Roman Taraban

Welcome to the Cognition Lab page.

Much of my research is grounded in some aspect of language processing. This includes applications of text analytics using machine methods including hierarchical cluster analysis, k-means analysis, naïve Bayes methods, linguistic category induction using artificial languages, and neural network modeling. 

One of my current projects involves applications of the Linguistic Inquiry and Word Count (LIWC2022) program to students' responses to ethical issues in order to identify and quantify the thematic elements in these responses. In another project, I am collaborating with the DREAM team (Developing Reflective Engineers through Artful Methods). This interdisciplinary team is funded by a grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) and brings together faculty from Environmental Engineering, Curriculum and Instruction, Museum, and Psychological Sciences, with a goal of developing and testing new cross-disciplinary instructional activities and methods involving engineering, art, and ethics. Over the last several years, my colleagues in engineering and I have launched an ambitious project to link Texas Tech engineering students with peers in India and Ukraine through shared exchanges on topics of ethics in engineering. The goals are to improve undergraduate education in the area of global communication, to involve large numbers of students, to exploit current technology in creative ways, and to raise the visibility of supporting institutions in promoting the development of ethical sensibilities in students. See our website at ethicalengineer.ttu.edu. 

Roman Taraban, Ph.D.
Professor