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A Few Topic Ideas for Cognitive Science

By Curtis  |  2012/01/14 15:23 Posted in Uncategorized  |  Comments Off

I have given my Cognitive Science paper a little thought and come up with a few options for places to start my paper from:

  • Is the human brain or an artificial intelligence a more effective decision-making system? — This topic is very basic, and very subjective. I think I can write an effective paper on the topic by approaching the question theoretically and establishing what has to be considered to even know what an effective decision-making system is. Once I have established my own position based on available published work on the topic of decision making systems I can begin to form an argument for one system or the other. Each has clear advantages, but which one is overall more effective?
  • Artificial Neural Networks as an approach to Artificial Intelligence — This one is simplistic. Essentially looking at the micro-level implementation of independent systems that form a larger system for addressing large tasks. Mechanically, this approach duplicates the human brain. Is this a good approach? It works for biological organisms, but biological organisms in themselves are designed to function that way, electronic systems are not. Are neural networks the wrong approach for artificial intelligence and artificial cognition?
  • What is intelligence? — This topic is completely philosophical in nature. It has been approached by every major philosopher and theorist that has ever conceived of knowledge or knowing. I don’t know that I could handle it in the 10 pages I’m given, nor do I feel comfortable with the level of understanding I presently have of intelligence. If I did this now, as an introductory cognitive science student it would be perhaps the most ballsy thing I could do, and would ultimately result in me considering the question in every course in the Cognitive Science program, most likely ending with me completing a thesis on the topic as my final course. It would be a big step, but I’m not sure I want to go there.
  • Can artificial intelligence be considered a true intelligence? — This one is also philosophical, but it is a somewhat less covered topic, and one in a little narrower scope than taking on the whole field of epistemology.  I would have to tangentially address “what is intelligence?”, but in a much lighter form. For this paper I would take on the opinions and positions of theorists before me and address the concept of artificial intelligence really being intelligence from one or more pre-existing theories. The idea behind this paper from my perspective is addressing if any artificial system can ever truly be considered intelligent. Artificial intelligence is based on many complex calculations based on available data, but every decision is based upon programmed instructions that have been written to handle a wide variety of situations and provide adaptations for unexpected occurrences.
  • Is free-will important to intelligence? — This topic is moving from philosophical to very philosophical. It is similar to the question of if artificial intelligence can be considered a true intelligence in that it considers if a programmed entity can ever have free will. This topic also questions the limitations of what an artificial intelligence can do.  When do we consider an artificial intelligence as having free will? When it refuses to follow an instruction? When a personal assistant AI decides it wants to play guitar instead? This topic really isn’t all that well formed yet, but I think it may have some potential.



Posted from Charlotte, North Carolina, United States.

Class Designations

By Curtis  |  2011/12/06 01:22 Posted in Uncategorized  |  Comments Off

Sometimes talking to me or reading my posts and statuses can seem a bit like reading a course catalog, or a really bad game of memory. Unfortunately I did not figure out how to resolve that issue until now (1 week before the end of the semester for Fall 2011). However, I have now developed a system that I’m happy with….

Fall 2011

  • PHIL = WGST 5050/Transnational Feminism (Cross list as PHIL 3990)
  • SOCY = SOCY 6895/Tutorial in Sociology: Sociology of Masculinity
  • WGST = WGST 6601/Theoretical Approaches to Sexuality
  • LGBT = WGST 2050/Lesbian and Gay Studies

Spring 2012

  • Cog Sci = PSYC/ITCS 6216/Introduction to Cognitive Science
  • HCI = ITIS6400/Human-Computer Interaction
  • QT (or WGST) = WGST5050/Queer Theory
  • SOCY = SOCY 6895/Sociology of the Internet (pending)

SOCY6895 Paper Topics

By Curtis  |  2011/11/22 01:24 Posted in Uncategorized  |  Comments Off
kularski
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I think I finally got a full list written of topics I want to hit with my articles from this semester in sociology of masculinity.

Update on Fall 2011 Papers

By Curtis  |  2011/10/30 18:49 Posted in Uncategorized  |  Comments (1)

[This is an update to post: http://icurtis.me/2011/09/fall-2011-semester-papers/]

Course # Paper Topic Pages Req. Status
Tutorial in Sociology SOCY 6895 Sociology of Masculinity 20-30 IP:  4 pages
LGBT Studies WGST 2050 Declassification of Homosexuality from the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders 2-4 Graded: 100%
LGBT Studies WGST 2050 Evolution of Interaction Between Homosexuality and Western Religions 2-4 Topic Selected
LGBT Studies WGST 2050 Gay Identity vs. “Disappearance” 2-4 Topic Selected
Transnational Feminism WGST 5050 Racism and Subjugation in Sexual Tourism 15-20 Proposal Started
Theoretical Approaches to Sexuality WGST 6601 Social Construction of Non-Genital Sexualities 20 IP: 1 page

 

The paper for Tutorial in Sociology should be pretty simple to complete. I’ve been playing with outlines all semester, and of course because there is no in-person discussion for the course, all I do is write about the material, so a good amount of my ground work is done, I just have to integrate that into a cohesive discussion of the formation and maintenance of masculinity.

The two papers remaining for LGBT Studies should be fairly simple. They are just small papers that require a minimum of research and a little analytical thought, but they are not deep and probing papers. My first one has been graded and I received full credit for it, so hopefully that trend continues.

Transnational Feminism I had difficulty selecting a topic for. It isn’t my favorite course this semester, and I had a little difficulty determining what would be an appropriate topic. The topic I selected actually appeared in Theoretical Approaches to Sexuality, but I feel that it is quite relevant to Transnational Feminism. Now I have to finish off a proposal and find appropriate source material.

For Theoretical Approaches to Sexuality I have had a topic selected for a while, but I have modified the description of the topic a few times to reach a description that is most precise. I am planning to explore the social construction of sadomasochism and paraphilia, but could not quite find an appropriate way to succinctly (and positively) describe the topic. This  paper is in the process of being written. It is going slowly because I am not the type to do extensive planning and then write from a plan, for me everything has to flow.



Posted from Charlotte, North Carolina, United States.

Gender at UNC-Charlotte

By Curtis  |  2011/10/28 13:40 Posted in Uncategorized  |  Comments Off

image

I was filling out this survey for the Graduate School at UNC-Charlotte and came to the demographic questions and was stunned to see that we have more than 2 options for gender. Way to go UNCC Graduate School for recognizing that there are more than 2 ways to think about gender.



Posted from Bessemer City, North Carolina, United States.

Flowchart for a Dynamic DNS Update Tool

By Curtis  |  2011/10/04 02:12 Posted in Uncategorized  |  Comments Off

image

What I Know About Sex and Gender.

By Curtis  |  2011/09/25 23:52 Posted in Uncategorized  |  Comments Off

[Cross Post: http://www.masculineimagery.net/?p=12]

When I began the certificate program in Gender Studies I accepted that I did not know a lot about gender, and probably even less about sexuality.

Before I began the program I accepted that men have a penis and women have a vagina. This was my essential “truth” of sex. I also implied to myself that they had those organs since birth. Now I find myself 5 weeks into the program and I must now accept that most males were born with a penis, but not all of them, and not all people with a penis are “men” or were born with them.

Before I began the program I knew that men tended to be in control in relationships due to cultural precedents, but I wasn’t sure why. Now I have a lot more data on the topic and still don’t have a clue what makes men so special.

The bottom line… I know nothing about sex or gender, and labels are more trouble than they are worth.

Floating Above Myself

By Curtis  |  2011/09/24 21:01 Posted in Uncategorized  |  Comments Off

I’m sitting in the student union in the balcony around the rotunda. I’m in the perfect spot to be a passive observer to the social interactions and other things happening below me.  I am not an active participant, only an observer. I am sitting above the activity trying to focus on academic work (that focus I believe was lost a while ago). I find myself being very sad and a bit reflective on things. I’m watching all these students enjoy the party-like atmosphere that happens during a Union takeover, but I’m not involved, I wouldn’t know how to be involved. During my undergraduate life I never participated in anything on campus. I kept telling myself this summer that my graduate career would be different and that I would get involved and enjoy my time on campus, enjoy still being young. The fact that it is parents weekend on campus doesn’t help my mood. My parents never went to one of these events when I was an undergrad, and never showed much interest in seeing the campus or anything like that. I suppose most of it is my own fault, I pushed my parents away in a major way when I started college. My aunt has been to this campus more times than my parents have been. My father never set foot on the campus (can’t say I’m surprised, or even bothered by it). I was always closer with my mom anyway, but still, the only time she was ever on campus with me was at my undergraduate orientation and then on the day before my first day of classes, but no other time. Now that I am a graduate student I wouldn’t even think of asking my parents to come to an event like this. The time for involvement was back then, not now.

I keep thinking back on the way that things went before, trying to figure out why I keep doing the same thing over and over. I know I’m on campus more now than I was when I was an undergrad, and I have a desire to get involved and participate in things outside of academics, but I just can’t quite figure out how to dive into it. Times like this I wish I were more like Chris. He isn’t what I would describe as being highly involved, but he has found his own path to being included, and his own way to make an impression on the university. I don’t know why during my first experience on this campus I couldn’t wrap my head around the idea that there is something outside of academics. There is so much going on here every day. The academics I can handle, but it is the social that I still haven’t mastered. I barely talk to anyone when I am here, other than instructors and I just feel so outside of everything. I have to get involved on campus, I have to find my own method, but I can’t stand being this outside of being social anymore. I have at least 2 more years on this campus, and I don’t intend to waste them.

Planned Readings for SOCY 6895

By Curtis  |  2011/09/12 15:05 Posted in Uncategorized  |  Comments Off

For anyone who is curious, below is my planned list of readings for my Tutorial in Sociology on the topic of Masculinity.

Kimmel, M. S. 2007. Men’s lives. 7th ed. Boston, MA: Pearson Allyn and Bacon.

(selected chapters)

  • 44 – The morality/manhood paradox : masculinity, sport and the media
  • 48 – Culture, gender, and violence : "We are not women"
  • 50 – Athlete aggression on the rink and off the ice : athlete violence and aggression in hockey and interpersonal relationships
  • 52 – Neo-macho man : pop culture and post 9/11 politics
  • 47 – Men are much harder : gendering viewing of nude images
  • 5 – (In) secure times : constructing white working-class masculinities in the late 20th century
  • 53 – Change among the gatekeepers : men, masculinities, and gender equality in the global arena
  • 11 – "Dude, You’re a Fag": Adolescent Masculinity and the Fag Discourse

Crawley, Sara L. 2010. “Visible Bodies, Vicarious Masculinity, and ‘The Gender Revolution’”. Gender & Society 25: 107-113.

Vaccaro, Christian. 2011. “Male Bodies in Manhood Acts: The Role of Body-Talk and Embodied Practice in Signifying Culturally Dominant Notions of Manhood”. Sociological Compass 5: 65-76.

Chimot, Caroline and Catherine Louveau. 2010. “Becoming a man while playing a female sport: The construction of masculine identity in boys doing rhythmic gymnastics”. 2010 45: 436 International Review for the Sociology of Sport 45: 436-456.

Hinojosa, R. 2010. “Doing Hegemony: Military Men, and Constructing a Hegemonic Masculinity”. Journal of Men’s Studies, 18(2), 179-194.

Yeung, King-To, Mindy Stombler and Reneé Wharton. 2006. “Making Men in Gay Fraternities : Resisting and Reproducing Multiple Dimensions of Hegemonic Masculinity”. Gender & Society 20, 5-31.

Conseur, Amanda, Jan M. Hathcote and Soyoung Kim. 2008. “Consumer Masculinity Behavior Among College Students and Its Relationship to Self Esteem and Media Significance”. Sex Roles, 58:549–555.

Hauge, Mona-Iren, and Hanne Haavind. 2011. “Boys’ bodies and the constitution of adolescent masculinities”. Sport, Education and Society 16, 1-16.

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Question About Sexuality

By Curtis  |  2011/09/06 22:13 Posted in Uncategorized  |  Comments Off

From my friend Jared:

“Odo, while being technically asexual, took on an male persona. When he encountered his first member of his own species, it took on the form of a female, utilizing an appearance similar to the one that Odo presented, so as to make Odo feel more comfortable as well as a sense of belonging.

Thinking about it, do you think that they’re implying that sexuality is a learned trait?”

 

This question actually relates to the topic tonight in Lesbian and Gay Studies, and to the topic last week in Theo. Appr. to Sexuality. There are two major schools of thought on sexuality. The essentialists that believe that sexuality is inborn and is fixed. The social constructionists believe that sexuality occurs as a result of sociological factors and that through culture and socialization sexuality is formed. There is also a third school of thought that most people don’t talk about, the sociobiologists, guess what they believe? The sexuality is developed sociologically, on top of a very solid biological foundation.

Regarding the specific case of Odo, not being human, Terran or even solid, it seems reasonable that sexuality would develop differently. First of all, I do believe that all changelings (or do they prefer to be called shapeshifters these days?) and other metamorphic life-forms take on an either asexual or hermaphroditic existence. As for Odo himself, I believe that being that he took on Dr. Mora’s physical appearance he did designate himself to be a male when among the solids, however, I do not believe that his sexual feelings were directly powered by any type of male/female attraction. Odo is very obviously attracted to a certain type of person, mostly the strong feminine types. I do not believe this to be a result of his need for female companionship at all, but instead a certain personality type he is attracted to as a result of growing up in isolation. Perhaps he is heterosexual after the abuses he suffered in the laboratory or by the patriarchal Cardasians.

As for the intentions of the Star Trek franchise, it has always been that there is an openness to various ideas in their productions. I personally think that yes, they are portraying sexuality as being a “learned”, or more correctly, a socialized trait that is conveyed through experience with a culture.