Cognition

Description

An introductory course in cognitive psychology covering the basic mechanisms governing human intelligence. Topics include object recognition, attention, imagery, memory, reasoning, problem solving, and language comprehension.

What is required to have more computing power than a billion PCs, is readily portable, and weighs less than 1.5kgs?  How does this magnificent machine comprehend language and make inferences, such as for example that the previous sentence refers to the human brain?  How do we so speedily and accurately recognise objects and faces, in poor light, and even when they are partly obscured?  What is known about how the brain stores information from scenes and our environs, our past experiences, and general world knowledge so that the right information is conveniently available just when you need it, except in a test or exam?  What is attention and why does it appear to be so selective?  Do we ever process information unconsciously?  In our everyday thinking does the brain lead us to follow logical rules and rational procedures or has evolution provided us with outher modes of thought more suited to the uncertainties of our social and physical worlds?  Clever experiments coupled with newly emerging methods for tracking activity in the brain are rapidly enhancing knowlege of human cognition and its underlying processes.  You should find this course fundamental preparation for your later studies in almost any area of psychology and particularly in social, industrial-organisational, abnormal, clinical, forensic, and developmental psychology.  Every student considering postgraduate study in psychology should include the study of human cognition in his or her undergraduate programme.