Stefan Uddenberg.Stefan Uddenberg, a professor of psychology at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, has joined the Beckman Institute.

Uddenberg earned his Ph.D. in psychology from Yale University and his B.A. in cognitive science and Japanese studies from Dartmouth College.

His research explores the default assumptions wired into the mind, especially in the context of perception. What we see is a process of unconscious inferences, where we take into account the exact nature of the light entering our eyes as well as a set of assumptions about the source that most likely generated or reflected that light. Various techniques can help reveal the nature of these assumptions. One of Uddenberg's favorite techniques is the method of serial reproduction (essentially the children’s game of ‘Broken Telephone’) which his lab uses to explore our default assumptions across several visual contexts, ranging from faces to intuitive physics.

Most recently, Uddenberg has been working on building new generative models of psychological stimuli, such as faces. Using these models allows for the generation of hyper-realistic face images which can then be transformed along many perceived attributes of psychological interest. Such models of psychological impressions are important for elucidating and combating stereotypes and discrimination.

At the Beckman Institute, Uddenberg joins the Biologically Informed Artificial Intelligence Working Group.

"I am thrilled to be joining Beckman's vibrant community of scholars," he said. "I'm especially excited to meet other scholars working at the intersection of generative AI and cognitive science to foster meaningful collaborations."