CS471/571: Advanced Topics in AI.

Instructor: Prof. Drew McDermott. Course meets MW 2:30–3:45 AKW 400.

AI and Philosophy of Mind (Spring 2014)

Syllabus

In Spring of 2014, CPSC471/571, "Topics in Artificial Intelligence," will focus on "AI and Philosophy of Mind." Here are issues we will examine:

1. How to write a philosophy paper: The importance of arguments.
2. Overview and history of AI and cognitive science
3. Philosophy of Mind — the classical problems. Mental representations and their connection to an "outer world'; epistemology; the mind/body problem; the freedom of the will; (un)consciousness.
4. Attempts at solution. Dualism, which seems undoubtable, but which frays around the edges; materialism and its intuitive incredibility.
5. Attempts to solve the problems of materialism. Behaviorism, functionalism, computationalism.
6. Turing machines and computability Formal systems and their relationship to AI and cognitive science.
7. Getting computationalism right. It's not the theory that people are digital computers, nor the theory that they are universal Turing machines.
8. The relationship between connectionism and computationalism. A new paradigm, or a strain of computationalism?
9. Meaning and intentionality.
   • The classical notion of intentionality: Word meaning, thought meaning
   • Naturalizing representation: How would you know a representation if you found one?
10. Computational theories of phenomenal consciousness. Shifting the point that needs to be explained: why and how do we believe we're conscious? Self-models. The horizon of introspection.
11. Standard arguments that computationalism is true or false a priori. (By Putnam, Searle, Block, Penrose, Chalmers, Good, Kurzweil, …)
12. General writing techniques. Punctuation, grammar, and such.

Unlike most courses in computer science, CS471/571 does not lay out tidy problems with known answers that we can test you on. Grades will be based to a significant extent on writing that shows students have insights into the important problems in our topic area and can express them clearly and logically. Some lecture time will be devoted to talking about writing and what makes it good or bad. Feedback on papers will be as much about writing as about the subject matter. That's why the course will help fulfill the WR requirement.

Students will be required to write two major essays giving reasoned answers to specific questions raised by the readings and by discussions in class. In addition, there will be shorter assignments (a page or less) answering short questions about the readings.

There is no textbook for the course this term. There will be various papers and book excerpts as requried reading, approximately two papers a week. These papers will be made available electronically, in the Resources section of the Classes2 site for the course.

The course is suitable for both advanced undergraduates and graduate students.

Prerequisites:

1. Computational fluency: It would be nice to require an AI course as a prerequisite, but we seem not to have a reliable offering in this area (except for CS472, on social robotics). So an overview of important aspects of AI will be presented early on. No prior of knowledge of philosophy of mind is assumed. Part of our goal is to educate computer-science students about an area of cognitive science they probably have no previous acquaintance with. Philosophy students who know how to program a computer are welcome.
2. Fluency in English: Philosophy is hard enough, but philosophy in a language you can't speak or write is impossible. We cannot expect a student to be wrestling with elementary grammar and vocabulary and at the same time navigate the nuances of philosophical meaning.

CS571: Graduate students take the course under the rubric CS571. Graduate students will meet an extra hour each week (time TBA) and discuss papers somewhat more difficult than the regular readings. A student will lead the discussion during these sessions.

Grades will be based mainly on writing assignments, and to a lesser extent on class participation. There are two major writing assignments. The first (about 6 pages) will be due around the midterm; the second (about 15 pages), at the end of the term. For the first essay, students will have the opportunity to submit first drafts for feedback on the writing. For the second, a proposal is required, for which feedback will be provided.

Graduate students' grades will also depend on their presentations in the grad-student session.