CogSci 2025 SPEAKERS
Keynote Speakers
Harvard University
Susan Carey
Thursday, July 31
The Future of Foundational Ideas of Cognitive Science
Carey investigates the origins of human conceptual representation and has conducted work on core systems of knowledge, word learning, the construction of intuitive theories, and case studies of conceptual change including number, causal reasoning, and the language of thought. Among her most important contributions is the argument that human knowledge emanates from rich innate structures that are enriched through processes of conceptual change.
MIT
Josh Tenenbaum
Friday, August 1
The Role of AI in Theories of the Future
Tenenbaum’s work investigates the computational structure of human cognition, and includes studies of concept learning, similarity judgment, causal inference, and the formation of perceptual representations.
A key focus is the nature and origin of common-sense theories, and how humans construct concepts, theories and skills from minimal examples.
UC Irvine
Lauren Ross
Saturday, August 2
New Theoretical Horizons in Cognitive Science
Ross specializes in the philosophy of science, focusing on explanation and causation within biology, neuroscience, and medicine. Her research includes projects that explore the nature of scientific explanation, the variety of causal structures and types of explanation used in these fields, and the underlying rationale for specific forms of causal reasoning. By investigating how scientists explain phenomena and infer causal relationships, her work addresses the conceptual foundations of empirical research in the life sciences and medicine.
Invited Symposia
The Future of Foundational Ideas of Cognitive Science
Thursday, July 31
Speakers:
- Eric Margolis
- Jose Luis Bermudez
- Patricia Churchland
Cognitive Science was born from a revolution that centered the mind as the object of study, resulting in new fields that study the nature of mental representations, consciousness, the origins of knowledge, and how the brain carries out mental computations. Which of the foundational ideas and debates that emerged from the Cognitive Revolution remain important to current discourse in our field?
The Role of AI in Theories of the Future
Friday, August 1
Speakers:
- Peter Dayan
- Yejin Choi
- William Cunningham
The rapid emergence of AIs and their success in modeling diverse aspects of human language and cognition raises important questions about the future of theory building in our field. Do the engineering successes of AI suggest a new theoretical path forward for Cognitive Science? What role should foundational ideas in Cognitive Science play in theory making as we look to the future?
New Theoretical Horizons in Cognitive Science
Saturday, August 2
Speakers:
- Jake Quilty-Dunn
- Leor Zmigrod
- Ellie Pavlick
What is the future of theory in the Cognitive Sciences? In this transitional moment in Cognitive Science, what questions are most central to understanding human cognition? Which of the foundational theoretical constructs of our field deserve to be preserved in the coming years? What changes are required? What paths are most likely to lead to innovation and discovery?
Rumelhart Prize Keynote
Friday, August 1
Nora Newcombe
Temple University
Nora S. Newcombe (Ph.D., Harvard), is Laura H. Carnell Professor of Psychology and Neuroscience at Temple University. Her research in cognition and cognitive development centers on spatial cognition and episodic memory, along with translational work on STEM education. She is a member of the National Academy of Sciences, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the Society of Experimental Psychologists. Past honors include the Distinguished Scientific Contributions Award from SRCD, the William James Fellow Award from APS, the Howard Crosby Warren Medal from SEP, and the Award for Distinguished Service to Psychological Science from APA.
Rumelhart Symposium
Friday, August 1
Three Questions for Cognitive Science
In honor of Nora Newcombe, this year’s Rumelhart Award recipient, research related to her work will be presented in this special symposium.
Symposium Chair
Nora Newcombe, Temple University
Presenters:
- Vlad Ayzenberg, Temple University
- Andrea Frick, Zurich University of Applied Sciences
- Chi Thao Ngo, Max Planck Institute for Human Development
- Ilyse Resnick, University of Canberra
Elman Prize Keynote
Friday, August 1
University of Madison-Wisconsin
Timothy T. Rogers
Tim Rogers received his B.A. in Psychology and English at the University of Waterloo (Canada), Ph.D. in Psychology at the Carnegie Mellon University (US), and was a postdoctoral fellow at the MRC Cognition and Brain Science Unit at the University of Cambridge (UK). Tim began as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison (US) in 2004. He currently is a Professor of Psychology, and a Faculty Fellow at the Wisconsin Institute for Discovery, University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Elman Prize Symposium
Friday, August 1
Context, control, and representation in semantic cognition
In honor of Tim Rogers, this year’s Jeffrey L. Elman Prize recipient, research related to his work will be presented in this special symposium.
Symposium Chair
Tim Rogers, University of Wisconsin-Madison
Moderator
Chris Cox, Louisiana State University
Presenters:
- Tyler Giallanza, Princeton University & Jon Cohen, Princeton University
- Rebecca Jackson, University of Manchester & Matt Lambon Ralph, University of Cambridge
- Saskia Frisby, University of Cambridge & Chris Cox, Louisiana State University
