The Cognitive and Neural Sciences

This website is for a consortium of programs at the University of Evansville that share common themes. Collectively identified as the "Cognitive and Neural Science" (CNS) programs, they share a topical focus on the mind and brain, or, from another point of view, cognition and behavior. Each of our programs offers a different emphasis, however. Neuroscience looks specifically at the brain and nervous system as the substrate for cognition and behavior, while cognitive psychology looks at the mind from a largely psychological perspective, studying a range of cognitive behaviors such as the use and acquisition of language, problem-solving, memory, etc. Our cognitive science program includes courses from both of these programs and several others in philosophy and some in computer science to create an interdisciplinary exploration of the nature of cognition as a whole.

Because success in any one of the CNS programs requires more than a passing familiarity with the others, it is fitting to treat them as a group, building a common sphere of interactivity in the form of overlapping courses, shared laboratory space, a single student group for majors and minors, a lecture series of mutual interest to everyone involved, and an educational outreach program that brings CNS to the local schools.