Brain & Cognitive Sciences

6.863J · Graduate · Spring 2003

6.863 is a laboratory-oriented course on the theory and practice of building computer systems for human language processing, with an emphasis on the linguistic, cognitive, and engineering foundations for understanding their design.

9.00 · Undergraduate · Fall 2004

This course surveys questions about human behavior and mental life ranging from how you see to why you fall in love. The great controversies: nature and nurture, free will, consciousness, human differences, self and society. Students are exposed to the range of theoretical perspectives including biological, evolutionary, cognitive, and psychoanalytic. One of the best aspects of Psychology is that you are the subject matter. This makes it possible to do many demonstrations in lecture that allow …

9.00SC · Undergraduate · Fall 2011

<p>This course is a survey of the scientific study of human nature, including how the mind works, and how the brain supports the mind. Topics include the mental and neural bases of perception, emotion, learning, memory, cognition, child development, personality, psychopathology, and social interaction. Students will consider how such knowledge relates to debates about nature and nurture, free will, consciousness, human differences, self, and society.</p> <p>Course Format</p> <p>This course has …

9.01 · Undergraduate · Fall 2007

This course is an introduction to the mammalian nervous system, with emphasis on the structure and function of the human brain. Topics include the function of nerve cells, sensory systems, control of movement, learning and memory, and diseases of the brain.

9.01 · Undergraduate · Fall 2003

This course covers the relation of structure and function at various levels of neuronal integration. Topics include functional neuroanatomy and neurophysiology, sensory and motor systems, centrally programmed behavior, sensory systems, sleep and dreaming, motivation and reward, emotional displays of various types, “higher functions” and the neocortex, and neural processes in learning and memory.

9.03 · Undergraduate · Fall 2007

This course highlights the interplay between cellular and molecular storage mechanisms and the cognitive neuroscience of memory, with an emphasis on human and animal models of hippocampal mechanisms and function. Class sessions include lectures and discussion of papers.

9.04 · Undergraduate · Fall 2013

This course examines the neural bases of sensory perception. The focus is on physiological and anatomical studies of the mammalian nervous system as well as behavioral studies of animals and humans. Topics include visual pattern, color and depth perception, auditory responses and sound localization, and somatosensory perception.

9.05 · Undergraduate · Spring 2003

Surveys general principles and specific examples of motor control in biological systems. Emphasizes the neural mechanisms underlying different aspects of movement and movement planning. Covers sensory reception, reflex arcs, spinal cord organization, pattern generators, muscle function, locomotion, eye movement, and cognitive aspects of motor control. Functions of central motor structures including cerebellum, basal ganglia, and cerebral cortex considered. Cortical plasticity, motor learning an…

9.07 · Undergraduate · Fall 2016

Provides students with the basic tools for analyzing experimental data, properly interpreting statistical reports in the literature, and reasoning under uncertain situations. Topics organized around three key theories: Probability, statistical, and the linear model. Probability theory covers axioms of probability, discrete and continuous probability models, law of large numbers, and the Central Limit Theorem. Statistical theory covers estimation, likelihood theory, Bayesian methods, bootstrap a…

9.10 · Undergraduate · Spring 2006

This course explores the cognitive and neural processes that support attention, vision, language, motor control, navigation, and memory. It introduces basic neuroanatomy, functional imaging techniques, and behavioral measures of cognition, and discusses methods by which inferences about the brain bases of cognition are made. We consider evidence from patients with neurological diseases (Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, Huntington’s disease, Balint’s syndrome, amnesia, and focal lesions…

9.011 · Graduate · Fall 2002

Survey of principles underlying the structure and function of the nervous system, integrating molecular, cellular, and systems approaches. Topics: development of the nervous system and its connections, cell biology or neurons, neurotransmitters and synaptic transmission, sensory systems of the brain, the neuro-endocrine system, the motor system, higher cortical functions, behavioral and cellular analyses of learning and memory. First half of an intensive two-term survey of brain and behavioral …

9.012 · Graduate · Spring 2002

<p>This course is the second half of the intensive survey of brain and behavioral studies for first-year graduate students in the Brain and Cognitive Sciences curriculum. Each module of this core course involves a series of overview lectures by leading researchers in the field. By offering a thorough introduction to the current state of the discipline while emphasizing critical thinking, the course aims to prepare students as cognitive scientists.</p> <p>Topics include: perception, attention, w…

9.12 · Undergraduate · Fall 2006

Designed for students without previous experience in techniques of cellular and molecular biology, this class teaches basic experimental techniques in cellular and molecular neurobiology. Experimental approaches covered include tissue culture of neuronal cell lines, dissection and culture of brain cells, DNA manipulation, synaptic protein analysis, immunocytochemistry, and fluorescent microscopy.

9.012 · Graduate · Spring 2006

This class is the second half of an intensive survey of cognitive science for first-year graduate students. Topics include visual perception, language, memory, cognitive architecture, learning, reasoning, decision-making, and cognitive development. Topics covered are from behavioral, computational, and neural perspectives.

9.13 · Undergraduate · Spring 2019

This course surveys the core perceptual and cognitive abilities of the human mind and asks how they are implemented in the brain. Key themes include the representations, development, and degree of functional specificity of these components of mind and brain. The course will take students straight to the cutting edge of the field, empowering them to understand and critically evaluate empirical articles in the current literature.

9.14 · Undergraduate · Spring 2014

This course provides an outline of vertebrate functional neuroanatomy, aided by studies of comparative neuroanatomy and evolution, and by studies of brain development. Topics include early steps to a central nervous system, basic patterns of brain and spinal cord connections, regional development and differentiation, regeneration, motor and sensory pathways and structures, systems underlying motivations, innate action patterns, formation of habits, and various cognitive functions. In addition, …

9.15 · Undergraduate · Fall 2007

This course considers the process of neurotransmission, especially chemicals used in the brain and elsewhere to carry signals from nerve terminals to the structures they innervate. We focus on monoamine transmitters (acetylcholine; serotonin; dopamine and norepinephrine); we also examine amino acid and peptide transmitters and neuromodulators like adenosine. Macromolecules that mediate neurotransmitter synthesis, release, inactivation and receptor-mediated actions are discussed, as well as fact…

9.16 · Undergraduate · Spring 2002

<p>This course includes:</p> <ul> <li>Surveying the molecular and cellular mechanisms of neuronal communication.</li> <li>Coversion channels in excitable membrane, synaptic transmission, and synaptic plasticity.</li> <li>Correlation of the properties of ion channels and synaptic transmission with their physiological function such as learning and memory.</li> <li>Discussion of the organizational principles for the formation of functional neural networks at synaptic and cellular levels.</li> </ul>

9.17 · Undergraduate · Spring 2013

Systems Neuroscience Laboratory consists of a series of laboratories designed to give students experience with basic techniques for conducting systems neuroscience research. It includes sessions on anatomical, neurophysiological, and data acquisition and analysis techniques, and the ways these techniques are used to study nervous system function. Training is provided in the art of scientific writing with feedback designed to improve writing skills. Assignments include weekly preparation for lab…

9.20 · Undergraduate · Fall 2013

The introductory topics will cover various approaches to the study of animals and their behavior. Key concepts in studies of animal behavior, emphasizing ethology, are covered in class and in the assigned readings from Scott (2005), supplemented by selections from other books, especially from classics in the field as well as selected videos. Next, key concepts in sociobiology are covered using readings from Alcock (2001), supplemented by selections from additional books and some video presentat…

9.22J · Undergraduate · Fall 2006

<p>This course is designed to provide an understanding of how the human brain works in health and disease, and is intended for both the Brain and Cognitive Sciences major and the non-Brain and Cognitive Sciences major. Knowledge of how the human brain works is important for all citizens, and the lessons to be learned have enormous implications for public policy makers and educators.</p> <p>The course will cover the regional anatomy of the brain and provide an introduction to the cellular functi…

9.29J · Undergraduate · Spring 2004

<p>This course gives a mathematical introduction to neural coding and dynamics. Topics include convolution, correlation, linear systems, game theory, signal detection theory, probability theory, information theory, and reinforcement learning. Applications to neural coding, focusing on the visual system are covered, as well as Hodgkin-Huxley and other related models of neural excitability, stochastic models of ion channels, cable theory, and models of synaptic transmission.</p> <p>Visit the Seun…

9.35 · Undergraduate · Spring 2009

This course provides an introduction to important philosophical questions about the mind, specifically those that are intimately connected with contemporary psychology and neuroscience. Are our concepts innate, or are they acquired by experience? (And what does it even mean to call a concept ‘innate’?) Are ‘mental images’ pictures in the head? Is color in the mind or in the world? Is the mind nothing more than the brain? Can there be a science of consciousness? The course will include guest lec…

9.35 · Undergraduate · Spring 2024

This course studies how the senses work and how physical stimuli are transformed into signals in the nervous system. It examines how the brain uses those signals to make inferences about the world and uses illusions and demonstrations to gain insight into those inferences, emphasizing audition and vision, with some discussion of touch, taste, and smell. Experience with psychophysical methods is provided.

9.036 · Graduate · Spring 2005

This comprehensive course on the visual system is designed to ground future researchers in the field of visual science and to provide scientists with an excellent basis for using the visual system as a model in research. In this graduate seminar, anatomical, neurophysiological, imaging and behavioral research is examined in an attempt to gain a better understanding of how information is processed in the primate visual system.

9.40 · Undergraduate · Spring 2018

This course introduces quantitative approaches to understanding brain and cognitive functions. Topics include mathematical description of neurons, the response of neurons to sensory stimuli, simple neuronal networks, statistical inference and decision making. It also covers foundational quantitative tools of data analysis in neuroscience: correlation, convolution, spectral analysis, principal components analysis, and mathematical concepts including simple differential equations and linear algeb…

9.46 · Undergraduate · Fall 2017

How do we decide whether an action is morally wrong? How do we choose to do what is right? When and why do we punish wrong-doers? Moral behavior and moral evaluation are functions of the human brain. It is just becoming possible to use neuroscientific methods to understand how they work. This course will consider the mechanisms of morality as a question for neuroscientists.

9.51 · Undergraduate · Spring 2003

This course is an investigation of affective priming and creation of rigorously counterbalanced, fully computerized testing paradigm. Includes background readings, study design, counterbalancing, study execution, data analysis, presentation of poster, and final paper.

9.52-A · Undergraduate · Spring 2003

This course is an investigation to distinguish episodic memory, which is memory of personal events, from semantic memory, which is general knowledge independent of time and place.

9.52-B · Undergraduate · Spring 2001

Survey and special topics designed for students in Brain and Cognitive Sciences. Emphasizes ethological studies of natural behavior patterns and their analysis in laboratory work, with contributions from field biology (mammology, primatology), sociobiology, and comparative psychology. Stresses human behavior but also includes major contributions from studies of other animals.

9.52-C · Undergraduate · Spring 2003

An introduction to computational theories of human cognition.&nbsp;Emphasizes questions of inductive learning and inference, and the representation of knowledge. Project required for graduate credit. This class is suitable for intermediate to advanced undergraduates or graduate students specializing in cognitive science, artificial intelligence, and related fields.

9.56J · Undergraduate · Fall 2004

Introduction to the linguistic study of language pathology, concentrating on experimental approaches and theoretical explanations. Discussion of Specific Language Impairment, autism, Down syndrome, Williams syndrome, normal aging, Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease, hemispherectomy and aphasia. Focuses on the comparison of linguistic abilities among these syndromes, while drawing clear comparisons with first and second language acquisition. Topics include the lexicon, morphology, syntax, …

9.57J · Undergraduate · Fall 2001

Covers the major results in the study of first language acquisition concentrating on the development of linguistic structure, including sentence structure and morphology. Universal aspects of development are discussed, as well as a variety of cross-linguistic phenomena. Theories of language learning are considered, including parameter-setting and maturation.

9.59J · Undergraduate · Spring 2017

Hands-on experience designing, conducting, analyzing, and presenting experiments on the structure and processing of human language. Focuses on constructing, conducting, analyzing, and presenting an original and independent experimental project of publishable quality. Develops skills in reading and writing scientific research reports in cognitive science, including evaluating the methods section of a published paper, reading and understanding graphical displays and statistical claims about data,…

9.63 · Undergraduate · Fall 2002

Teaches principles of experimental methods in human perception and cognition, including design and statistical analysis. Combines lectures and hands-on experimental exercises; requires an independent experimental project. Some experience in programming desirable. To foster improved writing and presentation skills in conducting and critiquing research in cognitive science, students are required to provide reports and give oral presentations of three team experiments; a fourth individually conduc…

9.63 · Undergraduate · Fall 2009

9.63 teaches principles of experimental methods in human perception and cognition, including design and statistical analysis. The course combines lectures and hands-on experimental exercises and requires an independent experimental project. Some experience in programming is desirable. To foster improved writing and presentation skills in conducting and critiquing research in cognitive science, students are required to provide reports and give oral presentations of three team experiments. A four…

9.65 · Undergraduate · Spring 2004

This undergraduate course is designed to introduce students to cognitive processes. The broad range of topics covers each of the areas in the field of cognition, and presents the current thinking in this discipline. As an introduction to human information processing and learning, the topics include the nature of mental representation and processing, the architecture of memory, pattern recognition, attention, imagery and mental codes, concepts and prototypes, reasoning and problem solving.

9.66J · Undergraduate · Fall 2004

This course is an introduction to computational theories of human cognition. Drawing on formal models from classic and contemporary artificial intelligence, students will explore fundamental issues in human knowledge representation, inductive learning and reasoning. What are the forms that our knowledge of the world takes? What are the inductive principles that allow us to acquire new knowledge from the interaction of prior knowledge with observed data? What kinds of data must be available to h…

9.67 · Undergraduate · Spring 2001

Provides a comprehensive introduction to key issues and findings in object recognition in experimental, neural, computational, and applied domains. Emphasizes the problem of representation, exploring the issue of how 3-D objects should be encoded so as to efficiently recognize them from 2-D images. Second half focuses on face recognition, an ecologically important instance of the general object recognition problem. Describes experimental studies of human face recognition performance and recent …

9.68 · Undergraduate · Spring 2013

This course studies the relations of affect to cognition and behavior, feeling to thinking and acting, and values to beliefs and practices. These connections will be considered at the psychological level of organization and in terms of their neurobiological and sociocultural counterparts.

9.69 · Undergraduate · Spring 2003

Advances in cognitive science have resolved, clarified, and sometimes complicated some of the great questions of Western philosophy: what is the structure of the world and how do we come to know it; does everyone represent the world the same way; what is the best way for us to act in the world. Specific topics include color, objects, number, categories, similarity, inductive inference, space, time, causality, reasoning, decision-making, morality and consciousness. Readings and discussion includ…

9.70 · Undergraduate · Spring 2013

This course examines interpersonal and group dynamics, considers how the thoughts, feelings, and actions of individuals are influenced by (and influence) the beliefs, values, and practices of large and small groups. Learning occurs through a combination of lectures, demonstrations and in-class activities complemented by participation in small study groups and completion of homework assignments.

9.71 · Undergraduate · Fall 2007

<p>We are now at an unprecedented point in the field of neuroscience: We can watch the human brain in action as it sees, thinks, decides, reads, and remembers. Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) is the only method that enables us to monitor local neural activity in the normal human brain in a noninvasive fashion and with good spatial resolution. A large number of far-reaching and fundamental questions about the human mind and brain can now be answered using straightforward application…

9.75J · Undergraduate · Spring 2003

We will examine current research and theory regarding the validity and utility of commonly accepted gender differences in many realms. Topics include: gender differences in cognitive abilities; the social construction of gender; developmental, family, educational and medical influences; and political and economic forces.

9.081 · Graduate · Fall 2002

Surveys the literature on the cognitive and neural organization of human memory and learning. Includes consideration of working memory and executive control, episodic and semantic memory, and implicit forms of memory. Emphasizes integration of cognitive theory with recent insights from functional neuroimaging (e.g., fMRI and PET).

9.85 · Undergraduate · Fall 2012

This course is an introduction to cognitive development focusing on children’s understanding of objects, agents, and causality. It develops a critical understanding of experimental design. The course discusses how developmental research might address philosophical questions about the origins of knowledge, appearance and reality, and the problem of other minds. It provides instruction and practice in written communication as needed for cognitive science research (including critical reviews of jo…

9.93 · Undergraduate · January IAP 2007

<p>This seminar focuses on the cognitive science of moral reasoning. Philosophers debate how we decide which moral actions are permissible. Is it permissible to take one human life in order to save others? We have powerful and surprisingly rich and subtle intuitions to such questions.</p> <p>In this class, you will learn how intuitions can be studied using formal analytical paradigms and behavioral experiments. Thursday evening, meet to learn about recent advances in theories of moral reasoning…

9.93 · Undergraduate · January IAP 2002

<p>This course is offered during the Independent Activities Period (IAP), which is a special 4-week term at MIT that runs from the first week of January until the end of the month.</p> <p>This survey course is intended to review memory and its impact on our lives. Memories make us who we are, and make us what we are going to become. The loss of memory in amnesia can cause us to lose ourselves.</p> <p>Memory provides a bridge between past and present. Through memory, past sensations, feelings, a…

9.95-A · Graduate · January IAP 2003

<p>This series of research talks by members of the Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences introduces students to different approaches to the study of the brain and mind.</p> <p>Topics include:</p> <ul> <li>From Neurons to Neural Networks</li> <li>Prefrontal Cortex and the Neural Basis of Cognitive Control</li> <li>Hippocampal Memory Formation and the Role of Sleep</li> <li>The Formation of Internal Modes for Learning Motor Skills</li> <li>Look and See: How the Brain Selects Objects and Dire…

9.96 · Graduate · January IAP 2001

Students will be exposed to all aspects of a cutting-edge technique in modern electrophysiology, in a highly structured, team oriented environment. The research projects will probe the neural mechanisms of learning and memory through tetrode array recordings coupled with patterned microstimulation. Due to the broad nature of tasks to be completed, coupled with the team oriented approach we will be employing, we are interested in students with a wide variety of laboratory experience and skill le…

9.97 · Undergraduate · January IAP 2003

This subject will be an intensive introduction to neuroanatomy, involving lectures, demonstrations, and hands-on laboratories, including a brain dissection. The course will not assume any prior knowledge of neuroanatomy, though some general knowledge of brain structures will be helpful.

9.98 · Undergraduate · January IAP 2003

This course will address some fundamental questions regarding human language: (1) how language is represented in our minds; (2) how language is acquired by children; (3) how language is processed by adults; (4) the relationship between language and thought; (5) exploring how language is represented and processed using brain imaging methods; and (6) computational modeling of human language acquisition and processing.

9.98 · Undergraduate · January IAP 2009

<p>The neuropharmacology course will discuss the drug-induced changes in functioning of the nervous system. The specific focus of this course will be to provide a description of the cellular and molecular actions of drugs on synaptic transmission. This course will also refer to specific diseases of the nervous system and their treatment in addition to giving an overview of the techniques used for the study of neuropharmacology.</p> <p>This course is offered during the Independent Activities Per…

9.201 · Graduate · Spring 2000

The course includes survey and special topics designed for graduate students in the brain and cognitive sciences. It emphasizes ethological studies of natural behavior patterns and their analysis in laboratory work, with contributions from field biology (mammology, primatology), sociobiology, and comparative psychology. It stresses mammalian behavior but also includes major contributions from studies of other vertebrates and of invertebrates. It covers some applications of animal-behavior knowl…

9.250 · Graduate · Spring 1999

Current research on the evolution and development of cognition and affect, including intuitive physics, biology, and psychology, language, emotions, sexuality, and social relations.

9.357 · Graduate · Fall 2001

An advanced seminar on issues of current interest in human and machine vision. Topics vary from year to year. This year, the class will involve studying the perception of materials. Participants discuss current literature as well as their ongoing research. Topics are tackled from multiple standpoints, including optics, psychophysics, computer graphics and computer vision.

9.401 · Graduate · Fall 2022

This course offers a comprehensive exploration of cutting-edge tools and techniques designed to revitalize and enhance scientific practices in the cognitive and neuro-sciences. Students will identify obstacles to conducting robust scientific research, practice using tools meant to overcome these obstacles, and critically evaluate these tools’ potential and limitations.

9.458 · Undergraduate · Summer 2006

<p>Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a chronic, progressive, degenerative disease of the brain that produces movement disorders and deficits in executive functions, working memory, visuospatial functions, and internal control of attention. It is named after James Parkinson (1755-1824), the English neurologist who described the first case.</p> <p>This six-week summer workshop explored different aspects of PD, including clinical characteristics, structural neuroimaging, neuropathology, genetics, and co…

9.459 · Undergraduate · Spring 2006

What are the circuits, mechanisms and representations that permit the recognition of a visual scene from just one glance? In this one-day seminar on Scene Understanding, speakers from a variety of disciplines - neurophysiology, cognitive neuroscience, visual cognition, computational neuroscience and computer vision - will address a range of topics related to scene recognition, including natural image categorization, contextual effects on object recognition, and the role of attention in scene un…

9.520 · Graduate · Spring 2003

Focuses on the problem of supervised learning from the perspective of modern statistical learning theory starting with the theory of multivariate function approximation from sparse data. Develops basic tools such as Regularization including Support Vector Machines for regression and classification. Derives generalization bounds using both stability and VC theory. Discusses topics such as boosting and feature selection. Examines applications in several areas: computer vision, computer graphics, …

9.520 · Graduate · Spring 2006

This course is for upper-level graduate students who are planning careers in computational neuroscience. This course focuses on the problem of supervised learning from the perspective of modern statistical learning theory starting with the theory of multivariate function approximation from sparse data. It develops basic tools such as Regularization including Support Vector Machines for regression and classification. It derives generalization bounds using both stability and VC theory. It also di…

9.520-A · Graduate · Spring 2001

The course focuses on the problem of supervised learning within the framework of Statistical Learning Theory. It starts with a review of classical statistical techniques, including Regularization Theory in RKHS for multivariate function approximation from sparse data. Next, VC theory is discussed in detail and used to justify classification and regression techniques such as Regularization Networks and Support Vector Machines. Selected topics such as boosting, feature selection and multiclass cl…

9.530 · Graduate · Spring 2000

Life as an emergent property of networks of chemical reactions involving proteins and nucleic acids. Mathematical theories of metabolism, gene regulation, signal transduction, chemotaxis, excitability, motility, mitosis, development, and immunity. Applications to directed molecular evolution, DNA computing, and metabolic and genetic engineering.

9.591J · Graduate · Fall 2004

This course is a seminar in real-time language comprehension. It considers models of sentence and discourse comprehension from the linguistic, psychology, and artificial intelligence literature, including symbolic and connectionist models. Topics include ambiguity resolution and linguistic complexity; the use of lexical, syntactic, semantic, pragmatic, contextual and prosodic information in language comprehension; the relationship between the computational resources available in working memory …

9.641J · Graduate · Spring 2005

This course explores the organization of synaptic connectivity as the basis of neural computation and learning. Perceptrons and dynamical theories of recurrent networks including amplifiers, attractors, and hybrid computation are covered. Additional topics include backpropagation and Hebbian learning, as well as models of perception, motor control, memory, and neural development.

9.675 · Graduate · Spring 2006

This course takes a ‘back to the beginning’ view that aims to better understand the end result. What might be the developmental processes that lead to the organization of ‘booming, buzzing confusions’ into coherent visual objects? This course examines key experimental results and computational proposals pertinent to the discovery of objects in complex visual inputs. The structure of the course is designed to get students to learn and to focus on the genre of study as a whole; to get a feel for …

9.911 · Graduate · January IAP 2002

To provide instruction and dialog on practical ethical issues relating to the responsible conduct of human and animal research in the brain and cognitive sciences. Specific emphasis will be placed on topics relevant to young researchers including data handling, animal and human subjects, misconduct, mentoring, intellectual property, and publication.

9.912 · Graduate · Fall 2001

Memory is not a unitary faculty, but rather consists of multiple forms of learning that differ in their operating characteristics and neurobiological substrates. This seminar will consider current debates regarding the cognitive and neural architectures of memory, specifically focusing on recent efforts to address these controversies through application of functional neuroimaging (primarily fMRI and PET).

9.913 · Graduate · Fall 2004

The applications of pattern recognition techniques to problems of machine vision is the main focus for this course. Topics covered include, an overview of problems of machine vision and pattern classification, image formation and processing, feature extraction from images, biological object recognition, bayesian decision theory, and clustering.

9.913-A · Graduate · January IAP 2002

The course will start with an overview of the central and peripheral nervous systems (CNS and PNS), the development of their structure and major divisions. The major functional components of the CNS will then be reviewed individually. Topography, functional distribution of nerve cell bodies, ascending and descending tracts in the spinal cord. Brainstem organization and functional components, including cranial nerve nuclei, ascending / descending pathways, amine-containing cells, structure and i…

9.914 · Graduate · Fall 2008

An opportunity for graduate study of advanced subjects in Brain and Cognitive Sciences not included in other subject listings. The key topics covered in this course are Bipolar Disorder, Psychosis, Schizophrenia, Genetics of Psychiatric Disorder, DISC1, Ca++ Signaling, Neurogenesis and Depression, Lithium and GSK3 Hypothesis, Behavioral Assays, CREB in Addiction and Depressive Behaviors, The GABA System-I, The GABA System-II, The Glutamate Hypothesis of Schizophrenia, The Dopamine Pathway and D…

9.916 · Graduate · Fall 2009

Humans are social animals; social demands, both cooperative and competitive, structure our development, our brain and our mind. This course covers social development, social behaviour, social cognition and social neuroscience, in both human and non-human social animals. Topics include altruism, empathy, communication, theory of mind, aggression, power, groups, mating, and morality. Methods include evolutionary biology, neuroscience, cognitive science, social psychology and anthropology.

9.916 · Graduate · Fall 2001

This course will consider the degree and nature of the modular organization of the mind and brain. We will focus in detail on the domains of objects, number, places, and people,&nbsp;drawing on evidence from behavioral studies in human infants, children, normal adults, neurological patients, and animals, as well as from studies using neural measures such as functional brain imaging and ERPs. With these domains as examples, we will address broader questions about the role of domain-general and d…

9.916 · Graduate · Spring 2005

Understanding the brain’s remarkable ability for visual object recognition is one of the greatest challenges of brain research. The goal of this course is to provide an overview of key issues of object representation and to survey data from primate physiology and human fMRI that bear on those issues. Topics include the computational problems of object representation, the nature of object representations in the brain, the tolerance and selectivity of those representations, and the effects of att…

9.916-A · Graduate · Spring 2003

<p>Probability theory captures a number of essential characteristics of human cognition, including aspects of perception, reasoning, belief revision, and learning. Expressions of degree of belief were used in language long before people began codifying the laws of probability theory. This course explores the history and debates over codifying the laws of probability, how probability theory applies to specific cognitive processes, how it relates to the human understanding of causality, and how n…

9.S915 · Graduate · Spring 2012

This course uses neuroscience methods to study the cognitive development of human infants and children. Case studies draw from research on face recognition, language, executive function, representations of objects, number and theory of mind.

24.08J · Undergraduate · Spring 2009

This course provides an introduction to important philosophical questions about the mind, specifically those that are intimately connected with contemporary psychology and neuroscience. Are our concepts innate or are they acquired by experience? And what does it even mean to call a concept ‘innate’? Are ‘mental images’ pictures in the head? Is color in the mind or in the world? Is the mind nothing more than the brain? Can there be a science of consciousness? The course includes guest lectures b…

24.941J · Graduate · Spring 2007

This course provides an overview of the distinctive features which distinguish sound categories of languages of the world. Theories which relate these categories to their acoustic and articulatory correlates, both universally and in particular languages, are covered. Models of word recognition by listeners, features, and phonological structure are also discussed. In addition, the course offers a variety of perspectives on these issues, drawn from Electrical Engineering, Linguistics and Cognitiv…

HST.722J · Graduate · Fall 2005

An advanced course covering anatomical, physiological, behavioral, and computational studies of the central nervous system relevant to speech and hearing. Students learn primarily by discussions of scientific papers on topics of current interest. Recent topics include cell types and neural circuits in the auditory brainstem, organization and processing in the auditory cortex, auditory reflexes and descending systems, functional imaging of the human auditory system, quantitative methods for rela…

HST.723J · Graduate · Spring 2005

This course focuses on neural structures and mechanisms mediating the detection, localization and recognition of sounds. Discussions cover how acoustic signals are coded by auditory neurons, the impact of these codes on behavioral performance, and the circuitry and cellular mechanisms underlying signal transformations. Topics include temporal coding, neural maps and feature detectors, learning and plasticity, and feedback control. General principles are conveyed by theme discussions of auditory…

RES.9-0002 · Graduate · January IAP 2009

A whirl-wind tour of the statistics used in behavioral science research, covering topics including: data visualization, building your own null-hypothesis distribution through permutation, useful parametric distributions, the generalized linear model, and model-based analyses more generally. Familiarity with MATLAB®, Octave, or R will be useful, prior experience with statistics will be helpful but is not essential. This course is intended to be a ground-up sketch of a coherent, alternative persp…

RES.9-003 · Graduate · Summer 2015

<p>This course explores the problem of intelligence—its nature, how it is produced by the brain and how it could be replicated in machines—using an approach that integrates cognitive science, which studies the mind; neuroscience, which studies the brain; and computer science and artificial intelligence, which study the computations needed to develop intelligent machines. Materials are drawn from the Brains, Minds and Machines Summer Course offered annually at the Marine Biological Laboratory in…

RES.9-004 · Non-Credit · Fall 2022

<p>Professor Nancy Kanwisher uses a brain imaging method called fMRI to study the human brain. Her website, <em>Nancy’s Brain Talks,</em> is a collection of short videos that explore the different scientific techniques used to study the human mind and brain. You do not need any background in the field to understand the talks.</p> <p>Topics include:</p> <ul> <li>What Kinds of Minds and Brains Do We Have?</li> <li>How Can You Study the Human Mind and Brain?</li> <li>Face Perception</li> <li>fMRI …

RES.9-005 · Graduate · Fall 2017

<p>This video lecture series begins with an introduction to the basics of anatomical and functional MRI and the time course of the fMRI signal, then delves into several methods for analyzing fMRI data. The series emphasizes how to think about fMRI data and the steps of analysis rather than the technical execution of each step.</p> <p>Lecture Topics:</p> <ul> <li>fMRI Bootcamp Part 1 - Basics of fMRI</li> <li>fMRI Bootcamp Part 2 - fMRI timecourse</li> <li>fMRI Bootcamp Part 3 - Univariate analy…

RES.9-006 · Non-Credit · Spring 2018

<p>This training course is an introduction to the use of the AFNI software suites for the analysis of functional MRI (fMRI) data. It is not intended as an introduction to how fMRI works but is aimed at people who are already doing fMRI data analysis, or those who will be in the near future.&nbsp;</p> <p>AFNI (Analysis of Functional NeuroImages) is a leading software suite of C, Python, and R programs and shell scripts, primarily developed for the analysis and display of anatomical and fMRI data…

RES.9-007 · Non-Credit · Spring 2019

<p>This series helps learners understand magnetoencephalography (MEG) signals through the lens of source estimation, decoding, and connectivity: principles, pitfalls, and perspectives.</p> <p>MEG methodological approaches have grown remarkably during the 50-year history of MEG. A breadth of source estimation tools can localize brain activity even in challenging situations. Pattern analysis of brain activity can perform feats of mind reading by revealing what a person is seeing, perceiving, atte…

RES.9-008 · Non-Credit · Fall 2023

<p>This is a seminar series led by graduate students and postdocs in the MIT Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences (BCS) from 2015 to the present, featuring tutorials on computational topics relevant to research on intelligence in neuroscience, cognitive science, and artificial intelligence. These tutorials are aimed at participants who have some computational background but are not experts on these topics.</p> <p>A computational tutorial can consist of any method, tool, or model that is b…

RES.9-009 · Graduate, Non-Credit · January IAP 2025

<p>In this course, you will learn the basics of computational neuroscience via hands-on model building in Neuroblox and Julia. You will simulate models from the literature, from single neurons to large circuits with synaptic plasticity, and fit them to neural data. By the end of the course, you will be able to model your data, build your own custom circuit “blox” that may be incorporated into the Neuroblox library, and explore how interventions such as drugs and stimulation probes affect neural…