSYC 4510 PSYC 4965 Choose one: IHSS 1964 / PHIL 1120 PHIL 2130 Choose one: PHIL 4260 PHIL 4440 PHIL 4480 Introduction to Cognitive Science Introduction to Logic Experimental Methods and Statistics Cognitive Psychology Behavioral Neuroscience Introduction to Artificial Intelligence Undergraduate Thesis Sensation and Perception Structure of Language Cognitive Modeling LISP for AI Minds and Machines Introduction to Philosophy of Science Philosophy of Artificial Intelligence Knowledge, Belief and Cognition Metaphysics and Consciousness 13

14 Electives (2): Choose 2 additional courses from the following list: Psychology electives: PSYC 2410 PSYC 2962 PSYC 4110 PSYC 4410 PSYC 4450 PSYC 4510 PSYC 4964 PSYC 4310 PSYC 4965 PSYC 4962 PSYC 4963 PSYC 4966 Cognitive Engineering Thinking Motivation and Performance Sensation and Perception Learning Cognitive Modeling Structure of Language Advanced Experimental Methods and Statistics LISP for AI Psychology of Reasoning Psychology of Decision Making Knowledge Representation and Reasoning Philosophy electives: IHSS 1964 / PHIL 1120 PHIL 2100 PHIL 2130 PHIL 4140 PHIL 4260 PHIL 4380 PHIL 4420 PHIL 4440 PHIL 4480 PHIL 4750 PHIL 4800 Minds and Machines Methods of Reasoning Introduction to Philosophy of Science Intermediate Logic Philosophy of Artificial Intelligence Philosophy of Mathematics Computability and Logic Knowledge, Belief and Cognition Metaphysics and Consciousness Cognition and Education Comparative Cognition Cognitive Science electives: COGS 496X COGS 4940 COGS 4960 Cognitive Robotics Readings in Cognitive Science Topics in Cognitive Science Computational electives: CSCI 2400 CSCI 4020 CSCI 4100 CSCI 4190 DSES 4810 Models of Computation Computer Algorithms Machine and Computational Learning Introduction to Robotic Algorithms Computational Intelligence 14

15 Rationale for the Proposed Curriculum Before developing the curriculum, the committee surveyed undergraduate cognitive science programs at 11 universities. The table below provides basic information about these programs.* * (Note that this information was obtained from the internet, and therefore may not be completely accurate or current.) We found that most of the existing programs are interdisciplinary, requiring required courses drawn from different departments, in addition to some further basic math and science prerequisites. Cognitive science being an inherently interdisciplinary discipline, this seemed like a good formula to us, and is adopted by our proposed curriculum. However, we also found that, while interdisciplinary, many programs nevertheless have a particular orientation. For example, the University of Rochester has a clear emphasis on neuroscience, and Vassar College and UCLA heavily emphasize psychology. This emphasis is no doubt the result of not having a dedicated Cognitive Science department, but with a Cognitive Science Department at place, we felt that we should aim to offer a curriculum that is truly balanced between the major areas of Cognitive Science, as laid out in the Goals section. As such, our proposed curriculum provides students with a deep understanding and rigorous skill set that is balanced between the three primary areas of cognitive science, those being philosophy, psychology, and computer science. To cover some of the other important disciplines of cognitive science, a course on Behavioral Neuroscience is required, as well as a choice between Sensation and Perception or Structure of Language. Moreover, with computational cognitive modeling the current strength of the department, a course on cognitive modeling is required as well. And finally, in order for students to specialize in a specific area, two cognitive science electives are required. 15

16 Organization of the Proposed Curriculum Reflecting the rationale behind the curriculum, the proposed curriculum is organized into: (1) math/science requirements (basic and advanced); (2) required core courses; (3) electives, and (4) thesis. (1) Math/science requirements The math/science requirements provide students with fundamental programming and mathematical skills that are essential for the purposes of modeling, analyzing data, developing task environments, and designing stimuli. The math/science requirements are also prerequisites to courses that are included in the required core (e.g., Computer Science I and II and Data Structures and Algorithms are prerequisites for Cognitive Modeling, LISP for Cognitive Science, and Introduction to Artificial Intelligence). Note that the H&SS math/science requirements will automatically be satisfied by the basic and additional math/science requirements that are part of this curriculum. So students will not be required to take any additional math/science courses to satisfy H&SS requirements. (2) Required core courses The required core courses provide students with a foundation of cognitive science.! Overview course covering all areas: o All students will take PHIL/PSYC 2120 (Introduction to Cognitive Science).! Philosophy: o All students will take PHIL 2140 (Introduction to Logic). o All students will take one introductory-level philosophy course (either IHSS 1964, PHIL 1120, or PHIL 2130) o All students will take one advanced-level philosophy course (PHIL 4260, PHIL 4440, or PHIL 4480).! Psychology: o All students will take PSYC 2310 (Experimental Methods and Statistics) o All students will take PSYC 4370 (Cognitive Psychology). o All students will take either PSYC 4510 (Cognitive Modeling) or PSYC 4965 (LISP for AI).! Computer Science: o All students will take basic programming courses (CSCI 1100, 1200, 2300) o All students will take CSCI 4150 (Introduction to Artificial Intelligence)! Cognitive Neuroscience: o All students will take PSYC 4320 (Behavioral Neuroscience)! Cognitive Ecology: o All students will take either PSYC 4410 (Sensation and Perception) or PSYC 4964 (Structure of Language) 16

17 (3) Electives A long list of electives from the primary areas of psychology, philosophy, and computer science is provided to allow students opportunities to specialize in one or more specific content areas. Students must take two electives. (4) Thesis All students must complete a thesis project (minimum 4 credits) in their final year in culmination of completing this research-oriented curriculum. Students will conduct original research under the supervision of a faculty member. The project could involve empirical data collection, modeling, simulation, or a theoretical/analytical review of the literature. Students may work independently or in as part of a team. A written report must be submitted at the end of the project. Satisfaction of Institute and School Requirements In order to satisfy all Institute and H&SS School requirements, and in addition to the 80 credit hours of required courses as listed above, students majoring in Cognitive Science will have to: o Take BIOL-1010 Introduction to Biology o Take an additional 24 credit hours of humanities and social sciences with the conditions as laid out by the School of Humanities and Social Sciences o Take additional courses for a minimum of 124 credit hours total This should satisfy all Institute and H&SS School requirements, since: o The mathematics and science courses as required by the proposed curriculum will automatically satisfy the 24 credit hours of physical, life, and engineering sciences as required by the Institute and with the conditions as laid out by the School of Science. o The Communications Intensive Requirement will be satisfied by PHIL/PSYC 2120 Introduction to Cognitive Science and by either IHSS 1964/PHIL 1120 Minds & Machines or PHIL 2130 Introduction to Philosophy of Science. o Students will have at least 24 credit hours of free electives, including at least 12 credit hours of unrestricted free electives 17

18 SAMPLE PLAN OF STUDY FOR BS in Cognitive Science (124 credits) First Year MATH 1010 Calculus 4 MATH 1020 Calculus II 4 CSCI 1100 Computer Science I 4 CSCI 1200 Computer Science II 4 BIOL 1010 Intro to Biology 4 MATH 2800 Intro to Discrete Structures 4 IHSS 1964 Minds and Machines* 4 PSYC 2120 Intro to Cognitive Science 4 Second Year CSCI 2300 Data Structures and Algorithms 4 PSYC 2310 Experimental Methods & Stats 4 PSYC 4370 Cognitive Psychology 4 PSYC 4320 Behavioral Neuroscience 4 H&SS Elective 4 H&SS Elective 4 PHIL 2140 Introduction to Logic 4 PHIL 4440 Knowledge, Belief, Cognition*** 4 Third Year CSCI 4150 Intro to Artificial Intelligence 4 Cognitive Science Elective 4 PSYC 4410 Sensation & Perception** 4 PSYC 4510 Cognitive Modeling**** 4 H&SS Elective 4 H&SS Elective 4 Free Elective 4 Free Elective 4 Fourth Year Cognitive Science Elective 4 COGS 4990 Undergraduate Thesis 4 Free Elective 4 Free Elective 4 H&SS Elective 4 H&SS Elective 4 Free Elective 4 * or PHIL 2130: Introduction to Philosophy of Science ** or PSYC 4964: Structure of Language *** or one of the following: PHIL 4260: Philosophy of AI, PHIL 4480: Metaphysics and Consciousness **** or PSYC 4965: LISP for AI 18

19 Feasibility of the Proposed Curriculum The number of required courses (20) is higher than in most other H&SS majors. Moreover, some of these courses are upper-division courses that have pre-requisites, which add to the total number of required courses. And finally, since Cognitive Science is such a young field, whose value may therefore not be clear to potential employers, some students may not want to major in Cognitive Science alone, and wish to complete a dual major between Cognitive Science and some more traditional field. All of this raises questions of feasibility: Can students comfortably complete the program within four years? Are students able to switch into the Cognitive Science Program during a later point in their studies at Rensselaer? And is it possible to combine Cognitive Science in a dual major? Fortunately, as explained below, when looking at the curriculum in detail it turns out that the program is really quite feasible, that students who do not enter the program until the end of their first year will still be able to complete the program in four years, and that there are some good possibilities to do a dual major with Cognitive Science. First of all, as the sample plan of study below demonstrates, taking into account the 24 credits required mathematics and science, and the 24 credits humanities and social science as required by all H&SS majors, students will still have credits for free electives. In fact, the required mathematics and computer science courses will automatically satisfy the 24 credit mathematics and science requirements as required of all H&SS majors, so compared to other H&SS majors, it may be better to regard the Cognitive Science Curriculum as requiring only 14 courses, which makes it actually quite comparable to most H&SS majors. Also, the only prerequisite course for the core courses that is not listed as a required course is General Psychology. Moreover, students who take PHIL/PSYC 2120 (Introduction to Cognitive Science) will be equally prepared to take these upper-level Psychology courses. Thus, in a separate proposal that is being submitted to the Curriculum Committee, Introduction to Cognitive Science will be added as an alternative prerequisite for these courses, completely removing any such hidden requirements. Finally, it should be noted that most first-year students take at least some of the courses listed as math/science requirements. We also expect that some of these students will have already taken one or two of the core courses even when not having declared a Cognitive Science major (e.g., Minds and Machines and Introduction to Logic are both popular courses among freshmen students at Rensselaer). Moreover, our experience with the Minds & Machines Program tells us that we can expect that many of the students that switch into Cognitive Science after their first year will be from Computer Science, whose first year curriculum will look almost identical to the first year in Cognitive Science. Indeed, as a separate section on dual majors below will demonstrate, dual majors with Cognitive Science are quite feasible. 19

20 New Courses and Changes to Existing Courses In order to obtain a new degree program in Cognitive Science, we are asking for a few new courses to be added to the course catalog, and a few changes to existing courses be made. New courses The following courses should be added to the course catalog: o COGS 4990: Undergraduate Thesis o COGS 4940: Readings in Cognitive Science o COGS 4960: Topics in Cognitive Science The following two required core courses are currently offered as topics courses and will need to become official courses in the course catalog: o PSYC 4964: Structure of language o PSYC 4965: LISP for AI Changes to existing courses Five of the required core courses (PSYC 2310, PSYC 4370, PSYC 4320, PSYC 4410, and PSYC 4510) list PSYC 1200 (General Psychology) as a prerequisite. We are submitting a separate proposal to the H&SS Curriculum Committee to add PSYC 2120 (Introduction to cognitive science) as an alternative prerequisite for these courses. Dual Majors As indicated earlier, since Cognitive Science is a young field, some students may wish to combine Cognitive Science with a more traditional field of study, so as to safeguard their possibilities of employment after graduation. Fortunately, there are some good options available to do so. In particular, three options that work really well are to combine Cognitive Science with one of its three main subject areas that form the pillars of Cognitive Science: Philosophy, Psychology, and Computer Science. Two other good options are to combine Cognitive Science with Mathematics or with the new major in Games & Simulation Arts and Sciences. Below are Sample Plans of Study for these five possible dual majors. It should be noted that in order to facilitate dual majors, the Institute allows double-counting of requirements. Thus, a CSCI/COGS, MATH/COGS, or GSAS/COGS dual major will automatically satisfy their 24 H&SS credits by taking the PHIL and PSYC courses as required by the COGS curriculum. A COGS/PHIL major can count the PHIL courses as required by COGS towards their PHIL core course requirement, and can count any additional PHIL courses as part of their PHIL requirements towards the humanities part of their 24 credit H&SS requirement. Likewise, a COGS/PSYC major can count the PSYC courses of their COGS requirements towards their PSYC requirements, and any additional PSYC courses towards the social science part of their required 24 credit H&SS requirement. 20

21 SAMPLE PLAN OF STUDY FOR Dual major in Computer Science and Cognitive Science (128 credits) First Year MATH 1010 Calculus I 4 MATH 1020 Calculus II 4 CSCI 1100 Computer Science I 4 CSCI 1200 Computer Science II 4 PHYS 1100 Physics I 4 MATH 2800 Intro to Discrete Structures 4 IHSS 1964 Minds and Machines* 4 PSYC 2120 Intro to Cognitive Science 4 Second Year CSCI 2300 Data Structures and Algorithms 4 MATH Math Elective 4 CSCI 2500 Computer Organization 4 CSCI 2400 Models of Computation 4 BIOL 1010 Introduction to Biology 4 PSYC 4370 Cognitive Psychology 4 PHIL 2140 Introduction to Logic 4 PSYC 2310 Experimental Methods & Stats 4 Third Year CSCI 4430 Programming Languages 4 CSCI 4210 Operating Systems 4 CSCI Computer Science Elective 4 Science Elective 4 PSYC 4410 Sensation & Perception** 4 PSYC 4510 Cognitive Modeling**** 4 CSCI 4150 Intro to Artificial Intelligence 4 PSYC 4320 Behavioral Neuroscience 4 Fourth Year CSCI 4440 Software D&D 4 CSCI Computer Science Elective 4 Free Elective 4 Free Elective 4 Cognitive Science Elective 4 Cognitive Science Elective 4 PHIL 4260 Philosophy of AI*** 4 COGS 4990 Undergraduate Thesis 4 * or PHIL 2130: Introduction to Philosophy of Science ** or PSYC 4964: Structure of Language *** or one of the following: PHIL 4440: Knowledge, Belief, and Cognition, PHIL 4480: Metaphysics and Consciousness **** or PSYC 4965: LISP for AI 21

22 SAMPLE PLAN OF STUDY FOR Dual major in Cognitive Science and Psychology (124 credits) First Year MATH 1010 Calculus I 4 MATH 1020 Calculus II 4 CSCI 1100 Computer Science I 4 CSCI 1200 Computer Science II 4 PSYC 1200 General Psychology 4 MATH 2800 Intro to Discrete Structures 4 IHSS 1964 Minds and Machines* 4 PSYC 2120 Intro to Cognitive Science 4 Second Year CSCI 2300 Data Structures and Algorithms 4 PSCY 2310 Experimental Methods & Stats 4 PSYC 4370 Cognitive Psychology 4 PSYC 4320 Behavioral Neuroscience 4 Free Elective 4 Free Elective 4 PHIL 2140 Introduction to Logic 4 Cognitive Science Elective 4 Third Year CSCI 4150 Intro to Artificial Intelligence 4 PHIL 4260 Philosophy of AI*** 4 PSYC 4410 Sensation & Perception** 4 PSYC 4510 Cognitive Modeling**** 4 Free Elective 4 Free Elective 4 BIOL 1010 Introduction to Biology 4 PSYC 4310 Advanced Methods and Statistics 4 Fourth Year Cognitive Science Elective 4 COGS 4990 Undergraduate Thesis 4 Humanities Elective 4 Humanities Elective 4 Free Elective 4 H&SS Elective 4 PSYC 4990 Undergraduate Thesis 4 * or PHIL 2130: Introduction to Philosophy of Science ** or PSYC 4964: Structure of Language *** or one of the following: PHIL 4440: Knowledge, Belief, and Cognition, PHIL 4480: Metaphysics and Consciousness **** or PSYC 4965: LISP for AI 22

23 SAMPLE PLAN OF STUDY FOR Dual major in Cognitive Science and Philosophy (124 credits) First Year MATH 1010 Calculus I 4 MATH 1020 Calculus II 4 CSCI 1100 Computer Science I 4 CSCI 1200 Computer Science II 4 BIOL 1010 Introduction to Biology 4 MATH 2800 Intro to Discrete Structures 4 IHSS 1964 Minds and Machines* 4 PHIL 2120 Intro to Cognitive Science 4 Second Year CSCI 2300 Data Structures and Algorithms 4 PSCY 2310 Experimental Methods & Stats 4 PSYC 4370 Cognitive Psychology 4 PSYC 4320 Behavioral Neuroscience 4 Free Elective 4 Free Elective 4 PHIL 2140 Introduction to Logic 4 Cognitive Science Elective 4 Third Year CSCI 4150 Intro to Artificial Intelligence 4 PHIL 4260 Philosophy of AI*** 4 PSYC 4410 Sensation & Perception** 4 PSYC 4510 Cognitive Modeling**** 4 Free Elective 4 Free Elective 4 PHIL Philosophy Elective 4 PHIL Philosophy Elective 4 Fourth Year Cognitive Science Elective 4 COGS 4990 Undergraduate Thesis 4 Social Sciences Elective 4 Social Sciences Elective 4 Free Elective 4 PHIL Philosophy Elective 4 PHIL 4990 Undergraduate Thesis 4 * or PHIL 2130: Introduction to Philosophy of Science ** or PSYC 4964: Structure of Language *** or one of the following: PHIL 4440: Knowledge, Belief, and Cognition, PHIL 4480: Metaphysics and Consciousness **** or PSYC 4965: LISP for AI 23

24 SAMPLE PLAN OF STUDY FOR Dual major in Mathematics and Cognitive Science (130 credits) First Year MATH 1010 Calculus I 4 MATH 1020 Calculus II 4 CSCI 1100 Computer Science I 4 CSCI 1200 Computer Science II 4 PHYS 1100 Physics I 4 MATH 2800 Intro to Discrete Structures 4 IHSS 1964 Minds and Machines* 4 PSYC 2120 Intro to Cognitive Science 4 MATH 1900 Art & Science of Math I 1 MATH 1910 Art & Science of Math II 1 Second Year CSCI 2300 Data Structures and Algorithms 4 MATH 2400 Introduction to Diff. Eq. 4 MATH 2010 Mult. Calc. and Matrix Theory 4 Free Elective 4 BIOL 1010 Introduction to Biology 4 PSYC 4370 Cognitive Psychology 4 PHIL 2140 Introduction to Logic 4 PSYC 2310 Experimental Methods & Stats 4 Third Year MATH 4090 Foundations of Analysis 4 Mathematics Option 4 Mathematics Option 4 Mathematics Option 4 PSYC 4410 Sensation & Perception** 4 PSYC 4510 Cognitive Modeling**** 4 CSCI 4150 Intro to Artificial Intelligence 4 PSYC 4320 Behavioral Neuroscience 4 Fourth Year MATH 4950 Senior Research 4 Mathematics Option 4 Mathematics Option 4 Mathematics Option 4 Cognitive Science Elective 4 Cognitive Science Elective 4 PHIL 4260 Philosophy of AI*** 4 COGS 4990 Undergraduate Thesis 4 * or PHIL 2130: Introduction to Philosophy of Science ** or PSYC 4964: Structure of Language *** or one of the following: PHIL 4440: Knowledge, Belief, and Cognition, PHIL 4480: Metaphysics and Consciousness **** or PSYC 4965: LISP for AI 24

25 SAMPLE PLAN OF STUDY FOR Dual major in Games & Simulation Arts and Sciences and Cognitive Science (128 credits) First Year MATH 1010 Calculus I 4 MATH 2800 Intro to Discrete Structures 4 CSCI 1100 Computer Science I 4 CSCI 1200 Computer Science II 4 IHSS 1972 History & Culture of Games 4 PSYC 2520 Intro Game Design 4 IHSS 1964 Minds and Machines* 4 PSYC 2120 Intro to Cognitive Science 4 Second Year CSCI 2300 Data Structures and Algorithms 4 MATH 2400 Introduction to Diff. Eq. 4 MATH 1020 Calculus II 4 PHYS 1100 Physics I 4 COMM 4969Designing Interactive Characters 4 PSYC 4370 Cognitive Psychology 4 PHIL 2140 Introduction to Logic 4 PSYC 2310 Experimental Methods & Stats 4 Third Year PSYC 4520 Game Development I 4 PSYC 4967 Game Development II 4 CSCI 4150 Intro to Artificial Intelligence 4 BIOL 1010 Introduction to Biology 4 PSYC 4410 Sensation & Perception** 4 PSYC 4510 Cognitive Modeling**** 4 PSYC 4370 Cognitive Psychology 4 PSYC 4320 Behavioral Neuroscience 4 Fourth Year ARTS 4510 Experimental Game Design 4 IHSS GSAS Research Project 4 Free Elective 4 Free Elective 4 Cognitive Science Elective 4 Cognitive Science Elective 4 PHIL 4260 Philosophy of AI*** 4 COGS 4990 Undergraduate Thesis 4 * or PHIL 2130: Introduction to Philosophy of Science ** or PSYC 4964: Structure of Language *** or one of the following: PHIL 4440: Knowledge, Belief, and Cognition, PHIL 4480: Metaphysics and Consciousness **** or PSYC 4965: LISP for AI 25

26 Resources Many of the curricular and physical resources necessary for the proposed undergraduate program are already in place in the form of courses and laboratories that help to support existing programs, including the graduate program in cognitive science and the undergraduate programs in psychology and philosophy, respectively. Also, the proposed undergraduate cognitive science program requires courses that are already part of the existing offerings in the Cognitive Science, Computer Science and Mathematics departments. In short, we believe that the program is good to go with the resources that are currently in place. However, as the program grows and develops, we anticipate pressures on course enrollment, course creation, and undergraduate research support that will necessitate additional resources. Faculty and Physical Resources The program requires faculty resources in the form of courses that need to be taught, undergraduate research projects that need to be supported, thesis projects that need to be administered, and academic advising that needs to take place. With the current faculty resources in place, we believe that we can accommodate about 25 to 30 students in the undergraduate program. However, each additional 15 students going through the program will require an additional full-time tenure-track or clinical faculty to serve the undergraduate program s needs. Also, the undergraduate curriculum could really benefit from having faculty expertise in the specific areas of cognitive robotics, cognitive anthropology, cognition and education, cognitive linguistics, and cognitive neuroscience. Three major physical resources (other than offices and other such obvious requirements) required by the program include: (1) teaching laboratories equipped with software for designing experiments; (2) software to support cognitive modeling and artificial intelligence; and (3) research laboratories equipped to conduct human-subject experiments. Again, we believe that the existing resources will be adequate to support the initial small program size, but that additional resources will be needed as the program grows and develops. In particular, the program could really benefit from a dedicated cognitive robotics teaching/research laboratory and accompanying robotics equipment: such a space will allow for the teaching of a Cognitive Robotics course, the continued support of Minds & Machines popular annual LEGO robot competition, an important educational coming together of various viewpoints on, and facets of, cognition, and abundant opportunities to secure funded research, and support undergraduate research and thesis projects. Thus, we ask that room will be sought for such a laboratory (this space could be shared with other H&SS faculty interested in robotics), as well as $75,000 invested in robotics hardware and software, as the program grows over 25 students in size. 26

27 Program Support Resources Student Advising and Program Administration Staff Support. The EMAC experiment has shown the desirability of having a dedicated staff member assigned to the program to provide student curriculum advice, coordinate internships and coops, review student plans of study, coordinate admission and transfer applications, etc. These very time-consuming but critical functions are less successful when they are assigned to a faculty member of one of the participating disciplines who is less likely to have the full overview of the interdisciplinary program or the time necessary to do the routine administrative work. In the initial two years of the program when enrollments are small, these duties can likely be assigned by the Department Head, in consultation with the Dean, to an existing faculty or staff member. When the program reaches its maturity size, however, a full-time staff member will have to be added, as the workload of advising 60 or more students will be too large to add to an existing person s workload. Technical Staff Support. As the proposed program is computer and lab-intensive, it will require significant and continual technical support for laboratories, instructor support, and student project work. As with the student advising support, this effort in the initial two years of the program can probably be assumed by the existing H&SS technical support staff. As the number of students enrolled in the program grows, however, it is likely to require a dedicated full-time support staff member to successfully handle the required technical support. Course Development Support. Existing faculty need support for the development of courses that are seen as integral to strengthening the undergraduate program. Desired courses would be a course in Cognitive Robotics, as well as a course in Formal Methods in Cognitive Science. Library Support. Rensselaer s library already includes resources used by students in our existing graduate and undergraduate majors. This support must continue, but be expanded in the area of book and journal acquisitions in many of the disciplines which make up cognitive science. Travel Support. Cognitive science is a rapidly changing field. To keep current, faculty of the program will need to attend professional conferences and workshops at major conferences such as the Cognitive Science Society Conference, the International Conference on Cognitive Modeling Society, the Vision Sciences Society, and the American Association of Artificial Intelligence. Our faculty members participation in these types of conferences will be in addition to participation in established disciplinary conferences (in their respective areas) that they ordinarily attend. Departmental travel allocations in H&SS will not be sufficient to support the additional travel just described. Thus, some additional funds for faculty travel will be required. Support for faculty participation in cognitive science research venues will serve an important second function. Attendance and participation in these professional conferences will help establish Rensselaer as an international leader in cognitive science research and education. Conferences are a major source of networking that leads to academic collaboration and joint 27

28 development projects. They also provide tangible evidence of Rensselaer s role as a leader in several domains within the broader field of cognitive science and give our research programs visibility in the broader community. The reputation we establish through this process will also help us to recruit the very best candidates for our cognitive science programs at both the undergraduate and graduate levels. Unlike other undergraduate programs, cognitive science students frequently attend professional conferences. Support for some student travel to present the results of their research and development projects should be included in the budget for this B.S. program. This will further establish the perception of Rensselaer as a first-choice institution for undergraduates. Colloquium and External Speaker Support. It is very important, as noted in the program goals statement, that the faculty and students in the cognitive science program develop and maintain contacts with outside experts in the academic and professional worlds. Support for our active colloquium program will bring high-level individuals from academia and industry to Rensselaer where they will become more familiar with our programs, and where they will add significantly to the intellectual mix of ideas and issues. 28

29 Program Governance Curriculum and Academic Policy A major goal of the proposed program is to develop a unique, unified Cognitive Science program that spans from the undergraduate level all the way to the Ph.D. And as indicated previously in this document, the proposed B.S. program in Cognitive Science will be unique for a variety of reasons, including: (1) its focus at the intersection of the three main pillars of cognitive science psychology, philosophy, and computer science which differentiates our program from the majority of others which tend to have strengths in a single area or a lack of strength because they are too diffuse; (2) its emphasis on computational, mathematical, and formal methods, (3) Rensselaer s strengths and focus in science and technology will help shape (and improve) the overall education our students receive; and (4) the fact that the unified program will be housed in a single department and oversight provided by a diverse faculty that share a unified goal: development of a world-class program in cognitive science. It is noteworthy that while our department began as two separate departments, with faculty possessing very different backgrounds and interests, we have successfully reshaped the department and the focus of its programs. This has included hiring new faculty with interests that complement the department s new set of foci. In short, we have before us a unique opportunity to create a premier program in Cognitive Science at the undergraduate level that will be housed and administered in a single department. Because the program will be housed within a single academic department, day-to-day responsibility for the degree program and its requirements will lie primarily with the Director of the Undergraduate Program who will be appointed by the Department Head with the approval of the faculty of the Department of Cognitive Science. The Director of the Undergraduate Program in Cognitive Science will be responsible for: 1. Working with the Department s Undergraduate Curriculum Committee, the Department Head, and the faculty of Cognitive Science to address general program matters, including budget and performance planning, teaching needs, and curriculum. 2. Course scheduling for the program, in consultation with the Department Head and Undergraduate Curriculum Coordinator. 3. Managing colloquium and special programs in conjunction with the Department Head, the Ph.D. Program Director and other relevant individuals. 4. Insuring adequate availability of physical facilities, in consultation with the Department Head and appropriate representatives of the Dean s Office. 5. Working with individual departments curriculum committees to achieve approval of any proposed courses that are housed within these departments. 6. Working with individual department heads to plan teaching assignments and scheduling for outside faculty members that may be recruited to provide instruction in the program. 7. Forwarding course and curriculum additions, deletions, and changes to the H&SS Faculty Council committee on courses and curricula for approval. 29

30 8. Coordinating assessment activities and preparing annual reports on the state of the program and its status in achieving program and student outcome goals. 9. Working with the department s Undergraduate Curriculum Committee to develop and approve course and curriculum changes with approval subject to review by the Department Head and the appropriate Institute committees (i.e., H&SS Curriculum Committee, Institute Wide Curriculum Committee). 10. Working with the appropriate committees within and outside the department to establish B.S. requirements and program policies. 11. Convening an admissions committee to select and admit students into the program. 12. Working with the Undergraduate Curriculum Committee to develop program assessment activities. Finally, the program will seek to attract top high school seniors who have demonstrated an aptitude for and interest in pursuing an education in cognitive science. We will also seek to attract qualified undergraduate students from other colleges or from other disciplines at Rensselaer who wish to transfer into our programs. Successful applicants will demonstrate strong academic potential as measured by standard criteria, including GPA, SAT scores, and letters of recommendation. Other abilities and accomplishments that can reasonably tied to success in the program will also be considered, including previous experience with programming languages or cognitive architectures, prior experience in developing computer games or animation, research experience, relevant writing samples, or relevant work experience, to name but a few. Growth and Development of the Program The size and scope of the proposed program is consistent with current resources and faculty, with the addition of the items outlined in the Resources section of this proposal. However, the program plan permits growth and development in several ways. As the program grows in the number of undergraduate students going through it, the program can be expanded by adding new faculty, and new laboratory and studio facilities suitable to serve a larger student population. The Program Director, in consultation with the Department Head and Dean, will address the program capacity and staffing each academic year and make decisions about sizing the incoming cohort appropriately for the available faculty and physical resources. The program s curriculum may change as the program matures as a function of the research interests of the Cognitive Science faculty and changes in the field that will undoubtedly occur over time. The Undergraduate Curriculum Committee will meet regularly to assess whether the program s curriculum is meeting student needs and recommend changes when they are warranted. Suggested changes must be approved by the faculty of the Department prior to being enacted. This on-going curriculum review and change is seen as a necessary component of a rapidly changing field. 30

31 Program Assessment Continual assessment of the achievement of student outcome and program goals will be an important characteristic of the proposed undergraduate program in cognitive science. The table shown below summarizes the relationship between goals, curriculum and program activities, and planned assessment activities. Goal Students will demonstrate mastery of the information in several content areas deemed important by the cognitive science faculty Students will demonstrate mastery of a variety of skills important to the field of cognitive science Students should produce written, oral, and visual expressions that achieve clear communication of their ideas. Students will design, carry out, analyze, and write-up the results of an experiment or simulation study. Students will develop professionally through coops, internships, attending lectures, conferences, or workshops, and the creation of a professional portfolio of their work. Curriculum or Program Activity PSYC 2120, 4370, 4320, 4410, 4964 PHIL 2120, 2140, 4260, 4440, 4480 CSCI 1100, 1200, 2300, 4150 MATH 1010, 1020, 2800 PSYC 2310, 4510, 4965 PHIL 2140 All relevant courses and experiences (e.g., coursework, research projects and presentations) Undergraduate research participation; COGS 4990 Undergraduate Thesis. Develop a strong internship and coop program. Develop a network of industry contacts, liaisons, and RPI alumni. Students construct a portfolio illustrating the knowledge, skills, and experience they attain during the program. Planned Assessment Activities Undergraduate Curriculum Committee meets with instructor/project advisors to determine whether students have mastered objectives. Undergraduate Curriculum Committee meets with instructor/project advisors to determine whether students have mastered objectives. Undergraduate Curriculum Committee meets with instructors and advisors to determine whether students have met this objective. Track number of students involved in undergraduate research projects. Track number of internship/coops per year. Administer questionnaire to interns and internship supervisors. 31

32 Goal Program will establish itself as an internationally recognized cognitive science program. Program will attract a sufficient number of highly motivated, academically gifted students to Rensselaer Program will provide students with high quality educational instruction in line with the student knowledge and skills outcome goals. Program will support strong departmental research that includes significant undergraduate participation. Program will provide students with state-of-the-art technologies and facilities for cognitive science research and instruction. Program will develop a strong community network of Rensselaer alumni and promote interaction between them and current students. Program will provide supportive events, lectures and materials that give dimension to the cognitive science experience. Curriculum or Program Activity Work with Media Relations to publicize program and student and faculty work; promote CogSci-supported talks and activities; foster presentations at international conferences. Work with Enrollment Management to promote the program to high school students planning for college admission. Search for and hire faculty that can provide high-quality educational instruction Establish strong corporate partners and funded research programs to support research and development projects that have extensive undergraduate student participation. Provide for facilities in annual Performance Planning process. Develop newsletter. Develop active Web site. Bring alumni in for presentations for students. Continue the Great Debates in Cognitive Science lecture series; Host conferences; Establish ongoing colloquium series; Develop high-end living website showcasing faculty and student research. Planned Assessment Activities Summarize amount of external media coverage; track position on search engine results; track undergraduate program rankings; track number of conference presentations; track graduates from program. Track number of program inquiries, number of admission applications, yield rate, SAT s of applicants and incoming and transfer majors. Meet with instructors and advisors to determine whether students have mastery of the material; Track instructor IDEA scores. Track number of undergraduate students involved in projects and assess quality of their work Invite external program review panel on a periodic 3-5 year basis to assess program and its facilities. Track number of newsletter subscribers; analyze Web server logs to determine usage; track number of alumni presentations. Track student and non-student participation and attendance at Cognitive Science events; analyze Web server logs to determine which features attract the most/least attention. 32

33 Reviews of the Proposed Program During the process of developing this proposal, the committee solicited input from the following sources:! Faculty of the Cognitive Science Department at Rensselaer! Students in the Minds and Machines Program! Faculty Curriculum Committee from the School of Humanities and Social Science. Their comments and feedback was carefully considered by the committee and used to revise the proposal. 33

34 Appendix A Course Syllabi for core courses Appendix B August 22, 2007 Bram van Heuveln Cognitive Science Department Bram: Thank you for giving me a chance to review the proposal for the Cognitive Science major. While this may result in a few additional students in CSCI-1200 Computer Science II, CSCI-2300 Data Structures and Algorithms, and CSCI-4150 Intro to Artificial Intelligence, the Computer Science Department should be able to handle the increased student load. Good luck with your new degree. Sincerely, Robert P. Ingalls Executive Officer Computer Science Department 34