Generative AI and the Future of Research Speaker Series: Marcel Binz
Marcel Binz will present, "Foundation models of human cognition."
Dr. Marcel Binz is a research scientist and deputy head of the Institute for Human-Centered AI at Helmholtz Munich. His research employs state-of-the-art machine learning methods to uncover the fundamental principles behind human cognition. He believes that to get a full understanding of the human mind, it is vital to consider it as a whole and not just as the sum of its parts. His current research goal is therefore to establish foundation models of human cognition – models that cannot only simulate, predict, and explain human behavior in a single domain but that offer a unified take on our mind.
Abstract:
Most cognitive models are domain-specific, meaning that their scope is restricted to a single type of problem. The human mind, on the other hand, does not work like this – it is a unified system whose processes are deeply intertwined. In this talk, I will present my ongoing work on foundation models of human cognition: models that cannot only predict behavior in a single domain but that instead offer a truly universal take on our mind. Furthermore, I outline my vision for how to use such behaviorally predictive models to advance our understanding of human cognition, as well as how they can be scaled to naturalistic environments.
About the speaker series:
The CIRSS Speaker Series continues in Spring with a new theme of “Generative AI and the Future of Research.” Our speakers will share their research on the opportunities and risks associated with the rapidly evolving landscape of generative AI usage in scholarship.
We meet most Wednesdays, 9am-10am Central time, in Zoom. Everyone is welcome to attend. More information, including upcoming speaker schedule and links to recordings, is available on the series website. For weekly updates on upcoming talks, subscribe to our CIRSS Seminars mailing list. Our Spring series is led by Yuanxi Fu and Timothy McPhillips, and supported by the Center for Informatics Research in Science and Scholarship (CIRSS) and the School of Information Sciences at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
This event is sponsored by Center for Informatics Research in Science and Scholarship