Draft papers available on-line

[Dr. Istvn S. N. Berkeley]

The following draft papers and writings, concerning matters
connectionist are available on-line at the URL below
    
         http:www.ucs.usl.edu/~isb9112/papers.html


Berkeley, I. "Connectionism Reconsidered: Minds, Machines and Models"

Abstract: In this paper the issue of drawing inferences about biological
cognitive systems on the basis of connectionist simulations is
addressed. In particular, the justification of inferences based on
connectionist models trained using the backpropagation learning
algorithm is examined. First it is noted that a justification commonly
found in the philosophical literature is inapplicable. Then some    
general issues are raised about the relationships between models and
biological systems. A way of conceiving the role of hidden units in
connectionist networks is then introduced. This, in combination with an
assumption about the way evolution goes about solving problems, is   
then used to suggest a means of justifying inferences about biological
systems based on connectionist research. 


Berkeley, I. "What the #$*%! is a Subsymbol?"

Abstract: In 1988, Smolensky proposed that connectionist processing
systems should be understood as operating at what he termed the    
'subsymbolic' level. Subsymbolic systems should be understood by
comparing them to symbolic systems, in Smolensky's view. Up until
recently, there have been real problems with analyzing and interpreting
the operation of connectionist systems which have undergone    
training. However, recently published work on a network trained on a set
of logic problems originally studied by Bechtel and Abrahamsen
(1991)seems to offer the potential to provide a detailed, empirically
based answer to questions about the nature of subsymbols. In this paper,
the network analysis procedure and the results obtained using it are
discussed. This provides the basis for a suprising insight into the
nature of subsymbols. (Note: There are currently some problems with the
figures associated with this paper, hopefully this will be fixed soon.)


Berkeley, I. "Some Myths of Connectionism". 

Abstract: This paper considers a number of claims about connectionist  
systems which are often encoutered in the philosophical literature. The
myths discussed here include the claim that connectionist systems are,
in some sense, biological or neural, the claim that connectionist
systems are compatible with real-time processing constraints, the claim
that connectionist systems exhibit graceful degradation and the claim
that connectionist systems are good generalizers. In the case of each of
these claims, it is argued that there is a mythical component and, as
such, claims of this kind should not be accepted by philosophers without
appropriate qualification. (N.B. This paper is aimed more at a
philosophical audience, than a technical one).


Berkeley, I. "A Revisionist History of Connectionism".

Abstract: An alternative perspective on the history of connectionism is
offered in this short paper. In this paper a number of claims and
conclusions often encountered in standard versions of the history are
disputed. This paper also includes some new material from the people
involved in the history of AI and Cognitive Science. 


Berkeley, I. "An Introduction to Connectionism". 

This is a useful teaching resource, which provides a reasonably
accessible and non-technical introduction to the basic components and
concepts which are important to backpropogation systems. It includes a
description of some of the kinds of processing units which can be
employed. 

All the best,

Istvan
-- 
Istvan S. N. Berkeley Ph.D,     E-mail: istvan at USL.edu,  
Philosophy, The University of Southwestern Louisiana, 
USL P. O. Box 43770, Lafayette, LA 70504-3770, USA.
Tel:(318) 482 6807, Fax: (318) 482 6195, http://www.ucs.usl.edu/~isb9112
*****
Learn about the new Cognitive Science Ph.D. program at USL, visit
http://cognition.usl.edu
*****