My research focuses on biologically-inspired computation such as neural networks and genetic algorithms. On one hand, the goal is to understand biological information processing, and on the other, to develop intelligent artificial systems that learn and adapt by observing and interacting with the environment. The three main focus areas are: (1) Cognitive Science, i.e. models of natural language processing, concept learning, and schema-based vision; (2) Computational Neuroscience, i.e. development, structure, and function of the visual cortex and episodic memory; (3) Neuroevolution, i.e. evolving neural networks with genetic algorithms for sequential decision tasks such as robotics, games, and artificial life.
risto [at] cs utexas edu