Students

COGS2010 – Memory

2022 – Session 1, In person/Online-scheduled-weekday, North Ryde

General Information

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Unit convenor and teaching staff Unit convenor and teaching staff Convenor/Lecturer
McArthur Mingon
Please email for appointment
Tutor
Kurt Lancaster
Tutor
Louis Klein
Credit points Credit points
10
Prerequisites Prerequisites
60cp at 1000 level or above
Corequisites Corequisites
Co-badged status Co-badged status
Unit description Unit description

Memory is everywhere - in our personal lives, in popular culture, in big science, and in our machines. But memory is notoriously hard to pin down. Is it all in the brain? Is it in our actions, in our social world, and in our valued objects and places? Or is it now all online? This unit introduces the interdisciplinary study of memory, offering students a critical survey of memory research across the cognitive and brain sciences, the social sciences, and the arts. Emphasis will be placed on autobiographical memory, embodied memory, and shared remembering between individuals. Students will learn to assess scientific and popular claims about what memory is, and how memory loss and gain can be understood in the digital age.

Important Academic Dates

Information about important academic dates including deadlines for withdrawing from units are available at https://www.mq.edu.au/study/calendar-of-dates

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:

  • ULO1: Demonstrate sound theoretical and technical knowledge of key theoretical frameworks, concepts, and phenomena in memory research.
  • ULO2: Develop critical and analytic capacities to assess scientific and popular claims about memory.
  • ULO3: Explain current concepts, theories, methods, and findings on memory in the cognitive and social sciences.
  • ULO4: Critically evaluate contemporary memory controversies by applying knowledge and problem-solving skills to examples from the field.
  • ULO5: Develop skills in interdisciplinary research, by learning to compare, evaluate, and integrate approaches to memory across the component disciplines of the cognitive sciences.

General Assessment Information

Word count for written assignments For written assignments, there will be 5% leeway in the word limit (i.e., up to 100 words over 2000). Beyond that you will be penalised 5% of your report mark for every further 100 words over the limit.

Late Penalty Late submission of an assignment will attract a penalty of 5% of the maximum mark for every day that the assignment is late (including weekend days and public holidays). For example, if the assignment is worth 40 marks and your assignment is submitted 2 days late, a penalty of 2x5% x40 = 4 marks will be applied and subtracted from the awarded mark for the assignment. Work submitted more than 5 days after the submission deadline will not be marked, unless special consideration has been granted. Please note that it is the student’s responsibility to notify the University of a disruption to their studies and that requests for extensions for assignments must be made via the University’s Ask MQ System (as outlined in the Special Consideration Policy).

No further submissions will be accepted after the marked assignments are returned and feedback is released to students.

Academic Integrity statement All students are expected to adhere to the University's Academic Integrity Policy. If you are unsure about which activities count as violations of the policy, please read this comprehensive list of "unacceptable academic activities". All forms of cheating including "contract cheating" are strongly prohibited and serious penalties will apply. It is expected that all students understand the University's Academic Integrity Policy and have completed the Academic Integrity Module. In addition, the following behaviours associated with contract cheating also violate the University's Academic Integrity Policy. In some cases, these behaviours might also be against the law:

  • Uploading University-copyrighted teaching materials such as unit of study outlines, lecture slides and assignment questions to 'study notes' sharing websites.
  • Selling University-copyrighted teaching materials to private tutoring or ghostwriting companies, or sharing these materials on social media platforms.
  • Sharing or discussing information about the content of an exam (including exam questions and answers) with others including on social media platforms.

Assessment Tasks

Name Weighting Hurdle Due
Essay 40% No Week 13
Mid-term exams 40% No Week 6 and Week 11
Commentary paper 20% No Week 5

Essay

Assessment Type 1: Essay
Indicative Time on Task 2: 35 hours
Due: Week 13
Weighting: 40%

 

2000 words maximum

 


On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Demonstrate sound theoretical and technical knowledge of key theoretical frameworks, concepts, and phenomena in memory research.
  • Develop critical and analytic capacities to assess scientific and popular claims about memory.
  • Explain current concepts, theories, methods, and findings on memory in the cognitive and social sciences.
  • Critically evaluate contemporary memory controversies by applying knowledge and problem-solving skills to examples from the field.
  • Develop skills in interdisciplinary research, by learning to compare, evaluate, and integrate approaches to memory across the component disciplines of the cognitive sciences.

Mid-term exams

Assessment Type 1: Examination
Indicative Time on Task 2: 30 hours
Due: Week 6 and Week 11
Weighting: 40%

 

Two mid-term exams scheduled throughout the semester. The two exams consist of multiple-choice and short answer questions. Each exam is worth 20% of the final unit mark.

 


On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Demonstrate sound theoretical and technical knowledge of key theoretical frameworks, concepts, and phenomena in memory research.
  • Develop critical and analytic capacities to assess scientific and popular claims about memory.
  • Explain current concepts, theories, methods, and findings on memory in the cognitive and social sciences.
  • Critically evaluate contemporary memory controversies by applying knowledge and problem-solving skills to examples from the field.
  • Develop skills in interdisciplinary research, by learning to compare, evaluate, and integrate approaches to memory across the component disciplines of the cognitive sciences.

Commentary paper

Assessment Type 1: Report
Indicative Time on Task 2: 20 hours
Due: Week 5
Weighting: 20%

 

750-1000 words maximum

 


On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Demonstrate sound theoretical and technical knowledge of key theoretical frameworks, concepts, and phenomena in memory research.
  • Develop critical and analytic capacities to assess scientific and popular claims about memory.
  • Explain current concepts, theories, methods, and findings on memory in the cognitive and social sciences.

1 If you need help with your assignment, please contact:

  • the academic teaching staff in your unit for guidance in understanding or completing this type of assessment
  • the Writing Centre for academic skills support.

2 Indicative time-on-task is an estimate of the time required for completion of the assessment task and is subject to individual variation

Delivery and Resources

Lectures are held weekly, from Week 1 to Week 13. Lectures run from 2pm to 4pm on Mondays, live online on zoom, with some additional pre-recorded lecture material for specific weeks (details will be provided and updated on iLearn). Lecture slides will be uploaded just before the lecture time under the lecture link in the relevant week in iLearn. Lecture recordings will be available through Echo360.

Tutorials are held weekly, starting in week 2. Attendance at tutorials is strongly encouraged. The tutorials are designed to reinforce complex material and concepts introduced in unit readings and lectures. In addition, many tutorials are designed to help you complete unit assessment tasks.

iLearn You will need access to the internet to access the unit's iLearn page. Through iLearn you will be able to access the lecture recordings (Echo360), readings, and feedback and marks for the assessment tasks. You are also required to submit two of the assessment tasks (the commentary and the final essay) via iLearn, using the Turnitin submission tool.

Policies and Procedures

Macquarie University policies and procedures are accessible from Policy Central (https://policies.mq.edu.au). Students should be aware of the following policies in particular with regard to Learning and Teaching:

Students seeking more policy resources can visit Student Policies (https://students.mq.edu.au/support/study/policies). It is your one-stop-shop for the key policies you need to know about throughout your undergraduate student journey.

To find other policies relating to Teaching and Learning, visit Policy Central (https://policies.mq.edu.au) and use the search tool.

Student Code of Conduct

Macquarie University students have a responsibility to be familiar with the Student Code of Conduct: https://students.mq.edu.au/admin/other-resources/student-conduct

Results

Results published on platform other than eStudent, (eg. iLearn, Coursera etc.) or released directly by your Unit Convenor, are not confirmed as they are subject to final approval by the University. Once approved, final results will be sent to your student email address and will be made available in eStudent. For more information visit ask.mq.edu.au or if you are a Global MBA student contact globalmba.support@mq.edu.au

Academic Integrity

At Macquarie, we believe academic integrity – honesty, respect, trust, responsibility, fairness and courage – is at the core of learning, teaching and research. We recognise that meeting the expectations required to complete your assessments can be challenging. So, we offer you a range of resources and services to help you reach your potential, including free online writing and maths support, academic skills development and wellbeing consultations.

Student Support

Macquarie University provides a range of support services for students. For details, visit http://students.mq.edu.au/support/

The Writing Centre

The Writing Centre provides resources to develop your English language proficiency, academic writing, and communication skills.

The Library provides online and face to face support to help you find and use relevant information resources. 

Student Services and Support

Macquarie University offers a range of Student Support Services including:

Student Enquiries

Got a question? Ask us via AskMQ, or contact Service Connect.

IT Help

For help with University computer systems and technology, visit http://www.mq.edu.au/about_us/offices_and_units/information_technology/help/

When using the University's IT, you must adhere to the Acceptable Use of IT Resources Policy. The policy applies to all who connect to the MQ network including students.


Unit information based on version 2022.02 of the Handbook