ShanghAI Lectures 2012: Lecture 8 “Where is human memory?”

In this 8th part of the ShanghAI Lecture series, Rolf Pfeifer looks into differences between human and computer memory and shows several types of “memories”. In the first guest lecture, Vera Zabotkina (Russian State University for the Humanities) talks about cognitive modeling in linguistics; in the second guest lecture, José del R. Millán (EPFL) demonstrates a brain-computer interface.

The ShanghAI Lectures are a videoconference-based lecture series on Embodied Intelligence run by Rolf Pfeifer and organized by me and partners around the world.

Vera Zabotkina: Cognitive modeling in linguistics: conceptual metaphors

The concepts that govern our thought are not just matters of the intellect. They also govern our everyday functioning, down to the most mundane details. Our concepts structure what we perceive, how we get around in the world, and how we relate to other people. Our conceptual system thus plays a central role in defining our everyday realities. If we are right in suggesting that our conceptual system is largely metaphorical, then the way we think, what we experience, and what we do every day is very much a matter of metaphor… (Lakoff & Johnson, 1980)

In this lecture, Vera addresses the integration challenge facing cognitive science as an interdisciplinary endeavor. She highlights the interconnection between AI and Linguistics and discusses conceptual metaphors.

José del Millán: Brain-Computer Interfacing
In this lecture, José del R. Millán (EPFL) demonstrates the use of human brain signals to control devices, such as wheelchairs, and interact with our environment.

Related links:

• Slides (4.06 MB)
• ShanghAI Lectures website
• Book: How the Body Shapes the Way We Think
• George Lakoff and Mark Johnson, Metaphors we live by. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1980.
• Cliff Goddard, Semantic Analysis. A practical Introduction. Second edition. Oxford University Press, 2011.
• James Pustejovsky. The Generative Lexicon. Cambridge, MIT Press, 1995.

Nathan Labhart Co-organizing the ShanghAI Lectures since 2009.

Nathan Labhart Co-organizing the ShanghAI Lectures since 2009.