Welcome to topiCS
Topics in Cognitive Science · 2009
Welcome to topiCS, Topics in Cognitive Science, the first new publication of the Cognitive Science Society in over 30 years.topiCS is intended to be a different journal.Different from the Society's flagship journal, Cognitive Science, and different from other cognitive science journals. The scope of topiCSThe prime directive of topiCS is to increase the range and scope of cognitive science.topiCS will do this by providing a forum for three broad categories of work: New and Emerging, Integrative and Reflective, and Great Debates.Although there is a core cognitive science discipline and the number of researchers contributing to this core is increasing, it is clear that much New and Emerging work begins at conferences and journals that primarily focus on areas other than cognitive science.We do not want to turn off the tap of cognitive science for those disciplines, but we do want to ensure that the work of these researchers gains broader influence within all reaches of the Cognitive Science community.Hence, much more so than a traditional journal, the Editor and Associate Editors for topiCS will be constantly reaching out to identify New and Emerging topics in cognitive science broadly defined and to provide the researchers who are leading those topics an outlet for their work.For example, our directive to the Associate Editors is that if they attend an exciting and stimulating symposium on any aspect of cognitive science at any conference, they should help recruit the conference organizers to organize a report, target papers, or discussion of that topic in topiCS.Indeed, many of our Forthcoming Topics (some of which are discussed below) began life as symposium presentations or workshop meetings.Likewise, as this first issue demonstrates, our embrace of the New and Emerging extends to the Best Of individual presentations at various conferences.(See the Editorial Introduction to the ''Best Of'' topic on page 173.)We will also be challenging established researchers to not simply report on their current research but to step back and discuss larger issues in cognitive science through Integrative and Reflective papers that go beyond a single research topic to examine broader issues and trends.An example of this is the Visions of Cognitive Science topic that is represented in this first issue by six lively and interesting papers from leading members of our community.(See the Editorial Introduction to that topic on page 173.)Another example is the topic