conference on dynamic models

[Robert Port]

 DYNAMIC REPRESENTATION IN COGNITION
 November 14-17, 1991 (Thurs eve til Sun noon)
 Indiana University - Bloomington, Indiana

 INVITED SPEAKERS
   James Crutchfield  (UC Berkeley, Mathematics)
   Jeffrey Elman  (UC San Diego, Cognitive Science)
   Walter Freeman  (UC Berkeley, Physiology-Anatomy)
   Paul van Geert  (Groningen University, Psychology)
   Jordan Pollack  (Ohio State, Computer Science)
   Jean Petitot   (CNRS Paris, Mathematics)
   Elliot Saltzman  (Haskins Laboratories)
   James Townsend  (IU Bloomington, Psychology)
   Michael T. Turvey  (University of Connecticut, Psychology)
 

Cognition is a dynamic phenomenon. Cognitive processes are in 
continuous adaptive interaction with the changing environment.
The cognizing system must deal in real time with a constantly 
changing environment.  Many crucial features of the environment, 
such as the escape path of prey or an utterance in a natural language, 
have an extended temporal structure.  Further, in development and 
learning, the system itself  undergoes change.   Yet cognitive 
science has traditionally tried to abstract away from the dynamic nature of 
cognition, using various strategies -- such as dividing time into discrete 
segments or taking cognitive processing to be the sequential manipulation of 
static representational structures.  Increasingly, this approach is being 
challenged by researchers in a wide variety of fields who are building 
dynamics directly into their theories and models of cognitive processes.
These include many who now believe that dynamical systems theory is a more 
appropriate mathematical framework for the study of cognition than symbolic 
computation.  A radical new conception of mental representation is gradually 
emerging: representations might hemselves be dynamic structures such as 
trajectories in a system state space.  There are now many concrete examples 
of dynamical models of cognitive phenomena in areas such as motor control, 
olfaction and language processing.  The aim of this workshop-style conference 
is to bring together many key researchers, to share perspectives from 
diverse areas of cognitive modeling, and to provide plenty of time to discuss 
the foundational issues in genuinely dynamical conceptions of cognition. 

ORGANIZING COMMITTEE 
 Robert Port (Linguistics and Computer Science), co-chair
   port at cs.indiana.edu   ph:(812)-855-9217
 Timothy van Gelder (Philosophy), co-chair
   tgelder at ucs.indiana.edu   ph:(812)-855-7088
 Geoffery Bingham  (Psychology), Linda Smith  (Psychology),
 Esther Thelen  (Psychology), James Townsend  (Psychology)

POSTER SESSION 
There will be a poster session Friday evening for work related to these
issues.   Posters will remain on display throughout the conference.  
Please submit your poster abstract before October 15, 1991.


REGISTRATION FEE = $50 ($20 for students)         CONFERENCE LIMIT = 120 persons

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION

US MAIL: Conference Registrar                | EMAIL: MMACKENZ at UCS.INDIANA.EDU
         IU Conference Bureau, IMU Room 677  | PHONE: (812)-855-4661
         Bloomington, IN 47406               |   FAX: (812)-855-8077

SPONSORED BY: Office of Naval Research, IU Institute of the Study of Human 
Capabilities, Departments of Philosophy and Linguistics, and the Cognitive 
Science Program.