Proposals for Master Theses

 

Preliminary remarks

This site contains some suggestions concerning possible themes for a master thesis. The proposals are open for students of AI and Philosophy. Some proposals are more suitable for students of AI, others are more suitable for students of philosophy. Since I see both fields as closely related I didn’t make any efforts to form separate proposals.

Of course, I’m open to proposals different from the suggested ones. I like it when students come with own proposals*.  
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*student’s proposal = (1) working title + (2) sketch of background + (3) sketch of the idea including a concrete example + (4) two or three basic references (all together not more than one page A4)

 

1.    Quantum Cognition

The main thesis is that the formalism of quantum theory can be successfully applied to macro-domains such as artificial intelligence, human language, and cognition. For further suggestions see http://www.quantum-cognition.de/; for particular puzzles in the domain of bounded rationality see http://www.quantum-cognition.de/MOL%20project/project.htm.

Possible themes:

§         Quantum probabilities, ignorance and uncertainty

§         A quantum-probabilistic reconstruction of typicality

§         Orthoalgebraic semantics

§         Solving some puzzles of bounded rationality

 

2.    Optimality Theory

Students interested in his topic should have a firm background in OT, see our course"Language and Optimality"(www.blutner.de/Optimal). Possible themes should can be related to one of the research projects described in the second part of this course

Possible themes:

§         Optimality theory and penalty logic: the value of logical reconstructions

§         Modelling automaticity in symmetric networks. Exponential constraints and strictness of domination (simulation study)

§         Modelling cultural evolution using penalty logic knowledge bases

§         Connectionism and Optimality Theory (comment: open for different aspects of the need to ground OT in connectionism and to analyse neural networks by using the methodology of OT)

 

3. Concepts, Conceptual Combination and the Architecture of Mind

For many semanticists, logicians and (generative) linguists the principle of compositionality of meaning has immediate appeal because it promises to explain the productivity and systematicity of our linguistic understanding. The idea of productivity refers to the assumption that the representational capacities of the system are unbounded under appropriate idealization. In contrast, the idea of systematicity refers to the claim that there are predictable patterns among the sentences we understand. If we understand some complex expressions we tend to understand others that can be obtained by recombining their constituents. Though we can take the view that compositionality entails productivity as a valid one, there are arguments against the distinct view that compositionality entails systematicity. These arguments also can be taken to substantiate basic claims of lexical pragmatics, especially blending theory and connectionist modeling.

Possible themes:

§         Conceptual combination and prototypes: A comparison between different approaches

§         Compositionality and systematicity. Making the (dis)connection concrete. 

§         Do we need quantum mechanics for modelling higher cognition? (see complex 1 about quantum cognition)