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Events for November 30, 2010

  • On Campus Freshmen Admission Interviews continue...

    Tue, Nov 30, 2010

    Viterbi School of Engineering Undergraduate Admission

    Receptions & Special Events


    Personal Admission Interviews are available to freshmen applicants throughout the Fall practically every weekday until December 10, 2011. Freshman applicant interviews are not required as part of the admission process, however we would like to meet as many of our applicants as possible. All interview appointments are scheduled online.http://viterbi.usc.edu/admission/freshman/interviews/

    Audiences: Freshmen Applicants for Fall 2011

    Contact: Viterbi Admission

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  • CS Colloquium

    Tue, Nov 30, 2010 @ 03:30 PM - 05:00 PM

    Thomas Lord Department of Computer Science

    Conferences, Lectures, & Seminars


    Speaker: Dr. Morteza Dehghani , ICT, USC

    Talk Title: Investigating and Modeling the Role of Cultural Narratives in Moral Decision-Making

    Abstract: In dealing with conflict, two broadly different approaches to modeling the values that drive decisions and choice of behavior have emerged: a consequentialist approach based on instrumental or material values, versus a deontological approach based on moral or sacred values. Sacred values are different from secular values in that they are often associated with violations of the cost-benefit logic of rational choice models. Understanding and modeling the impacts of sacred values on decision making is especially important in resolving intergroup conflicts and negotiations. In this talk, I first examine whether the principles of analogical retrieval and mapping govern the processes by which cultural and sacred narratives are applied. To understand and model this process computationally, I have developed MoralDM as a model of recognition-based moral decision-making. This model relies on a combination of first-principles reasoning and analogical reasoning to model the recognition-based mode of decision making. To discuss the broader impact of the role of narratives on decision making, I examine Iran's stance on its national nuclear program, using it as an indicator of how sacred values can emerge from sacred rhetoric. Overall, I argue that understanding sacred values and the processes by which they emerge are vital for understanding and modeling decision-making in cultural contexts.


    Biography: Morteza Dehghani is currently a Research Scientist at Institute of Creative Technologies (ICT) at University of Southern California. Before joining ICT, he was a postdoctoral researcher in the Department of Psychology at Northwestern University and a Young Investigator fellow at ARTIS. His research interests include computational social sciences, cross cultural differences in moral decision making, analogical and case-based reasoning, and cognitive modeling of different aspects of cognition. He is specifically interested in the role of cultural products in decision making and in the emergence of sacred values. His research approach consists of both conducting psychological experiments and computational cognitive modeling. He received his Ph.D. and MS in Computer Science with specialization in Cognitive Science from Northwestern University and MS and BS from University of California at Los Angeles.


    Host: Prof. Ewa Deelman

    Location: Seaver Science Library (SSL) - 150

    Audiences: Everyone Is Invited

    Contact: Kanak Agrawal

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  • Maseeh Entreprenuership Prize Competition Info Session

    Tue, Nov 30, 2010 @ 05:30 PM - 06:30 PM

    Viterbi School of Engineering Student Affairs

    Workshops & Infosessions


    Information session for the Maseeh Entrepreneurships Prize Competition (MEPC). Winners receive $50,000 to support their innovative ideas! The MEPC is exclusively open to VSoE students and faculty but teams can also have members from other schools, universities, and the community at large.

    Location: RTH 211

    Audiences: Everyone Is Invited

    Contact: Monica De Los Santos

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  • (CANCELED!) USC NSBE Social Outing: BJ’s and Rollerskating

    Tue, Nov 30, 2010 @ 09:00 PM - 11:59 PM

    Viterbi School of Engineering Student Organizations

    Student Activity


    Location: Skate Depot, Cerritos, California

    Audiences: Everyone Is Invited

    Contact: NSBE National Society of Black Engineers

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