ESP Biography



KEVIN ELLIS, ESP Teacher




Major: brain and cognitive sciences

College/Employer: MIT

Year of Graduation: G

Picture of Kevin Ellis

Brief Biographical Sketch:

Not Available.



Past Classes

  (Clicking a class title will bring you to the course's section of the corresponding course catalog)

A13798: Make and Play a Didgeridoo in Spark 2020 (Mar. 14 - 15, 2020)
awuwuwuwuuuuweeorweeorwadelewadelewu! The didgeridoo is an Australian instrument that adds a tribal flair to any situation. In this class, we'll build our own didgeridoos out of PVC pipe, and then learn to play them. With the didgeridoo, you can create a variety of rhythms, produce animal noises, and make yourself sound like there's two people playing! For people with little to no experience.


S7483: Learning, Computation, and Humans in Splash! 2013 (Nov. 23 - 24, 2013)
This class is about learning, both in brains and in machines. From just one or two examples, even a young child can learn a new word; from just a single visual image, we can infer a rich, 3D structure. How does the mind get so much from so little? How do we quickly and reliably pick out the concepts in our world? And how is learning possible, even in principle? This class teaches principles applicable both to cognitive science and artificial intelligence. It will draw upon intellectual tools from (Bayesian) statistics, linguistics, computer science, and neuroscience. It will also give you a taste of modern machine learning.


S6341: Computational Cognitive Science in Splash! 2012 (Nov. 17 - 18, 2012)
Ever wanted to describe the mind using MATH? In this class, we'll learn about computational approaches to making sense of vision, language, concept learning, and other interesting topics in cognitive science. The class will discuss the history of computational cognitive science and delve in to some recent theories based on Bayesian statistics.


C6345: Machine Learning in Splash! 2012 (Nov. 17 - 18, 2012)
Can computers learn? In this class, you will discover how computers can perform inferences upon data to discover solutions to problems! This class will teach you how to write a computer program that learns to recognize faces, or drive a car, or parse English sentences, using the technologies of the field known as "Machine Learning."


C5157: Writing Rootkits: The Pragmatic Programmer's Hands-On How-to Guide to Operating Systems Security in Splash! 2011 (Nov. 19 - 20, 2011)
Rootkits are programs designed to subvert the operating system. This class will cover the design and implementation of rootkits and, of course, rootkit detectors. By the end of the class, you will know how to write programs that hide themselves and whatever nefarious deeds they may perpetrate, as well how to write programs to detect and remove such intrusions.