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Architecture and its Cognition - Architectonics From The Mind
Last Updated: 2026-06-01 11:34:02
Abstract
If architecture aims to produce signification by articulating things together, where is such signification emerging from and how? In the face of rising AI technologies and the reappraisal of natural intelligence, this course will introduce students in broad strokes to centuries of discourses and practical research about the capacity of the human mind.
Objective
● Introduction to cognitive science: Learn the related concepts from the vast research fields related to architecture. ● Critical assessment and discussion: Engage with creatives, industry leaders, and researchers for deeper insights. ● Engage with contemporary research and discourses: Get to know and review the state-of-the-art in architecture and relevant fields of AI, BCI, and philosophy of the mind.
Content
From a thing in the world to an object in the mind, to an object in the world. This is the path the course will follow to introduce and discuss important research about human perception, cognition, and the capacity to make sense of the world and eventually act upon it. Such a path has been observed and questioned throughout centuries of human history and technological innovation and offers great potential for the near future of architecture. What questions and ideas emerged from that position in the world of arts, humanities and science? What is at stake in digital industries, and what are the active research topics? Does it challenge the way to approach and experience architecture and its tasks? The course will start with these questions to depict in broad strokes the richness of ideas architecture and its cognition may offer. Along with the course lectures, a cohort of external lecturers from the industry, research, and the arts will be invited to provide for a multiplicity of positions and ideas across disciplines. This course is particularly relevant to students who wish to put in perspective the position of the human intellect within the evolving digital ecosystem. Every session will begin with a lecture introducing a particular aspect or case study, followed by a critical discussion of related works. Each session is envisioned as self-contained with minimal homework to promote time for reflection in between.
General Information
- Language
- English
- Levels
- DS
Examination
- Type
- graded semester performance
Course Components
| Type | Title | Time & Place | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| exercise | Architecture and its Cognition - Architectonics From The Mind |
|
2 h weekly |
Offered In
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Wissenschaft im Kontext (Science in Perspective) (In Kursen aus dem Programm “Wissenschaft im Kontext” lernen Studierende, die MINT Fächer der ETH aus der Perspektive der Geistes-, Sozial- und Staatswissenschaften zu reflektieren. Nur die in diesem Abschnitt aufgelisteten Fächer können als "Wissenschaft im Kontext" angerechnet werden.)
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Typ A: Förderung allgemeiner Reflexionskompetenz (WiK-Kurse werden für Bachelorstudierende nach dem ersten Studienjahr sowie für alle Masterstudierende und Doktorierende empfohlen. Alle WiK-Kurse sind in Typ A gelistet. Bei den unter Typ B aufgeführten Kursen handelt es sich lediglich um Belegungsempfehlungen für bestimmte Departemente.)
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Typ B: Reflexion über fachspezifische Methoden und Inhalte (Fachspezifische Lerneinheiten. Relevant für alle Studierenden, die sich für diese Kurse interessieren. Diese Lerneinheiten sind alle auch unter "Typ A" aufgelistet, d.h. die Einschreibung ist allen Studierenden möglich.)
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