Assignments

This section provides the assignments for the course. "Communication assignment" refers to the form that the student's written assignment should take. For example, if the assignment refers to "press release," the student's submission should be in the form of a press release.  "Communication hors d'oeuvre" refers to  the introductory first half hour of class that is spent discussing communication heuristics. Some of the assignments refer to "WRT," which stands for "Winston's Reading Time." This refers to the length of time the professor needed to read the paper, which students can use to estimate their reading time, once they have calibrated themselves against the professor on the first few assignments.

ASSIGNMENT # DAY TOPICS COMMUNICATION ASSIGNMENT COMMUNICATION HORS D'OEUVRE
1 Wednesday Winston reflects on the first 50 years (PDF)

-

-

2 Monday Turing suggests test for success (PDF)

-

Broken glass diagram
3 Wednesday Minsky lays out steps toward creating AI (PDF) Broken glass diagram Abstracts/Conclusions
4 Tuesday Ullman explains streams and counter streams (PDF) Abstract/conclusion Elevators, Visions, Steps, News
5 Wednesday Brooks denies value of representations (PDF) Abstract/conclusion Fonts and contributions
6 Monday Feldman and Ballard argue for connectionism (PDF) Abstract/conclusion Knowledge engineering
7 Wednesday Marr speaks to what constitutes good work (PDF) Breakfast talk Spider web evaluations
8 Monday Minsky predicts important role for perception (PDF) Email critique Winston's star
9 Wednesday Ullman confronts top-down-bottom-up issue (PDF) Abstract/conclusion Emulation (Watson, McPherson)
10 Monday Rao offers explanation for acquisition of visual routines (PDF) Cover Letter Helping friends talk
11 Wednesday Kirby offers insight into emergence of syntax (PDF) Slide show Slide shows heuristics
12 Monday Borchardt focues on transitions (PDF) Slide show Book covers
13 Wednesday Jackendoff grounds out in the world (PDF) Tenure letter Press Release
14 Monday Yip and Sussman use sparse spaces to model learning of phonological rules (PDF) Press release How to pick a graduate school
15 Wednesday Lenat builds machine accessible encyclopedia (PDF) Business assessment Grilling and being grilled
16 Monday Spelke determines what infants find surprising (PDF) Trip report How to run a conference
17 Wednesday Borchardt tells all (PDF) Interview questions

-

18 Wednesday Vaina and Greenblatt attack trees
Sutherland calls for courage (PDF)
Journal Review How to interview on camera
How to write a journal review
19 Monday Geiger argues that dyslexics see too much
Bizzi explains what the frog's brain tells the frog's leg (PDF)
Letter to author(s) How to threaten constructively
20 Wednesday Spelke demonstrates role of language in reorientation
Wilson demonstrates possible role for sleep (PDF)
Textbook chapter opening How to write a book
21 Monday Sur rewires brains (PDF) Letter proposal to NSF How to write a proposal
22 Wednesday Guest: Jerome Lettvin
Also, Lettvin explains what the frog's eye tells the frog's brain (PDF)
Slides

-

23 Monday Yuret lays a foundation for language semantics (PDF) Quad chart How to run a study / Terms of Reference
24 Wednesday Gentner recalls the importance of analogy (PDF) Slides + legends report Panel discussions
25 Monday Assignment (PDF) / End game Helping a buddy Boyfriend in a box
26 Wednesday Assignment, Part I (PDF) Assignment, Part II (PDF) / End game Helping a buddy Message to Garcia
27

-

Makeup assignment I (PDF)

-

-

28

-

Makeup assignment II (PDF)

-

-