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AISB 2003 Convention:
Cognition in Machines and Animals

University of Wales, Aberystwyth
April 7th to 11th 2003

The Society for the Study of Artificial Intelligence and the Simulation of Behaviour (SSAISB)
University of Wales, Aberystwyth


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Convention Details

Dates: 7th - 11th April 2003
Location: University of Wales, Aberystwyth
Format: Parallel symposia on specialist AI topics
Local chair Mark Lee
Email: mhl@aber.ac.uk
Registration, accommodation
and local arrangements
Meinir Thomas at the
University Conference Office
Email: met@aber.ac.uk

Details Important dates News Programme Convention theme Symposia Keynote speakers Registration Local info Events Links

Important dates

Submission of full papers 7th March 2003
Deadline for early booking 22nd March 2003
Convention 7th to 11th April 2003

LaTeX style files

Style file: AISB03.sty
Example TeX file: AISB03.tex
Example bibTeX file: AISB03.bib
A PDF example of the output: AISB03.pdf


Details Important dates News Programme Convention theme Symposia Keynote speakers Registration Local info Events Links

Breaking news

Don't forget to refresh your browser to get the latest news.

3 March 2003

Symposia timetables added

In addition to the convention timetable, most of the timetables for the individual symposia are now avavilable, along with the lists of accepted papers. These can be found in the programme section.

30 January 2003

Student bursaries available

There are 40 student bursaries available which may be awarded to any PhD student. The bursaries can be used to pay the early registration fee (£70), and up to £100 towards travel and accommodation costs.

See the registration section for more details.

14 January 2003

Keynote speakers have been announced

The keynote speakers at this year's AISB will be:

See the Keynote Speakers section.

7 January 2003

Selected papers to be published in AISBJ

The editor of the AISB Journal (AISBJ) has aggreed to publish a selection of the best papers from this year's AISB Convention.

02 December 2002

Registration is now open

See the registration section for details of how to register for AISB 2003.


Details Important dates News Programme Convention theme Symposia Keynote speakers Registration Local info Events Links

Convention programme

Provisional programme

(See
below for details of individual symposia.)

Key to symposia:

Imitation = Second International Symposium on Imitation in Animals and Artifacts
Agents = Adaptive Agents and Multi-Agent Systems
Methods = Scientific Methods for the Analysis of Agent-Environment Interaction
Vision = Biologically-Inspired Machine Vision, Theory and Application
Creativity = Artificial Intelligence and Creativity in Arts and Science

Blue underline = keynote speaker, linked to keynote speakers section

Time Monday 7th Tuesday 8th Wednesday 9th Thursday 10th Friday 11th
7.30 -
9.00
Travel and
registration
Breakfast
09:00 -
10:30
Official Opening (15 mins)

A. N. Meltzoff and R. Rao
Peter Hobson (1 hr)

Imitation
Methods
Creativity
Imitation
Agents
Methods
Vision
Creativity
Imitation
Agents
10.30 -
11:00
Coffee Break
11:00 -
12:00
Imitation
Creativity
Imitation
Methods
Creativity
Imitation
Agents
Methods
Vision
Creativity
Imitation
Agents
12:00 -
13:00
Imitation
Creativity
Imitation
Methods
Creativity
Yiannis Aloimonos
Imitation
Agents
13:00 -
14:00
Lunch ---
14:00 -
15:00
Imitation
Imitation
Creativity
Gregor Schöner
Imitation
Agents
Vision
15:00 -
15:30
Imitation
Methods
Creativity
15:30 -
16:00
Coffee Break
16:00 -
17:00
Imitation
Giulio Sandini
Imitation
Methods
Creativity
Imitation
Agents
Vision
17:00 -
18:00
AISB AGM Steam train trip
including Waterfalls
Buffet and Bar,
Coach return at
22.30
Sorin Solomon
18:00 -
19:00
Dinner Dinner
19:00 -
21:00
--- Reception ---


Individual symposium details

Here you can find lists of all the papers accepted for presentation at the various symposia, as well as detailed timetables for each symposium.

Second International Symposium on Imitation in Animals and Artifacts
To be held in the Hugh Owen Building, room A12
List of accepted papers Timetable
Adaptive Agents and Multi-Agent Systems
To be held in Penbryn, in the Wasdell room
List of accepted papers Timetable
Scientific Methods for the Analysis of Agent-Environment Interaction
To be held in the Hugh Owen Building, room C43
List of accepted papers Timetable
Biologically-Inspired Machine Vision, Theory and Application
To be held in Penbryn, in the Seminar room
List of accepted papers Timetable
Artificial Intelligence and Creativity in Arts and Science
To be held in the Hugh Owen Building, room A14
List of accepted papers Timetable


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Convention theme

The theme of the convention is:

"Cognition in Machines and Animals"

This reflects current interest in such topics as: cognitive development, biologically-inspired modelling, and learning in robotics. The coverage is intended to be wide and inclusive, with general keywords such as:

The convention consists of five symposia, each presenting a selection of papers on a well focussed AI topic. There will be some parallel tracks and delegates are free to move between tracks according to their interests in the overall programme. (Delegates are asked to indicate their preferences at registration time.)

Each symposium has a programme chair(s), who administers their individual programme. A programme committee referees extended abstracts of papers for presentation at the event. See the Symposia details for information about the individual symposia.


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Symposia

Five symposia have been arranged:

  1. Second International Symposium on Imitation in Animals and Artifacts
  2. Adaptive Agents and Multi-Agent Systems (AAMAS)
  3. Scientific Methods for the Analysis of Agent-Environment Interaction
  4. Biologically-Inspired Machine Vision, Theory and Application
  5. Artificial Intelligence and Creativity in Arts and Science


Second International Symposium on Imitation in Animals and Artifacts

Chairs: Kerstin Dautenhahn and Chrystopher L. Nehaniv

Homepage: http://homepages.feis.herts.ac.uk/~nehaniv/aisb03.html

Imitation has traditionally been regarded as easy, and often scornfully dismissed as trivial, "cheating", or unworthy in comparison to higher cognitive abilities. Yet this is an illusion. Explaining the imitative abilities of humans and other animals has proved to be a complex subject. Indeed, it is highly non-trivial even to say exactly what it means for two behaviours to be the "same". The mechanisms are not well-understood, and the connections to sociality, communication, development, and learning are deep, as recent research from various disciplines has started to reveal.

Building robots and software agents that can imitate or learn socially from other artificial or human agents in an appropriate way is an endeavour that involves the deepest problems of connecting perception, experience, context, and action. This four-day symposium will focus on state-of-the-art research into this important area that helps us to understand adaptive behaviour in social animals and machines.

The authors of the best contributions to the current symposium proceedings will be invited to submit to a special thematic journal issue (details to be announced).

The areas of interest of the symposium include but are not limited to:


Adaptive Agents and Multi-Agent Systems (AAMAS)

Chairs: Dimitar Kazakov, Eduardo Alonso and Daniel Kudenko

Homepage: http://www-users.cs.york.ac.uk/~kazakov/aamas/aamas-3.html

Adaptive Agents and Multi-Agent Systems (AAMAS) is an emerging multi-disciplinary area encompassing Computer Science, Software Engineering, Biology, as well as Cognitive and Social Sciences.

When designing agent systems, it is impossible to foresee all the potential situations an agent may encounter and specify the agents' behaviour optimally in advance. Agents therefore have to learn from and adapt to their environment. This task is even more complex when the agent is situated in an environment that contains other agents with potentially different capabilities and goals. Multi-Agent Learning, i.e., the ability of the agents to learn how to co-operate and compete, becomes crucial in such domains.

The goal of this symposium is to increase awareness and interest in adaptive agent research, encourage collaboration between ML experts and agent system experts, and give a representative overview of current research in the area of adaptive agents. The symposium will serve as an inclusive forum for the discussion on ongoing or completed work in both theoretical and practical issues.


Scientific Methods for the Analysis of Agent-Environment Interaction

Chairs: Ulrich Nehmzow and Gregor Schöner

Homepage: http://essexrobotics.essex.ac.uk/AISB/

Intelligent mobile robotics is increasingly advancing from an experimental engineering discipline towards a maturing research field, using standardised robotic platforms, experimental setups and procedures. However, reporting (of results and experimental procedures) is still largely dependent on qualitative descriptions. Furthermore (and partly due to this lack of quantitative descriptions), independent verification and validation of experimental results is not commonly seen in mobile robotics research. The same is true, more generally, for autonomous robots interacting with humans, for agent systems acting in partly unknown environments and for nonlinear dynamical systems models of behaviour.

Arguably, autonomous robotics and agent based approaches are now at a point where quantitative descriptions of behaviour and experimental results, independent validation and verification of results should become common practice. The symposium seeks to bring together scientists working in any area that analyses the behaviour of "behaving agents" in areas such as mobile robotics, autonomous agents, neural networks, neurosciene, experimental psychology and related sciences that share a common interest in describing behaviour quantitatively

Contributions are invited in the following areas:


Biologically-Inspired Machine Vision, Theory and Application

Chairs: Horst Holstein and Fred Labrosse

Homepage: http://users.aber.ac.uk/ffl/BIMVTA03/

Computer vision has developed into a mature science over the last 40 years, but current computer vision systems are vastly different from, and in most cases lack the efficiency of, biological vision systems. Biological vision therefore remains a strong metaphor for the design of machines that simulate intelligent behaviour in visually sensed environments. Immensely rewarding applications in human-machine interaction await advances in the multi-disciplinary threads of machine vision, perception and cognition. To promote a strong multi-disciplinary interaction, the symposium aims to provide a forum for presentation and discussion of the state-of-the-art and opening directions of research and technology related to biologically-inspired machine vision. Papers are sought that advance the theoretical foundations or present applications on this topic. Presentations including, but not limited to the following, are encouraged from both industry and academia:

Contributions bringing together two or more of the above themes, to give a better understanding of a framework towards a more intelligent machine interpretation of images, are especially welcome.


Artificial Intelligence and Creativity in Arts and Science

Chairs: Pablo Gervas and Simon Colton

Homepage: http://www.doc.ic.ac.uk/~sgc/events/aisb03/

Submissions are invited for the AISB'03 Symposium on AI and Creativity in Arts and Science. Recently, creativity and creative behaviour have become serious targets for AI study. Worthwhile inroads into the computational study of the creative mind have been made, and systems exhibiting creative behaviour have been constructed. This was reflected in the successful AISB symposia on creative and creativity-related topics at AISB'99 (Edinburgh), AISB'00 (Birmingham), AISB'01 (York) and AISB'02 (Imperial). This symposium aims to bring together researchers interested in all forms of creative reasoning. The aim is to allow work focussed on different aspects of creative behaviour to be compared and contrasted. To this end, the programme committee invites the submission of extended abstracts covering creative behaviour in the arts and the sciences, including, but not restricted to:


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Keynote speakers

We are pleased to announce the following invited speakers for the keynote sessions at AISB this year:

Prof Sorin Solomon
Theoretical Physics Department, Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
"Perception, Cognition and Creativity Emerging from Simple Microscopic Agents".
[Talk abstract]

Prof A. N. Meltzoff and Prof R. Rao
University of Washington.
"Imitation learning in infants and robots: Towards probabilistic computational models".
[Talk abstract] [Speaker bio]

Prof Giulio Sandini
LIRA-Lab, Department of Communication,Computer and System Sciences, University of Genova.
"Human Babies and Robot Cubs".
[Talk abstract] [Speaker bio]

Prof Peter Hobson
UCL Department of Psychiatry & Behavioural Sciences.
"The interpersonal origins of thinking: How humans achieve what computers (so far) haven't".
[Talk abstract] [Speaker bio]

Prof Yiannis Aloimonos
Computer Vision Laboratory Institute for Advanced Computer Studies, and Department of Computer Science, University of Maryland
"Visual space-time geometry: a geometry of thought".
[Talk abstract] [Speaker bio]

Prof Gregor Schöner
Institut für Neuroinformatik, Ruhr-Universität Bochum, Germany
"Dynamic field theory and embodied cognition".
[Talk abstract] [Speaker bio]


Details Important dates News Programme Convention theme Symposia Keynote speakers Registration Local info Events Links

Registration

Registration is now open on the registration page.

Students and SSAISB members are eligible for a significant discount on registration fees. Delegates can join AISB when registering in order to qualify for the discount.

Accommodation and meals will be available on the University campus, very close to the convention (see accommodation details), and may also be booked on the registration form.

Please note that registration forms must be returned by post, electronic forms cannot be accepted.

Student bursaries

There are 40 student bursaries available which may be awarded to any PhD student. The bursaries can be used to pay the early registration fee (£70), and up to £100 towards travel and accommodation costs.

Students should apply for a bursary when they register by sending the following with their fully completed registration form:

All applications for student bursaries must be recieved by the 22nd March.


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Travel and local information

The convention will be held at the University of Wales, Aberystwyth. Please note that Aberystwyth is located in mountainous country and so travel arrangements need to be planned in advance. For example, central London is about 5 hours away by road or rail. This means Heathrow and other London airports are less convenient for air travellers (6+ hours) than Birmingham airport which is well connected by rail (about 3 hours). Manchester airport is also an alternative (3 hours) with rail connections.

The
travel details page has information about how to reach Aberystwyth, and maps of Aberystwyth and the region can be seen and downloaded from the University's web pages here. In addition, there is a pdf called "Getting to the University" available.

For delegates arriving by train, a special bus has been arranged which will go from the train station to the University. The following trains will be met (arrival times):

Accommodation has been pre-booked on the main University campus, and can be reserved during registration. These rooms are situated very close to the convention, and within easy walking distance of the reception venue. See accommodation details If you have any further queries about local arrangements, including travelling to Aberystwyth, please contact Meinir Thomas at the Conference Office: met@aber.ac.uk.






Details Important dates News Programme Convention theme Symposia Keynote speakers Registration Local info Events Links

Organised events

Two main events have been organised for conference attendees:


Details Important dates News Programme Convention theme Symposia Keynote speakers Registration Local info Events Links

Links

If you have any questions about registration, or local arrangements, such as accommodation or catering, please contact Meinir Thomas at the conference office: met@aber.ac.uk.

If you have general questions about the AISB'03 convention, please contact the local chair, Mark Lee: mhl@aber.ac.uk.

If you have any questions about the programme please contact Joanne Walker: jnw@aber.ac.uk.

The Society for the Study of Artificial Intelligence and the Simulation of Behaviour (AISB)
Aberystwyth University
Aberystwyth tourism site


Web pages designed by Joanne Walker, e-mail jnw@aber.ac.uk.