Academic Area
Cognitive Science & Psychology
Understanding how minds perceive, reason, learn, and act.
Thinking About Thinking supports interdisciplinary inquiry into cognitive science and psychology as foundational disciplines for understanding intelligence in humans and other biological systems.
This focus area brings together researchers and practitioners working across cognitive science, psychology, neuroscience, linguistics, behavioural science, and computational modelling of cognition. We are interested not only in what intelligent systems do, but in how perception, memory, learning, reasoning, emotion, and decision-making emerge from cognitive processes and social context.
Our emphasis is on mental representations, cognitive mechanisms, and behaviour: the structures and processes that underlie intelligence and shape how individuals and groups understand, adapt to, and interact with the world.
Core Questions We Explore
How do humans represent, learn, and reason about the world?
What cognitive mechanisms underlie perception, memory, attention, and decision-making?
How do emotion, motivation, and social context shape intelligence and behaviour?
What can psychological and cognitive models explain, and where do they fall short?
How do individual cognition and collective behaviour interact?
How should insights from cognitive science inform artificial intelligence and human–AI interaction?
Recordings
Events
Neuroscience and cognitive science are core threads across our flagship events.
At neuromonster, these questions are explored in depth through long-form talks and working groups focused on the neuroscience and mathematics of intelligence.
At AE Global Summit, cognitive and neural perspectives inform broader discussions about intelligence, computation, and society.
ThAT Ambassador Programme
The Thinking About Thinking Ambassador Programme is an open, application-based pathway for students and early-career researchers who want to take part in serious, interdisciplinary conversations about intelligence.
Ambassadors support Thinking About Thinking’s conferences, workshops, and community initiatives, helping to extend thoughtful dialogue across universities, disciplines, and countries. The programme is designed for people who care deeply about ideas, collaboration, and building intellectual communities.
Outstanding Ambassadors who demonstrate sustained contribution, leadership, and intellectual engagement may be invited into the Thinking About Thinking Fellowship, a private, invitation-only programme for long-term contributors.
Ambassadors
Year 2025
Ambassadors
Support the future of intelligence research and understanding