[Haskell-cafe] Re: (semi OT) Fwd: Old math reveals new thinking in children's cognitive development

On Fri, 11 Dec 2009 22:26:55 -0600, Tom Tobin wrote:

On Fri, Dec 11, 2009 at 9:21 PM, Brandon S. Allbery KF8NH wrote:

...

Unexpected applications of category theory for $500, Alex....

Before you know it, they're going to be modeling mental processes as monads. :p

Modeling mental processes using a tool related to a branch of mathematics or computer science has been done before. For example, CopyCat was a "model of analogy making and human cognition based on the concept of the parallel terraced scan, developed by Douglas Hofstadter, Melanie Mitchell, and others at the at Center for Research on Concepts and Cognition, Indiana University Bloomington" [1]. Furthermore, Metacat "is a computer model of analogy-making and perception that builds on the foundations of an earlier model called Copycat" [2]. A Haskellian version of Metacat could prove to be an interesting, if challenging, project. Does anybody know if such a project would be feasible? -- Benjamin L. Russell [1] "Copycat (software) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia." _Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia._ 18 Apr. 2005. 16 Dec. 2009. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copycat_%28software%29. [2] Marshall, James B. "Metacat: A Self-Watching Cognitive Architecture for Analogy-Making and High-Level Perception." James B. Marshall. 17 Oct. 2009. 15 Dec. 2009. http://science.slc.edu/~jmarshall/metacat/.