This new collection of contributions to the field of Cognitive Technology (CT) provides the (to date) widest spectrum of the state of the art in the discipline — a disciple dedicated to humane factors in tool design. The reader will find here a summary of past research as well as an overview of new areas for future investigations. The collection contains an extensive CT agenda identifying many as yet unsolved, CT-related, design issues. An exciting new development is the concept of ‘natural technology’. Some examples of natural technologies are discussed and the merits of empirical investigations (into what they are and how they develop), of interest to cognitive scientists and designers of new (corrective, digital) technologies, are pointed out. Another distinctive feature of the collection is that it provides examples of scientists’ tools; important, too, is its emphasis on ethics in tool design. The collection ends with a provocative coda (any responses can appear in the new, annual, CT forum of the Pragmatics and Cognition journal). The collection will appeal to all scientists, humanists and professionals interested in the interface between human cognitive processes and the technologies that augment them.

The use of technology in learning has increased dramatically. Training and education is now utilizing and almost integrated with the World Wide Web, podcasts, mobile and distant learning, interactive videos, serious games, and a whole range of e-learning. However, has such technology enhanced learning been effective? And how can it better serve training and education?E-learning must be 'brain friendly', so it optimizes learning to the cognitive architecture of the learners. If technology enhanced learning promotes the formation of effective mental representations and works with the human cognitive system, then the learners will not only be able to acquire information more efficiently, but they will also remember it better and use it. Technology should not be the driving force in shaping e-learning, but rather how that technology can better serve the cognitive system. This volume, originally published as a special issue of Pragmatics & Cognition 16:2 (2008) and partly in Pragmatics & Cognition 17:1 (2009), explores the research frontiers in cognition and learning technology. It provides important theoretical insights into these issues, as well as very practical implications of how to make e-learning more brain friendly and effective.

Our species has been a maker and user of tools for over two million years, but "cognitive technology" began with language. Cognition is thinking, and thinking has been "distributed" for at least the two hundred millennia that we have been using speech to interact and collaborate, allowing us to do collectively far more than any of us could have done individually. The invention of writing six millennia ago and print six centuries ago has distributed cognition still more widely and quickly, among people as well as their texts. But in recent decades something radically new has been happening: Advanced cognitive technologies, especially computers and the Worldwide Web, are beginning to redistribute cognition in unprecedented ways, not only among people and static texts, but among people and dynamical machines. This not only makes possible new forms of human collaboration, but new forms of cognition. This book examines the nature and prospects of distributed cognition, providing a conceptual framework for understanding it, and showcasing case studies of its development. This volume was originally published as a Special Issue of Pragmatics & Cognition (14:2, 2006).

Assistive technology for cognition is technology which can be used to enable, enhance, or extend cognitive function. This book systematically examines how cutting-edge digital technologies can assist the cognitive function of people with cognitive impairments, with the potential to revolutionize rehabilitation. Technologies are reviewed which direct attention, remind, recognize, prompt, and generally guide people through activities of daily living. Written by experts in neuropsychology and technology development, Assistive Technology for Cognition provides a comprehensive overview of the efficacy of technologies to assist people with brain impairments. Based on the list provided by the International Classification of Function, each chapter covers a different cognitive function; namely, attention, memory, affect, perception, executive function, language, numeracy, sequencing, and navigation onto which existing and future assistive technologies for cognition are mapped. This structure provides in-depth research in an accessible way, and will allow practitioners to move from an assessment of cognitive deficits to the prescription of an appropriate assistive technology for cognition. The chapters also make suggestions for future developments. Assistive Technology for Cognition will be of great interest to clinicians and researchers working in brain injury rehabilitation, technology developers, and also to students in clinical psychology, neuropsychology, and allied health disciplines.

Rapidly growing cognitive technologies (such as word processors, web browsers, cell phones, and personal data assistants) aid learning, memory, and problem solving, and contribute to every part of modern life from interviewing crime witnesses to learning a foreign language to calling one’s mother. This collection of essays on cognitive technology examines the interaction between the human mind and the tools people create to enhance it, studying which technologies assist cognition the most and what features are most effective. It also considers the point at which the technological enhancement of human ability begins to restrict that very ability, such as the risk of some cognitive technologies impairing cognition or creating disadvantages for individuals or groups. This collection of 11 essays discusses the most recent psychological research in cognitive technology, showcasing the paradigms and theories that have driven the development of new cognitive technologies. It explores the impact of technology on cognitive psychology, the classroom, and social interaction and group problem solving. Topics covered include the distracting characteristics of new technologies (such as the effects of cell phone use on driving ability and of distracting advertisements on problem solving), the study of mass media through assessing memories for media experiences, the media’s role in advancing gender and racial prejudices, and the misuse of cognitive technology through identity theft and cyberterrorism. Each essay concludes with a bibliography.

Computers have become a topic of concern, debate, argument, dogmatism, and inquiry among a variety of people who are interested in the fate and effectiveness of the educational system. This book presents working hypotheses of ways in which computers may fit into and/or transform classroom education. Through the exploration of learning and cognitive theory as it infuses technological developments, this volume promises to illuminate a number of important issues, including experiential learning and nontraditional computer-based instruction.

Cognitive science is an important tool to understand all the cognitive processes of the human brain, such as memory, attention, reasoning, etc. This book on cognitive science explores the scope of this field, which includes cognitive psychology, cognitive pedagogics, psycholinguistics, cognitive linguistics, educational technology, etc. Researches and studies performed by experts across the globe have been presented in this book in a coherent manner. It will serve as a valuable source of reference for graduate and post graduate students and will provide them innovative insights into this discipline.