Subject: Cog Sci TODAY 12/2:S.C. Shapiro, Cognitive Architecture & Consciousness From: "William J. Rapaport" Date: Wed, 2 Dec 2009 08:37:14 -0500 ======================================================================== TODAY TODAY TODAY TODAY TODAY TODAY TODAY TODAY ======================================================================== Center for Cognitive Science, University at Buffalo presents ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Stuart C. Shapiro Department of Computer Science and Engineering University at Buffalo http://www.cse.buffalo.edu/~shapiro/ ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Wednesday, 2 December 2009; 2:00 p.m.; Park 280 ------------------------------------------------------------------------ The GLAIR Cognitive Architecture and Prospects for Consciousness ------------------------------------------------------------------------ GLAIR (Grounded Layered Architecture with Integrated Reasoning) is a multi-layered cognitive architecture for embodied agents operating in real, virtual, or simulated environments containing other agents. The highest layer of the GLAIR architecture, the Knowledge Layer (KL), contains the beliefs of the agent, including beliefs about itself, and is the layer in which conscious reasoning, planning, and act selection are performed. The lowest layer of the GLAIR architecture, the Sensori- Actuator Layer (SAL), contains the controllers of the sensors and effectors of the hardware or software robot. Between the KL and the SAL is the Perceptuo-Motor Layer (PML), which grounds the KL symbols in perceptual structures and subconscious actions, contains deictic and modality registers for providing the agent's sense of embodiment and of situatedness in the environment, and handles translation and communication between the KL and the SAL. I will discuss the GLAIR architecture, present an example of a GLAIR-based agent, and speculate about whether the agent's self-model, perceptual grounding of KL symbols, and the deictic and modality registers give the agent qualia and consciousness. Background reading: Shapiro, Stuart C.; & Bona, Jonathan P. (2009), "The GLAIR Cognitive Architecture", in Alexei Samsonovich (Ed.), Biologically Inspired Cognitive Architectures—II: Papers from the AAAI Fall Symposium, Technical Report FS-09-01 (Menlo Park, CA: AAAI Press): 141–152. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Complete Fall 2009 schedule @ www.cogsci.buffalo.edu/Activities/Colloquium/CLLQf09/2009fall.html Background readings for each lecture are available to UB faculty and students on UB Learns. Once you have logged in to UB Learns at https://ublearns.buffalo.edu/ select "Center for Cognitive Science", then "Course Documents", then "Background Readings for Fall 2009 Colloquium Series". Or link directly to: https://ublearns.buffalo.edu/webapps/blackboard/content/listContent.jsp?course_id=_60597_1&content_id=_1315430_1 ------------------------------------------------------------------------ For further information, please visit: http://www.cogsci.buffalo.edu/ or contact: William J. Rapaport Webmaster, Center for Cognitive Science Associate Professor of Computer Science Affiliated Faculty, Philosophy & Linguistics 201 Bell Hall | (716) 645-4736 Dept. of Computer Science & Engineering | fax: (716) 645-3464 University at Buffalo (SUNY) | rapaport@buffalo.edu Buffalo, NY 14260-2000 | http://www.cse.buffalo.edu/~rapaport Buffalo Restaurant Guide: http://www.cse.buffalo.edu/restaurant.guide/ Good Things about Buffalo: http://www.cse.buffalo.edu/~rapaport/buffalo.html