COGS 200 Final Exam Questions &
Answers 2025/2026
What is COGS? - ANSWERSCOGS is an interdisciplinary and collaborative approach to
understanding and building systems that think and act intelligently.
The Possibilities for Diamonds - ANSWERSreal-natural: diamonds, real-artificial: synthetic
diamonds, fake-artificial: cut glass "diamonds", fake-natural: ?
The Possibilities for "Intelligence" - ANSWERSreal-natural: people, real-artificial: A.I, fake-
artificial: ?, fake-natural: Sphex?
Sphex Pensylvanicus - ANSWERSWasp that looks smart but it's actually not, it's more of a
genetic habitual pattern
Alan Turing (1951) "Can Digital Computers Think?" - ANSWERSa test, developed by Alan Turing
in 1950, of a machine's ability to exhibit intelligent behaviour equivalent to, or indistinguishable
from, that of a human
If the evaluator cannot reliably tell the machine from the human (Turing originally suggested
that the machine would convince a human 70% of the time after five minutes of
conversation[3]), the machine is said to have passed the test.
The Turing Test - ANSWERSInvolves two controversies:
1. Empirical: will there ever be an actual computer that
wins the imitation game?
2. Conceptual: if a computer does win the game, does that mean (= entail, provide evidence
that, or?) it can think?
Descartes: no to 1, maybe to 2
, Chinese room proves no to 2
Man in a Chinese Room - ANSWERSMan has a rule book, he receives sheets of paper with
symbols, follows the rule book instructions, and sends out responses to the sheets. However
just because it seems like he understands chinese, he doesn't know it at all so he's not really
thinking. Proves #2 of turing controversy is wrong
4 Theories of the Mind - ANSWERSDualism, Behaviourism, Identity Theory, Functionalism
Dualism - ANSWERSEach of us knows her own mind, but must guess at the contents (and even
the existence) of other minds.
Behaviourism - ANSWERSScience (of the mind) should adhere to good scientific practice and use
objective (or at least intersubjective) evidence. It makes mentality out to be entirely external.
• Doesn't it fail to account for obvious senses in which the mind just is an internal arena?
• I can feel a pain and not cry.
• An actor can express pain that she is not feeling.
Identity Theory - ANSWERSMid - 1950's, asserts that mental states (beliefs, desires, intentions,
pain, etc.) are identical to various brain states.
• Represents a first attempt at a synthesis of the insights of both the first-person and the third-
person approaches.
- Accommodates some "slippage" between thought and action.
- Respectably scientific, like behaviourism.
Functionalism - ANSWERSCombines behaviorism and dualism!
What seems to matter are the functions that the brain carries out, the causal roles its states play
in the body/brain system.
Functional characterization:
Answers 2025/2026
What is COGS? - ANSWERSCOGS is an interdisciplinary and collaborative approach to
understanding and building systems that think and act intelligently.
The Possibilities for Diamonds - ANSWERSreal-natural: diamonds, real-artificial: synthetic
diamonds, fake-artificial: cut glass "diamonds", fake-natural: ?
The Possibilities for "Intelligence" - ANSWERSreal-natural: people, real-artificial: A.I, fake-
artificial: ?, fake-natural: Sphex?
Sphex Pensylvanicus - ANSWERSWasp that looks smart but it's actually not, it's more of a
genetic habitual pattern
Alan Turing (1951) "Can Digital Computers Think?" - ANSWERSa test, developed by Alan Turing
in 1950, of a machine's ability to exhibit intelligent behaviour equivalent to, or indistinguishable
from, that of a human
If the evaluator cannot reliably tell the machine from the human (Turing originally suggested
that the machine would convince a human 70% of the time after five minutes of
conversation[3]), the machine is said to have passed the test.
The Turing Test - ANSWERSInvolves two controversies:
1. Empirical: will there ever be an actual computer that
wins the imitation game?
2. Conceptual: if a computer does win the game, does that mean (= entail, provide evidence
that, or?) it can think?
Descartes: no to 1, maybe to 2
, Chinese room proves no to 2
Man in a Chinese Room - ANSWERSMan has a rule book, he receives sheets of paper with
symbols, follows the rule book instructions, and sends out responses to the sheets. However
just because it seems like he understands chinese, he doesn't know it at all so he's not really
thinking. Proves #2 of turing controversy is wrong
4 Theories of the Mind - ANSWERSDualism, Behaviourism, Identity Theory, Functionalism
Dualism - ANSWERSEach of us knows her own mind, but must guess at the contents (and even
the existence) of other minds.
Behaviourism - ANSWERSScience (of the mind) should adhere to good scientific practice and use
objective (or at least intersubjective) evidence. It makes mentality out to be entirely external.
• Doesn't it fail to account for obvious senses in which the mind just is an internal arena?
• I can feel a pain and not cry.
• An actor can express pain that she is not feeling.
Identity Theory - ANSWERSMid - 1950's, asserts that mental states (beliefs, desires, intentions,
pain, etc.) are identical to various brain states.
• Represents a first attempt at a synthesis of the insights of both the first-person and the third-
person approaches.
- Accommodates some "slippage" between thought and action.
- Respectably scientific, like behaviourism.
Functionalism - ANSWERSCombines behaviorism and dualism!
What seems to matter are the functions that the brain carries out, the causal roles its states play
in the body/brain system.
Functional characterization:
