Research

Mental Representations: Structure and Process

A variety of different forms of modelling and simulation of cognitive processes and embodied cognitive tasks occurs at the Institute.  Modelling platforms include ACT-R, Nengo, and NetLogo, though a good deal of modeling is programmed from scratch, often in python.

 The VSIM labs include driving, helicopter, and fixed wing simulators.

Associated researchers:

Andrew Brook, Chris Herdman, Deepthi Kamawar, Jim Davies, Avi Parush, Guy Lacroix, Jo-Anne LeFevre, Monique Senechal

Logic, Language, and Information

The logic, language, and information cluster includes researchers interested in topics such as the logical foundations of language, computational logic, constraint-based syntax and semantics, formal pragmatics, and knowledge representation.

Associated Researchers:

Ash Asudeh, Leo Bertossi, Raj Singh, Ida Toivonen

Natural Language Processing

The Natural Language Processing and Simulation cluster includes researchers interested in topics such as computational linguistics, language modelling and simulation, language acquisition, neurolinguistics and psycholinguistics.

Associated Researchers:

Ash Asudeh, Jean-Pierre Corriveau, Masako Hirotani, John Logan, Kumiko Murasugi, Raj Singh.

Sound, Structure, and Meaning

The Sound, Structure, and Meaning cluster includes researchers interested in topics such as phonetics, phonology, prosody, morphology, syntax, semantics, pragmatics, field linguistics, language change, cross-linguistic variation, and language and culture.

Associated Researchers:

Ash Asudeh, Lev Blumenfeld, Eros Corazza, Randall Gess, Masako Hirotani, Marie-Odile Junker, John Logan,Kumiko Murasugi, Raj Singh, Ida Toivoven.

Applications of Cognitive Research

Cognitive scientists are involved in the application of cognitive science research to real world problems. At the Institute, researchers explore how research in cognitive science may inform areas such as mathematics education, gaming, visualization, team-oriented technology, spatial cognition applied to navigation, and language training.

Associated researchers: Robert Biddle, Jim Davies, Chris Herdman, Jo-Anne LeFevre, John Logan, Robert West.

Many researchers in this cluster are also involved in the Centre for Applied Cognitive Research.

Modelling and Simulation

A variety of different forms of modelling and simulation of cognitive processes and embodied cognitive tasks occurs at the Institute.  Modelling platforms include Visuo, ACT-R, and NetLogo. The VSIM labs include driving, helicopter, and fixed wing simulators.

Associated Researchers: Jim Davies, Chris Herdman, Robert West, Tony White.

Children’s Thinking: What Develops?

Researchers at the Institute explore issues related to the development of children’s thinking and language.  The development of language and literacy is one focus, as is work on Theory of Mind and executive function.

Associated researchers;

Deepthi Kamawar, Jo-Anne LeFevre, John Logan, Monique Senechal

The research interests of individual faculty members can be found at the core faculty and adjunct faculty listings.

In early 2007 the construction of the VSIM building was completed. VSIM is the new home of a number of interdisciplinary research laboratories where a significant number of cognitive research projects are carried out.

Current ICS Colloquia Schedule: Fall 2020 – Winter 2021

Introduction to Sona – Research Participation Credits

If you are taking CGSC 1001 you will have the opportunity to have an “up close” look at cognitive science research through research participation studies conducted by Cognitive Science professors, graduate students, and honours thesis students from Carleton University’s Department for Cognitive Science.

Research participation comes in several forms (i.e., lab studies, online studies, reading and writing about research articles). All are designed to foster understanding and appreciation of cognitive science research. Research Participation credits are worth 4% and count as bonus grades.

Participating in Cognitive Science Studies for Credit

At the beginning of the term when you are taking CGSC 1001, you will receive an e-mail containing your SONA login information and instructions explaining how to use the system to sign up for your  choice of Research Participation Studies. In order to see a list of the available studies, you will need to log into the SONA system at https://carleton-ics.sona-systems.com.

There are two types of studies that you can sign-up for:

• Lab studies (conducted in a lab, typically on campus)
• Online studies (completed online from any computer).

Lab studies: For each 30 minute block that you spend participating in a lab study on campus, you will earn 0.5%. There is no cap (i.e., no limit) on the number of lab studies you can participate in up to the maximum of 4% towards your research participation credits.

• (up to) 30 min lab study = 0.5%
• 31-60 min lab study = 1.0%
• 61-90 min lab study = 1.5%
• 91-120 min lab study = 2% … etc.

Online studies: For each 30 minute block that you spend participating in an online study, you will earn .25%. There is a cap on the number of online studies you can participate in; you can earn a maximum of 3% (of the 4%) towards your research participation credits by participating in online studies. The remaining 1% can be earned by lab study participation or reading and writing about research articles for credit.

* The reason for the online cap is that we want to encourage students to experience a lab study which typically provides a richer and more interactive experience.

• (up to) 30 min survey = 0.25%
• •  31-60 min survey = 0.5%
• •  61-90 min survey = 0.75%
• •  91-120 min = 1% … etc.

Reading and Writing about Research Articles for Credit

An alternative way to earn your 4% research participation credits is by reading and answering questions about research articles (see your course outline for more details).

What is the last day that I can earn Research Participation Credits?

You will then have until the last day of classes for the term to earn your research participation credits (i.e., through Cognitive Science studies and/or alternative written assignments).

What if I have issues accessing my information or logging in?

Check your in-box and re-read your email that you received prior to contacting the SONA Administrator.

If you find that you are still having difficulty, then you can contact Melissa Lett, the SONA Administrator.  You can reach Melissa by email at Melissa.Lett@carleton.ca

Note: any students who have mistakenly found this page please click here for student participant information.

Sona Recruitment: Q&A’s for Researchers

Some important information on using Sona is summarized on link below:

Sona CheatSheet (004)

What/where is Sona?

Sona is an online application. There are two Sona’s – one for psychology and one for cognitive science. Cognitive science faculty and their student researchers must use the cognitive science Sona, found here: carleton-ics.sona-systems.com

Who can use the “cognitive science” Sona?

Sona is available to all cognitive science faculty and their students.

How does a researcher (my student, myself, etc.) get access to Sona?

Sona requires a researcher ID and a password. To get the ID/password, please email the Sona administrator – their email can be found at the bottom of the Sona page (carleton-ics.sona-systems.com).

What happens once I get my login information?

Once you get your login information and log into Sona by entering it on the Sona webpage (carleton-ics.sona-systems.com), you can add information about your study and set up time slots so that participants can sign up. The Sona admin will send you the Sona manual that describes how to do this step. It is the researcher’s responsibility to read the manual and set up their study.

Can I email the Sona administrator if I need help setting up my study in Sona?

It is the researcher’s responsibility to set up their studies in Sona – the Sona administrator does not provide support for this process beyond providing links to the documentation. Please note that beyond the Sona manual you will be provided, there is a great deal of documentation available online (e.g., on using Qualtrics in conjunction with Sona).

What if my study is a Survey (e.g. Survey Monkey)?

You need to set-up your study in SONA and link it to Survey (see the SONA manual).

Can online studies be set up through Sona?

Yes (also see next item).

Is there support for online research provided at Carleton?

Carleton provides free access to Qualtrics, which is software for setting up surveys online and collecting data through these surveys. For more information on getting this software, please contact the ethics office (carleton.ca/humanresearchethics). Once you get the software, please refer to the Sona manual and Qualtrics documentation for setting up your study.

How do much and what way can participants recruited via Sona be compensated?

The standard compensation is course credit (currently for CGSC 1001). Please be sure to follow the guidelines outlined here when determining the amount of credit:

carleton.ca/ics/current-students/undergraduate/participating-in-psychological-research-sona/

In particular, please do not alter the amount of credit given for participation outlined in these guidelines.

Sona participants can also be paid in lieu of course credit.

Do I need ethics approval to recruit via Sona?

Yes, ethics approval is needed to recruit participants using Sona. See HERE.

When is Sona available?

Currently, Sona is available whenever CGSC 1001 is offered (typically during the fall, winter, spring, and summer terms, but please check the calendar for exact dates).

This is a service for the distribution, tracking, and citation of unpublished or draft material related to cognitive science. The documents here are checked for formatting and appropriateness of content, but are not otherwise reviewed in any way. By submitting a document, the authors grant permission to distribute it on this site, but the copyright remains with them. Although this service is intended primarily for the cognitive science community centered around Carleton, we will consider submissions from elsewhere.

View the Reports

Submissions should be made by email in either Word (preferred) or PDF formats to Jim Davies (jim@jimdavies.org). Be sure to include author name and contact information on the first page of the document.

Some reasons for submitting a tech report:

• You are presenting a paper at a conference that does not publish its proceedings, but you want to distribute the full paper anyway.
• You have a paper under review somewhere that you would like to distribute in draft form.
• You have a paper you are thinking of submitting to a conference or journal but want to distribute for feedback first.
• Somone wants to cite your paper (or you want to cite your own paper) but it hasn’t yet been published, or may never be published.
• You have a paper with some original ideas that you would like to distribute, but for whatever reason, you don’t want to (or feel you can’t) publish it in a journal or conference proceedings.

Technical reports should be cited as shown in the example below:

Brook, Andrew. 2001. Atomism, Anti-representationalism and a Sketch of an Alternative. Carleton University Cognitive Science Technical Report 2001-02. URL http://www.carleton.ca/ics/TechReports