Psyc 180-910 Developmental Justin Aronfreed Developmental psychology searches for the origins of human mental capacities and behavioral patterns. The phenomena of psychological development are brought to the lamps of a variety of conceptual perspectives, including those of natural philosophy, biological and cultural evolution, and general theoretical and experimental psychology. Specific topics focus on infants' and children's perceptual and learning abilities, mental representation and thought, language and communication, and social dispositions toward other human beings. A basic introductory psychology course, consisting of a series of lectures. It seems so natural and effortless to sense and perceive objects and events in our environment that we tend to take sensation and perception for granted.
Many perceptual illusions provide compelling evidence for the complexity of perceptual organization.
This course will cover vision, audition, smell and taste, as well as touch and pain and even the perception of time. By looking at specific phenomena in all of those modalities we will be able to describe many general mechanisms and phenomena that are common to all senses. Students will be introduced to methods used in psychology, neuroscience, biology and artificial intelligence. In this course we will address these and other heady questions in human cognition. Topics of special interest to the students may also be included.