SHEILA CHASE, Ph.D. (City Univeristy of New York, 1967)
Professor of Psychology
Hunter College

Office Address:
Department of Psychology
Hunter College
695 Park Avenue, Room 608 North
New York, NY 10021

Lab Address:
Laboratory of Comparative Cognition and Psychophysics
Hunter College
695 Park Avenue, Room 606a North
New York, NY 10021

Phone: 212 772-5617
Fax: 212 772 5620
Email: schase@hunter.cuny.edu

Office Hours for Fall 2004: Tu 3:00pm - 6:00pm

 

 


CLASSES FOR 2003

Fall 2004
Psych 250: General Experimental Psychology
Psych 750.72: Special Topics: Basic Psychological Processes I
Psych 717: Animal Behavior and Conservation in Captivity and the Wild

Spring 2005
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REPRESENTATIVE PUBLICATIONS & WRITING PROJECTS

 

Donis, F., Chase, S. & Heinemann, E. G. (in press). Effects of identical context on visual pattern recognition by pigeons. Learning and Behavior.

Chase, S. & Heinemann, E. G. (2001). Exemplar memory and discrimination. In R. G. Cook (Ed.), Avian visual cognition [On-line]. Available: www.pigeon.psy.tufts.edu/avc/chase/

Chase, S. (1997), “Concept formation” and categorization in pigeons. In Watanabe, S., & Chase, S. (Eds.). Pattern Recognition in Humans and Animals. Keio University Press, Kyoto, Japan.

Heinemann, E. G. & Chase, S. (1995), A quantitative model for brightness induction. Vision Research, 35, 2007-2020.

Donis, F. J., Heinemann, E.G. & Chase, S. (1994). Context effects in visual pattern recognition by pigeons. Perception and Psychophysics, 1994, 55, 576-688.

Chase, S. & Heinemann, E.G. (1991). Memory limitation in human and animal signal detection.(121-137). In Commons, M.D, Nevin, J.A. & Davison, M.C. (Eds.). Mechanisms, Models and Application of Signal Detection: Quantitative Analysis of Behavior. Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.pdf file

Heinemann, E.G. & Chase, S. (1990). A quantitative model for pattern recognition. (pages 109-125). In Commons, M. L., Herrnstein, R. J., Kosslyn, S.M. & Mumford, D.B. (Eds.). Quantitative Analyses of Behavior. Vol. IX: Computational and Clinical Approaches to Pattern Recognition and Concept Formation. Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum. pdf file

Chase, S. & Heinemann, E.G. (1989). Effects of stimulus complexity on identification and categorization. International Journal of Comparative Psychology, 3, 165-181.

Chase, S., Bugnacki, P., Braida, L.D. & Durlach, N.I. (1983). Intensity perception. XII. Effect of presentation probabilities and feedback on identification performance. Journal of the Acoustical Society of America, 73, 279-284.

Chase, S. (1983).Pigeons and the magical number seven.(pages 37-58). In Commons, M.L., Herrnstein, R.L. & Wagner, A. (Eds.). Quantitative Analyses of Behavior, Vol. IV: Discrimination Processes. Cambridge, MA: Ballanger. pdf file

Heinemann, E.G. & Chase, S. (1975). Stimulus generalization.(pages 305-349). In Estes, W.K. (Ed.). Handbook of Learning and Cognitive Processes, Vol.2, Conditioning and Behavior Theory. Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.

Chase, S., Geller, E.A. & Hendry, J.S. (1974). On the establishment of a continuous repertoire. Bulletin of Psychonomic Society, 4, 14-16.

Chase, S. & Heinemann, E. G. (1972). Decisions based on redundant information: An analysis of two-dimensional stimulus control. Journal of Experimental Psychology, 92, 161-175.

Heinemann, E.G. & Chase, S. (1970). On the form of stimulus generalization curves for auditory intensity. Journal of Experimental Psychology , 84, 483-486.

Heinemann, E.G. & Chase, S. (1970). Conditional stimulus control. Journal of Experimental Psychology, 84, 187-197.

Heinemann, E.G., Avin, E., Sullivan, M.A. & Chase, S. (1969). Analysis of stimulus generalization with a psychophysical method. Journal of Experimental Psychology, 84, 215-224.

Heinemann, E.G., Chase, S. & Mandell, C. (1969). Discriminative control of "attention", Science, 160, 553-554.

Chase, S. (1968). Selectivity in multidimensional stimulus control. Journal of Comparative and Physiological Psychology, 66, 787-792.

Working Papers:

Yokoyama, K. & Chase, S., Attentional Processes in Pattern Recognition.


RESEARCH INTERESTS & ACTIVITIES

Comparative cognition, memory and decision processes in humans and other animals, psychophysics, perception, computer modeling.


OVERVIEW

Our research deals with the manner in which information, primarily visual patterns, are processed, remembered and used as organisms adapt to the challenges of survival. Through extensive work on the food seeking behavior of pigeons we have been able to describe, in quantitative detail, how stimuli reliably associated with motivationally significant outcomes of behavior are isolated from other potentially relevant stimuli and how such stimulus information is processed. These processes are expressed in the form of a computer model developed by Eric G. Heinemann and Sheila Chase that has enabled us specify precisely the mechanisms hypothesized to underlie the observed behaviors. We refer to our model as the Natural Intelligence Model (NIM) to differentiate it from models of artificial intelligence. Unlike the latter we do not attempt to optimize a particular process but rather try to understand how these processes have evolved. Working with pigeons has enabled us to take advantage of the extensive literature on the behavior of this species and, given our focus on visual information processing, their excellent vision. Underlying our work is the assumption that, although important differences exist among species, there are fundamental similarities in how information is processed. Studying these processes in pigeons, rather than humans, enables us to avoid the complexities imposed on these processes by verbal coding. We believe that this approach will ultimately facilitate the creation of effective conditions for acquisition of information ranging from the development of algorithms for processing of information by artificial organisms to designing conditions that maximize effective information processing.