One of science's last great frontiers isn't light years away on another planet or miles below the ocean. It isn't so tiny it's visible only through an electron microscope. It's right here with us every day, guiding our every action and producing our every thought: the mind and the physical substrate that gives rise to it, the brain.
Cognitive Science is the science of this amazing frontier. It is the scientific study of minds and brains, be they human or animal, real or artificial. Researchers study how people, other animals, and computers perceive, understand, learn, and act. They try to understand the fundamental nature of intelligence and how it arises from material substances. They ask how understanding human intelligence can improve the performance of machines, and how intelligent machines can augment human thought. They study how cognitive functions develop, and how they break down when brains or machines are damaged. Cognitive Science is inherently interdisciplinary, bringing together methods and discoveries from psychology, neuroscience, linguistics, anthropology, philosophy, and computer science.
Lehigh's Cognitive Science program offers an undergraduate major and minor and a graduate certificate. Each semester, we invite speakers and organize other events to stimulate the exchange of ideas and foster discussion among faculty and students. Please join us as we explore the mysteries of minds and brains.
"The brain happens to be a meat machine." -- Marvin Minksy, pioneer of Artificial Intelligence
