Department of Computer Science State University of New York at Buffalo CS 703: SEMINAR: LAKOFF'S THEORY OF CATEGORIES AND THE MIND Registration No.: 134158 Semester: Spring 1991 Instructor: William J. Rapaport Time: Mondays, 10:00 A.M. - 12 NOON Office: Bell 214 Room: Bell 224 Phone: 636-3193 Office Hours: TBA & by appointment Email: rapaport TEXT: (1) Lakoff, George (1987), Women, Fire, and Dangerous Things: What Categories Reveal about the Mind (Chicago: University of Chicago Press). SEMINAR REQUIREMENTS: (1) You will be expected to attend all classes, and to read Lakoff's book. We will cover about 2 chapters per 2-hour session per week. (2) For each chapter, you will write a 1-2-page (maximum) (typed or word-processed) critical summary of the chapter (i.e., a summary plus your comments), to be turned in at the next session. (3) As a class project, we will also develop a bibliography of writings about the Lakoff book. (4) You will also be required to do a term project, due no later than the last day of class. This may be either a term paper or a programming project. A proposal for your term project, including a bibliography, will be due Monday, March 4. No late proposals will be accepted, and no term projects will be accepted without an approved proposal. (5) In accordance with Department of Computer Science regula- tions, the final course grade will be S or U; no letter grades will be given (though, if you wish, I will assign a letter grade to the term project). ------------------------------------------------------------------------- HOW TO READ (A PHILOSOPHY TEXT) S L O W L Y For each sentence do: Read it, SLOWLY. If you do not understand it, then begin re-read the previous material, SLOWLY; re-read the incomprehensible sentence, SLOWLY; if you still don't understand it, then ask a fellow student to explain it; if you still don't understand it, then ask me, if you still don't understand it, then write a paper about it (!) end; else: if there is a next sentence, then read the next sentence else you've understood the text!