Mind, Brain and Computation:
A Center for Research at Stanford
Stanford has launched a new interdisciplinary center for the integration of research on Mind, Brain and Computation (MBC). The Center is dedicated to understanding how mental functions such as perceiving, understanding, thinking, feeling, and decision-making arise from neural processes in the brain. Research in the Center will address the processes and mechanisms that underlie the development of these abilities as well as disorders and diseases that affect them. MBC will foster the integration of theoretical, computational and experimental approaches to these issues, in hopes of increasing understanding and fostering improved methods for enhancement of human potential and life satisfaction. The Center will develop integrative research and educational programs and will promote interdisciplinary links between faculty and research trainees throughout the university.
The Center began operations during 2007. It is led by Jay McClelland, Professor of Psychology, with a steering committee currently consisting of representatives of the Departments of Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, Linguistics, Neurobiology and Psychology, and of the Neurosciences Institute at Stanford. Initial goals include:
- Fostering research at the interface between mind, brain, and computation, with a focus on the integration of computational, statistical, and theoretical methods into functional brain imaging and other investigations of mental and neural processes.
- Facilitating faculty appointments relevant to the agenda of the Center.
- Developing a graduate training program aimed at increasing the involvement of individuals with backgrounds in quantitative, computational, and theoretical disciplines in the scientific investigation of mental and neural processes.