Syllabus

Week one I try to take as many students from the waitlist as I can, please email cogsadvising@ucsd.edu with further questions.

Course Materials

• There is no required textbook
• All course materials are provided through this website and in-class

Course Objective

To explore the complex and loopy nature of sensorimotor systems in Cognitive Science. Using python and small microprocessors, we will build robotic systems with sensory systems to complete complex tasks. No prior programming experience is required, this course will teach you basic programming skills, build fundamental computational skills and thinking, as well as introduce you to some fundamental concepts within Cognitive Science, specifically embodied, embedded, and distributed cognition.

Grading

• Final exam date: No final exam, only a final group project presentation/demo in week 10 and a report due during finals week.
• Your letter grade will be determined using the standard grading scale. Grades are not rounded up, that’s why we have included bonus points.

Attendance

The purpose of Cogs 8 is to get hands-on with computing. Therefore class lecture and section is mandatory after week 1 and a part of your grade. I know emergencies and personal issues do come up. You will be allowed to miss one class without any penalty. For further logistic issues, you will need to talk 1:1 with me or our TA. Due to the dynamic nature of this class, I will not be podcasting, therefore it is essential to make the time and effort to show up to our scheduled classroom activities. Abscences will cause points to be deducted from your final grade.

The attendance sign-in sheet will only be available for ~15 minutes after the start of class. After which you will be unable to sign in.

Equipment Replacement Policy

All the robotic equipment loaned out to the students for this class are subjected to a replacement policy under the circumstance that they are lost/stolen/misplaced. You will not be penalized for broken or damaged parts as long as you can return the loaned parts back to the instructor or TAs before the end of finals week of the quarter. In the instance that the loaned part cannot be returned in any shape or form, you will be required to pay the following amount to cover the cost of replacing the part.

• For a BBC Micro:Bit - $10 - individual covers the cost
  
• Pixy Cam and/or Servo attachment - $50 - group splits the cost
  
• Smart Robot - $50 - group splits the cost
  

Please understand this is a non-negotiable policy that you are expected to adhere to. So we would advise you take care of the equipment loaned to you.

Course Topics

This class covers a wide range of topics. This is by design and meant to expose you to many topics within Cognitive Science, as well as get your hands messy writing some code and making real-world ‘things’ like robots! Some of the topics we will cover include:

• Python programming language (specifically micropython)
• Robotics
• Embodied cognition
• Distributed cognition
• Embedded cognition
• Brain in the Vat
• Microprocessors
• Sensorimotor systems
• Data processing

Activities

Activities will focus on applying computational skills to build robotic-based agents that will sense and act in the real world. You do not need to have any prior programming experience. We will teach you how to perform basic programming, as well as provide you with a majority of the code you will need to get started with activities. The coding should not be a source of a terrible amount of anxiety. But you might sweat once or twice! :)

• We will walk you through an in-class demo on how to get everything set up to begin working on your robot.
• Several in-class activities where you will work both, individually and with your team. Most activities will be completed within the class, however, there will be extra time during the discussion section and during office hours to continue working on your Activities. You will be able to do some work at home as well.

Remember, this is NOT a explicit programming class. We will use programming to learn about cognitive science. But the goal is to not overload you with complex programming tasks; however, you are at UCSD and we have an expectation of what students are capable of, so you will learn how to program in this class. It is just not the main focus :)

Teamwork Expectations

Your team will be working on the final together. We expect all students to, more or less, be equal contributors to the final project. No one person should be doing a project, they are meant to be collaborative and give you experience working with people you probably do not know. One successful approach is to first agree on a communication tool/protocol and a schedule. Next, discuss each person’s strengths and divide up responsibilities. Develop a schedule for completing tasks, who is responsible, and a backup person in case an emergency occurs. Finally, check in regularly to ensure progress is being made and leave some time to check and proofread each other’s work. Especially because some students in your group may be remote for part of the class.

Dealing with non-cooperative team members – If an issue occurs first try to work the issue out within your group. Save all documentation, emails, and chats as a record in case you need to contact the course staff. We will step in and try to communicate with the student(s) to reach a resolution. If no resolution can be made, or the problem resurfaces, we reserve the right to move the student to a new group, and grade that student separately from the group or any other action to resolve the issue.

Group work is never easy – Teamwork, while difficult (especially during potentially remote interaction), is one of the most important skills you should learn and practice during college. In order to succeed, communication is critical. You need to be in contact with your group regularly. This will help you keep on top of deliverables and make adjustments if problems should arise. We are always here to help, and make use of our experience working on real engineering/science projects.

Academic Integrity

Don’t cheat. Please review academic integrity policies here.

We anticipate you all doing well in this course; however, if you are feeling lost or overwhelmed, that’s ok! Should that occur, we recommend: (i.) asking questions in/after class, (ii.) attending office hours, and/or (iii.) reaching out to course staff. Cheating and plagiarism have been and will be strongly penalized.

Class/Web Conduct

In all interactions in this class, you are expected to be respectful. This includes following the UC San Diego principles of the community.

This class will be a welcoming, inclusive, and harassment-free experience for everyone, regardless of gender, gender identity and expression, age, sexual orientation, disability, physical appearance, body size, race, ethnicity, religion (or lack thereof), political beliefs/leanings, or technology choices.

At all times, you should be considerate and respectful. Always refrain from demeaning, discriminatory, or harassing behavior and speech. Last of all, take care of each other.

If you have a concern, please speak with me, or the TA. If you are uncomfortable doing so, that’s ok! The OPHD (Office for the Prevention of Sexual Harassment and Discrimination) and CARE (confidential advocacy and education office for sexual violence and gender-based violence) are wonderful resources on campus.