scholarly journals What is the role of computational models in Cognitive Science? A quantitative and qualitative analysis of the history of the TRACE model of speech segmentation

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Manisha Chawla ◽  
Richard Shillcock

Implemented computational models are a central paradigm of Cognitive Science. How do cognitive scientists really use such models? We take the example of one of the most successful and influential cognitive models, TRACE (McClelland & Elman, 1986), and we map its impact on the field in terms of published, electronically available documents that cite the original TRACE paper over a period of 25 years since its publication. We draw conclusions about the general status of computational cognitive modelling and make critical suggestions regarding the nature of abstraction in computational modelling.

Impact ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 2020 (7) ◽  
pp. 9-11
Author(s):  
Junya Morita

Dr Junya Morita is based at the Applied Cognitive Modelling Laboratory (ACML) within the Department of Behavior Informatics at Shizuoka University in Japan. His team is conducting investigations that use computational models in an effort to improve our understanding of human minds and their inner workings. There are currently two directions of study underway at ACML. The first is concerned with theoretical studies of cognitive modelling, where the team try to construct models that explain human minds as computational and algorithmic levels. The second direction of study is the application of computational cognitive models. Morita and his team believe that there are fundamental values within the basic endeavours of cognitive science and are working to prove these values exist and are valid. Current topics of application include education, driving, entertainment, graphic design, language development, web navigation and mental illness.


2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (2) ◽  
pp. 547
Author(s):  
Julio Vera ◽  
Christopher Lischer ◽  
Momchil Nenov ◽  
Svetoslav Nikolov ◽  
Xin Lai ◽  
...  

In most disciplines of natural sciences and engineering, mathematical and computational modelling are mainstay methods which are usefulness beyond doubt. These disciplines would not have reached today’s level of sophistication without an intensive use of mathematical and computational models together with quantitative data. This approach has not been followed in much of molecular biology and biomedicine, however, where qualitative descriptions are accepted as a satisfactory replacement for mathematical rigor and the use of computational models is seen by many as a fringe practice rather than as a powerful scientific method. This position disregards mathematical thinking as having contributed key discoveries in biology for more than a century, e.g., in the connection between genes, inheritance, and evolution or in the mechanisms of enzymatic catalysis. Here, we discuss the role of computational modelling in the arsenal of modern scientific methods in biomedicine. We list frequent misconceptions about mathematical modelling found among biomedical experimentalists and suggest some good practices that can help bridge the cognitive gap between modelers and experimental researchers in biomedicine. This manuscript was written with two readers in mind. Firstly, it is intended for mathematical modelers with a background in physics, mathematics, or engineering who want to jump into biomedicine. We provide them with ideas to motivate the use of mathematical modelling when discussing with experimental partners. Secondly, this is a text for biomedical researchers intrigued with utilizing mathematical modelling to investigate the pathophysiology of human diseases to improve their diagnostics and treatment.


2020 ◽  
Vol 63 (2) ◽  
pp. 135-164
Author(s):  
Miljana Milojevic ◽  
Vanja Subotic

This paper aims to offer a new view of the role of connectionist models in the study of human cognition through the conceptualization of the history of connectionism - from the simplest perceptrons to convolutional neural nets based on deep learning techniques, as well as through the interpretation of criticism coming from symbolic cognitive science. Namely, the connectionist approach in cognitive science was the target of sharp criticism from the symbolists, which on several occasions caused its marginalization and almost complete abandonment of its assumptions in the study of cognition. Criticisms have mostly pointed to its explanatory inadequacy as a theory of cognition or to its biological implausibility as a theory of implementation, and critics often focused on specific shortcomings of some connectionist models and argued that they apply on connectionism in general. In this paper we want to show that both types of critique are based on the assumption that the only valid explanations in cognitive science are instances of homuncular functionalism and that by removing this assumption and by adopting an alternative methodology - exploratory mechanistic strategy, we can reject most objections to connectionism as irrelevant, explain the progress of connectionist models despite their shortcomings and sketch the trajectory of their future development. By adopting mechanistic explanations and by criticizing functionalism, we will reject the objections of explanatory inadequacy, by characterizing connectionist models as generic rather than concrete mechanisms, we will reject the objections of biological implausibility, and by attributing the exploratory character to connectionist models we will show that practice of generalizing current to general failures of connectionism is unjustified.


2018 ◽  
Vol 41 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kevin Arceneaux

AbstractIntuitions guide decision-making, and looking to the evolutionary history of humans illuminates why some behavioral responses are more intuitive than others. Yet a place remains for cognitive processes to second-guess intuitive responses – that is, to be reflective – and individual differences abound in automatic, intuitive processing as well.


2001 ◽  
Vol 120 (5) ◽  
pp. A442-A442
Author(s):  
P TSIBOURIS ◽  
M HENDRICKSE ◽  
P ISAACS

Crisis ◽  
2012 ◽  
Vol 33 (2) ◽  
pp. 80-86 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sami Hamdan ◽  
Nadine Melhem ◽  
Israel Orbach ◽  
Ilana Farbstein ◽  
Mohammad El-Haib ◽  
...  

Background: Relatively little is known about the role of protective factors in an Arab population in the presence of suicidal risk factors. Aims: To examine the role of protective factors in a subsample of in large Arab Kindred participants in the presence of suicidal risk factors. Methods: We assessed protective and risk factors in a sample of 64 participants (16 suicidal and 48 nonsuicidal) between 15 and 55 years of age, using a comprehensive structured psychiatric interview, the Composite International Diagnostic Interview (CIDI), self-reported depression, anxiety, hopelessness, impulsivity, hostility, and suicidal behavior in first-degree and second-relatives. We also used the Religiosity Questionnaire and suicide attitude (SUIATT) and multidimensional perceived support scale. Results: Suicidal as opposed to nonsuicidal participants were more likely to have a lifetime history of major depressive disorder (MDD) (68.8% vs. 22.9% χ2 = 11.17, p = .001), an anxiety disorder (87.5% vs. 22.9, χ2 = 21.02, p < .001), or posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) (25% vs. 0.0%, Fisher’s, p = .003). Individuals who are otherwise at high risk for suicidality have a much lower risk when they experience higher perceived social support (3.31 ± 1.36 vs. 4.96 ± 1.40, t = 4.10, df = 62, p < .001), and they have the view that suicide is somehow unacceptable (1.83 ± .10 vs. 1.89 ± .07, t = 2.76, df = 60, p = .008). Conclusions: Taken together with other studies, these data suggest that the augmentation of protective factors could play a very important role in the prevention of incidental and recurrent suicidal behavior in Arab populations, where suicidal behavior in increasing rapidly.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
B Mangiavillano ◽  
S Carrara ◽  
E Dabizzi ◽  
F Auriemma ◽  
V Cennamo ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  

1997 ◽  
pp. 3-8
Author(s):  
Borys Lobovyk

An important problem of religious studies, the history of religion as a branch of knowledge is the periodization process of the development of religious phenomenon. It is precisely here, as in focus, that the question of the essence and meaning of the religious development of the human being of the world, the origin of beliefs and cult, the reasons for the changes in them, the place and role of religion in the social and spiritual process, etc., are converging.


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