The Cognitive Science Society brings researchers from various fields together for a common goal: understanding the nature of the human mind. Elman was selected as one of only five eminent scientists who have made outstanding contributions to cognitive science throughout their careers. As a new fellow of the Cognitive Science Society, Elman will work with a committee to help select the next ten fellows.
Elman was also a recent recipient of an honorary degree from New Bulgarian University. New Bulgarian University elected Elman as Doctor Honoris Causa and lauded him for his contribution to the development of the neural networks approach. He was also honored for the breakthroughs he has made towards a deeper understanding of learning, development and language.
Elman’s work, including the TRACE model and his Simple Recurrent Network architecture, have made significant contributions to the field of cognitive science. His recent book, Rethinking Innateness: A Connectionist Perspective on Development (with Bates, Johnson, Karmiloff-Smith, Parisi, Plunkett, 1996), introduces a new theoretical framework for understanding the nature/nurture debate. Currently, Elman’s research focus is on language processing, development, and computational models of cognition.
Elman joined the UCSD Linguistics Department in 1977 after receiving his Ph.D. from University of Austin at Texas. In 1986, Elman helped found the cognitive science department, where he served as chair from 1994 to 1998. Earlier this year, Elman was named Associate Dean the Division of Social Sciences at UCSD.