Eric Weiss

Reveal Contact Info

PhD Student

Neuroscience

Olshausen Lab

Current Research

Currently I am investigating high-dimensional vectors as a flexible, robust, and powerful model of cognitive computation. This approach, having many names (hyperdimensional computing, vector symbolic architectures, etc.) provides a conceptually simple framework for encoding and reasoning about a diverse set of data structures. I find this topic particularly intriguing because I believe that it is one of the few computational models that is truly interesting not only from the perspective of theoretical neuroscience, but also from that of artificial intelligence and hardware design.

Background

A long time ago I thought I’d study physics. Around the year 2000 I watched “The Matrix” and “Ghost in the Shell”, which got me thinking about the mind and AI. A few years later I went looking for books on those topics and found “On Intelligence” by Jeff Hawkins. Reading this book piqued my interest to such a degree that while I was an undergrad at UCSD I decided to double major in cognitive science and physics. During this time I received my intro to research with the de Sa lab, which provided an invaluable source of mentorship and fueled my curiosity. My fascination and excitement about computational models of cognition only increased, so when it came time to decide where I wanted to spend grad school, the Redwood Center was the clear choice.