T.A.s: Kristin Finklea	Office: 2570 Mandler Hall	Hrs: Tues, 10:00 - 12:00	Email: kfinklea@psy.ucsd.edu
Jason Jones	Office: 1588 Mandler Hall	Hrs: Thurs, 2:00 - 4:00	Email: jasonjones@psy.ucsd.edu

Textbook: Cognitive Psychology (4th edition), by Medin, Ross, & Markman

Course overview: Cognitive psychology is the scientific study of mental processes: How people acquire, store, transform, use, and communicate information. The topic covers a wide variety of research areas -- from attention and perception to problem solving and creativity -- and we will touch on most of them. In addition to providing broad exposure to the study of cognition, the course aims to help students appreciate how the cognitive system solves seemingly impossible problems -- with apparent ease -- through adaptation to the natural environment.

Exams: There are 2 multiple-choice exams -- 1 midterm and a final -- each consisting of 60 questions/points. Exams cover lectures and reading and the final is not cumulative. Expect 20% - 25% of the questions to cover reading material not covered in lecture. Anyone who misses an exam receives zero points for that exam unless you notify us as soon as possible and a valid excuse is verified, in which case the make-up exam may consist of essay questions. The final exam is Friday, June 13, at 7:00 pm. Plan accordingly. You must show up on time.

Academic integrity: Cheating will not be tolerated. Exams are closed notes and closed book. All electronic devices must be turned off, and students must ask permission to leave the room during the exam period. Exams are to be turned in at the end of each exam period along with scantron sheets. Use of previous exams is prohibited.

Grading: Your final grade will be determined by simply adding up your 2 test scores and seeing where you stand relative to others. The mean total score will be a B-. Roughly, the top 10% will receive an A, the next 10% an A-, the next 40% will receive some sort of B, and many of the rest will receive some sort of C. These percentages do not take into account extra credit.

Extra credit: You can earn extra credit by participating in UCSD psychology experiments advertised on the Web (see class handout or go to https://experimetrix2.com/ucsd/ ). You will earn 1 point for each hour of credit, 4 points maximum. Failing to show up for an experiment you signed up for will cost you credit. Your final grade must be at least a C- to receive the credit. Completing the extra credit gives you a very good chance of moving up 1/3 of a grade (e.g., from a B+ to an A-).

Week	Date	Topic	Reading
1	Mar 31	Introduction	Ch 1 (pp. 3-22, 32-34)
		Learning	Ch 2 (pp. 39-53, 61-68)
2	Apr 7	Perception	Ch 3 (pp. 69-71, 75-96, 100-101)
		Attention	Ch 4 (pp. 103-123, 132)
3	Apr 14	Memory I	Ch 5 (pp. 137-146, 150-172)
		Memory II	Ch 7 (all)
4	Apr 21	Imagery	Ch 8 (all)
		Language	Ch 9 (pp. 283-303, 310-315)
5	Apr 28	Midterm Exam
		Categorization I
6	May 5	Categorization II	Ch 10 (all)
		Reasoning I	Ch 11 (pp. 383-387)
7	May 12	Reasoning II	Ch 11 (pp. 353-371, 377-383, 388)
		Decision Making I	Ch 14 (all)
8	May 19	Decision Making II
		Decision Making III
9	May 26	Memorial Day Holiday
		No class
10	Jun 2	Problem Solving	Ch 12 (all)
		Creativity	Ch 13 (all)
11	Fri Jun 13	Final Exam 7pm