Physical symbol systems

On the occasion of a first conference on Cognitive Science, it seems appropriate to review the basis of common understanding between the various disciplines. In my estimate, the most fundamental contribution so far of artificial intelligence and computer science to the joint enterprise of cognitive science has been the notion of a physical symbol system, i.e., the concept of a broad class of systems capable of having and manipulating symbols, yet realizable in the physical universe. The notion of symbol so defined is internal to this concept, so it becomes a hypothesis that this notion of symbols includes the symbols that we humans use every day of our lives. In this paper we attempt systematically, but plainly, to lay out the nature of physical symbol systems. Such a review is in ways familiar, but not thereby useless. Restatement of fundamentals is an important exercise.     

Perceptions of Major Roles by College Students

This study concerns women's and men's perceptions of five roles and role combinations: worker, spouse, parent, worker-spouse, and worker-parent. Undergraduates wrote stories to relevant projective cues. A variation of the Thematic Apperception Test was used. Protocols were coded for degree of (a) conflict, (b) positive outcome, and (c) positive affect, with inter-rater agreement at least 77% for each category. Sex and role differences were analyzed. Results indicate minimal sex differences. The tentative nature of the results is stressed.     

Research Digest

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