COGS 177 Consciousness and Unconsciousness 2014version

Consciousness and Unconsciousness
COGS 177
Course Syllabus
Required Readings: All readings will be available on the course web page
Course Description: This class is on the nature of phenomenal consciousness, the empirical divide between
conscious and unconscious mental states (events/ activity) and the unconscious from a cognitive science
point of view.
Course Goals: The objective of this course is to explore and understand the conceptual and empirical
approaches to consciousness and unconscious mental life from the multidisciplinary perspective of cognitive
science.
Course Learning Outcomes and Program Learning Outcomes:
Course Learning Outcomes (CLOs) describe what skills and knowledge-base students will demonstrate by
the end of this course. This course will also cover the Philosophy minors Program Learning Outcomes 1, 2,
4 with the following CLOs.
CLO 1: Students will explain a sense of the nature, demarcation, and function of conscious and
unconscious mental states (events/ activity), (PLO 1. Explain and apply knowledge of landmark
findings and theories in cognitive science.)
CLO 2: Based on CLO 1, students will evaluate philosophical, neuroscientific, and psychological
experiments regarding the demarcation of conscious and unconscious states. (PLO 2 Evaluate simple
behavioral and neuroscientific experiments.)
CLO 3: Based on CLOs 1 and 2, students will argue for or against theoretical positions in this domain
of cognitive science. (PLO 3. Argue for or against theoretical positions in cognitive science.)
Guiding Principles for General Education
This course meets the following UC Merced Guiding Principles of General Education:
1. Scientific literacy: This course teaches students how to read and understand scientific literature
that relates to philosophical and scientific approaches to consciousness and unconsciousness.
2. Decision Making: Student will learn how to decide between alternatives theories and data
regarding conscious and unconscious mental states and processes
3. Self and Society: The question of how the self is related to consciousness and unconsciousness is
central the course. For example, when a memory spontaneously emerges, we say "I remembered"
even if we weren't thinking about the topic at all. This suggests that the concept of the self is broader
than the concept of the consciousness. How the unconscious self can drive social behavior is another
central question in the course.
Class Rules: No cell phone use or unrelated computer use in class. No significant conversational
interchanges. Asking a neighbor for lengthy clarification should be done with the rest of the class. Please do
not leave early or come late.
Classroom Civility: Each UCM student is encouraged to help create an environment during class that
promotes learning, dignity, and mutual respect for everyone. Students who speak at inappropriate times,
sleep in class, display overt inattention, take frequent breaks, interrupt the class by coming to class late,
engaging in loud or distracting behaviors, use of cell phones or computers in
class, use of inappropriate language, are verbally abusive, display defiance or disrespect to others, or behave
aggressively could be asked to leave the class and be subjected to disciplinary action.
Policy on Academic Integrity: The University of California has outlined a general code of student conduct
that can be accessed at http://www.ucop.edu/ucophome/coordrev/ucpolicies/aos/uc100.html. Go to
http://admissions.ucmerced.edu/docs/ucm_policies.pdf for the UC Merced code of academic conduct.
Chapter 8 outlines policies on academic honesty. All academic work is expected to be in compliance with
this code. In the present class, any form of cheating or plagiarism is a serious offense. Cheating includes any
attempt to defraud, deceive, or mislead the instructor in arriving at an honest grade assessment. Violation of
these policies may result in a grade of F in the assignment, or for more serious violations, a grade of F in
the course, at the discretion of the instructor.
Special Needs: UCM provides individuals with disabilities reasonable accommodations to participate in
educational programs, activities, and services. Students with disabilities requiring accommodations to
participate in class activities or meet course requirements should contact the professor as early as possible,
and also contact the UCM Disability Services Center to obtain their assistance and coordination in working
with this course.
Make up policy: There are no make ups without valid and documented medical excuse.
Evaluation/Grading Procedures:
Readings quizzes 15%: given every day at the beginning of classAttendance 5%: taken every day at the
end of class 13 A; 11-12 B; 10 C; 9 D; 0-8 F 5% /day
Multiple choice tests 15%x3 = 45%: given throughout the semester
Final 35%: cumulative paper due at beginning of final exam period May 14th 6:30 pm
GRADING SCALE:
99.01-100%
95%-99%
90%- 94.99%
87--89.99%
83%-86.99%
80%-82.99%
77%-79.99%
73%-76.99%
70%-72.99%
67%- 69.99%
63%-66.99%
60%-62.99%
-- 59.99%
A+
A
AB+
B
BC+
C
CD+
D
DF
Topics/Readings/ Schedule of Activities:[NOTE: readings may be revised during the semester]

Week 1: mind and what it is conscious and unconscious (Jan 23) Class:
Introduction and ch 1 [pageler support text]
pylyshyn What is in the mind? Chalmers What is
consciousness?
Week 2: Information vs. mind Perception and cognition (Jan 30) Class: ch 2
[pageler support text]
dretskex2 fodorx2
Pylyshyn Non-rationality of perceptual inference edit
Week 3: discussion and review (Feb 6) Class:

Week 4: Arguing for the Unconscious(Feb 13) TEST
Class: ch3 [pageler support text]
Wilson Strangers to Ourselves, ch. 2 (The Adaptive Unconscious) Khilstrom The
Cognitive Unconscious edit
Manson A tumbling ground of Whimsy? edit
Lahav What does neuroscience tell us about consciousness? edit
Week 5: Subliminal Perception and access (Feb 20) Class: ch4 thur sect
4.2 [pageler support text]
Boag Subliminal Perception edit
Kihlstrom Availability, accessibility and subliminal perception edit Dretske Perception
without awareness edit part 1
Merikle et. al. Perception w/o awareness perspectives from cognitive psychology Cowey
Blindsight in monkeys edit
Leopold awareness and blindsight Rama when
the eyes clash
Week 6: Unconscious: language motor (zombie within) & complex pattern learning (Feb 27) Class: ch4 sect
4.3.1 thur 4.3.3 [pageler support text]
Jackendoff Unconscious information in language edit Rattan tacit
knowledge edit
Clark Visual Bonds too tight? edit
Kolb and Whishaw position experiment edit Carruthers
Unconscious action system edit Blackmore On unconscious
action section Revonsuo Zombies among us edit
Week 7: Unconscious: emotion processing and attention processing (March 6) Class: ch 4 sect
4.3.4 & 4.3.5 [pageler support text]
Wilson love bridge and consumer decision example edit Almeida et. al.
Affect of the unconscious edit Winkielman and Berridge Unconscious
Emotion edit Zajonc Affective discrimination without awareness
LeDoux et. al. Can emotion be unconscious
Hess attitude and pupil size
Wilson Strangers to Ourselves, ch 6 (knowing how we feel) edit
Buried prejudice Gazzaniga attn.
Week 8: Unconscious: decisions & unc: Dumb or Smart (March 13) Class: ch 4 sect
4.3.6 & 4.4 [pageler support text]
Gladwell Blink snipet priming examples Gigerenzer
Gut feelings, ch 1 edit Gladwell Blink, ch 2 edit
Dijksterhuis et. al. On making the right choice edit Newell et. al.
Think, blink, or sleep on it Greenwald Unconscious cognition

reclaimed edit
Loftus and Palmer Is the Unconscious Smart or Dumb
Bargh The Unconscious Mind (defining the unconscious one way vs. another) Hassin The New
Unconscious ch 1 edit
Week 9: discussion and review (March 20) TEST
Week 10: BREAK (March 27)
Week 11: Access Consciousness Intro (Apr 3) Class: ch 7 thur sect

Block A Confusion about the Function of Consciousness (A vs. P conscious) edit Roediger
memory metaphors edit
Tulving and Pealstone Availability vs. accessibility edit Egan seeing
and believing edit
Pageler two kinds of cued phenomenal judgments edit Browne
conception of access consciousness edit Chalmers on access edit
Bayne access consciousness edit
Clark A case where access implies qualia? edit Kriegel Phenomenal
Conscious Access Conscious edit
Week 12: Access consciousness vs Attention (Apr 10) Class: ch 7 sect
Prinz When is perception conscious Phillips Sperling
edit
Dretske Perception without awareness edit part 2 Wolfe
Inattentional amnesia
Moore IB perception or memory
Lamme Why visual attention and awareness are different Baars Some
essential differences
Week 13: GW vs WM and discussion/ review (Apr 17) Class: ch 7 sect
Block consciousness and cog access Dehaene GWT
unscathed
Baars GWT theory of consciousness edit Dehaene Neuronal
global workspace edit
Dehaene and Naccache Towards a cognitive neuroscience of consciousness edit Wilson and
Hoffman GW as a communication platform
Week 14: Qualia intro arg from illusion etc. and Knowledge Argument what is it like (Apr 24) Class: ch 8 thur
sect 8.4 [pageler support text]
Manson State/Creature conscious edit Dennett Quining
Qualia edit
Thompson Arg from hallucination, illusion, dream, etc. edit Chalmers easy
and hard problems edit

Blackmore on Mary edit
Jackson (Epi)phenomenal Qualia (qualia realism and Mary) edit Jackson
What Mary didnt know
Nida-Rmelin (SEP) Qualia and the knowledge argument edit Nagel What is
it like to be a bat edit
Week 15: Ability Hypothesis vs. Phenomenal Information (May 1) Class: ch 8 sect 8.5
and 8.6 [pageler support text]
Tye Knowing what it is like
Lewis postscript_to_mad_pain_martain_pain Lewis what
experience teaches
Nida-Rmelin (SEP) Qualia_the_knowledge_arg abilty objection Chalmers on ability
hypothesis
Conee phenomenal knowledge part 1
Lycan a limited defence of phenomenal info 1st half
Week 16: Phenomnenal Judgments and Zombies discussion and review (May 8) Class: ch 8 sect
8.7 and 8.8 [pageler support text]
Chalmers on phenomenal judgments edit
Raffman On the Persistence of Phenomenology edit
Raffman Some_Thoughts_About_Thinking_About_Consciousness edit Levin What
is a phenomenal concept edit
Chalmers Central Systems and Phenomenal Judgments edit Kirk The
Zombie Idea edit
Chalmers Zombie argument essentials edit Beisecker Zombie
phenomenal concepts edit Clark A case where access implies
qualia? edit
Week 17: Course Final

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Consciousness and Unconsciousness

Topics/Readings/ Schedule of Activities:[NOTE: readings may be revised during the semester]

Week 3: discussion and review (Feb 6) Class:

Think, blink, or sleep on it Greenwald Unconscious cognition

Week 10: BREAK (March 27)

Week 11: Access Consciousness Intro (Apr 3) Class: ch 7 thur sect

and hard problems edit

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