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Assignment

There is no written assignment; just prepare yourself to respond to the following questions.

Winston, during a period of temporary insanity, has taken a leave from MIT to spend two years at the National Science Foundation, where he has started a program titled “Computational Psychology.” You have taken a job working for him, and honoring what you have learned from 6xxx, you are careful to think about what motivates him in particular, and NSF program managers in general, with respect to what sorts of work they prefer to support.

Part I

What are his likely motivators?

Part II

• Which 6xxx paper have you found among the most insipid? What would you write in an email message to Winston, explaining why such work should not be funded? Think about your motivator list.

• Which 6xxx paper have you found most stimulating? What would you write in an email message to Winston, explaining why such work should be funded? Think about your motivator list.

Part III

Be prepared to argue for your second choices for Part II in class, just in case particular papers turns out to be too popular in the best or worst categories to keep a discussion going. If you think a paper is too obviously best or worst, avoid it.