Research

I marvel at the world through algorithmic lenses. Specifically, I believe that theoretical computer science provides a universal language to represent both our mental and mathematical models of reality. By examining our scientific metaphors with the tools of dynamics systems, algorithm analysis and computational complexity, I hope to glean new insights into science and mathematics. You can learn more on my blog Theory, Evolution, and Games Group which started as companion to the Evolutionary Game Theory Reading Group. My interests are currently currently focused on:

I am Prakash Panangaden's graduate student in the School of Computer Science, and an associate member of Thomas R. Shultz's Laboratory for Natural and Simulated Cognition in the Department of Psychology. Both are at McGill University, where I completed my undergraduate degree in 2010. In between undergraduate and graduate school, I was at the Institute for Quantum Computing, and Department of Combinatorics & Optimization at University of Waterloo, and a visitor to the Centre for Quantum Technologies at the National University of Singapore.

Papers

In progress and preprints:
[i] AK. Structure of unitary t-designs. [pdf 1, pdf 2, MO Q]
[ii] J.Z. Xue, AK, A. Costopoulos, and F. Guichard. Run-away mutation: a mechanism for generating low mutation rates and high mutators in asexual populations without selective advantage.
[iii] AK, K. Brown, and T.R. Shultz. Coevolution of development rate and social investment in offspring.
[iv] AK. Unifying quantum and Markov models of decision making.
[v] AK, M. Montrey, and T.R. Shultz. Evolving cooperation by useful delusions: subjective rationality and quasi-magical thinking.
[vi] AK, J.G. Scott, and D. Basanta. Edge effects in game theoretic dynamics of spatially structured tumours. arXiv:1307.6914, 2013.
[vii] AK. Complexity of evolutionary equilibria in static fitness landscapes. arXiv:1308.5094, 2013.
[viii] AK, P. Panangaden, and D. Precup. Weighted automata are compact and actively learnable.
[ix] AK, T.R. Shultz. Why humanitarianism is difficult to achieve.

Published:
[8] M. Hartshorn, AK, and T.R. Shultz. The evolutionary dominance of ethnocentric cooperation. Journal of Artificial Societies and Social Simulation, 16(3): 7, 2013.
[7] AK, and T.R. Shultz. Limitations of the Dirac formalism as a descriptive framework for cognition. Behavioral and Brain Sciences 36 (03), 292-293, 2013.
[6] AK, and T.R. Shultz. Ethnocentrism maintains cooperation, but keeping one's children close fuels it. Proceedings of the 33rd annual conference of the cognitive science society, 2011. [pdf]
[5] AK. Robustness of ethnocentrism to changes in inter-personal interactions. Complex Adaptive Systems - AAAI Fall Symposium, 2010. [pdf, slides]
[4] AK. A connectionist study on the interplay of nouns and pronouns in personal pronoun acquisition. Cognitive Computation, 2010.
[3] AK. The cognitive cost of ethnocentrism. Proceedings of the 32nd annual conference of the cognitive science society, 2010. [pdf1, slides]
[2] AK, K. Brown, and T.R. Shultz. Self-esteem and the matching effect in mate selection. Proceedings of the 32nd annual conference of the cognitive science society, 2010. [pdf]
[1] T.R. Shultz, M. Hartshorn, and AK. Why is ethnocentrism more common than humanitarianism? Proceedings of the 31st annual conference of the cognitive science society, 2009. [pdf]

Posters and presentations

2013
September 27 Complexity of evolutionary equilibria in static fitness landscapes
Guichard Lab, McGill University
September 19 Learning automata from data
Guest lecture for COMP330: Theory of Computation
post
September 17 Minimization
Guest lecture for COMP330: Theory of Computation
post
July 12 Questioning the local equilibrium assumption for static fitness landscapes.
Moffitt Cancer Research Center, Tampa, FL
July 9 Evolving cooperation by useful delusions: subjective rationality and quasi-magical thinking.
Swarmfest
June 19 Weighted automata are compact and actively learnable.
Reasoning and Learning Laboratory, McGill University
May 18 Agent-based modeling of the evolution of "religion"
Cultural Evolution of Religion Research Consortium
with Thomas R. Shultz
poster
post
March 27 Evolving useful delusions: subjective rationality leads to objectively irrational cooperation.
9th Interdisciplinary Graduate Student CResearch Symposium, McGill University
transcript
2012
November 15 Evolutionary game theory and cognition.
Guest Lecture for PSYC532: Cognitive Science
slides
post
February 9 Testing for stability in a time series
Quant &Cog Brown Bag Lunch
with Thomas R. Shultz
post
July 30 Evolution of ethnocentrism with minimal cognition in a spatially structured population.
Swarmfest
January 13 Introduction to (quantum) query complexity
INTRIQ student conference
2011
October 6 Evolutionary game theory and cognition.
Guest Lecture for PSYC532: Cognitive Science
slides
post
July 23 Ethnocentrism Maintains Cooperation, but Keeping One's Children Close Fuels It.
33rd Annual Conference of the Cognitive Science Society
poster
July 19 Evolution of ethnocentrism with minimal cognition in a spatially structured population
SCSCS 2nd Meeting, Boston
with Thomas R. Shultz
slides
June 1 Evolution of ethnocentrism with minimal cognition in a spatially structured population.
McGill University
slides
March 22 Properties of unitary t-designs.
IQC Theory Lunch
February 3 Replicator dynamics on random graphs.
C&O Graduate Student Seminar
2010
December 9 Lower bounds in the quantum query model.
AQuA Student Congress, CQT, Singapore
1, 2, 3, 4
November 11 Robustness of ethnocentrism to changes in inter-personal interactions
Complex Adaptive Systems - AAAI Fall Symposium
slides
November 9 Lower bounds on quantum query complexity.
SUMS Talk
November 9 Evolutionary game theory and cognition.
Guest Lecture for PSYC532: Cognitive Science
slides
August 13 The cognitive cost of ethnocentrism.
32nd Annual Conference of the Cognitive Science Society
slides
August 9 Evolution and cognitive cost of ethnocentrism.
43rd Annual Meeting of the Society for Mathematical Psychology
slides
July 14 Structure of unitary t-designs.
CQISC, University of Calgary
July 9 Combinatorial designs in quantum computation.
CUMC, University of Waterloo
March 26 Introduction to unitary t-designs.
Institute for Quantum Computing, University of Waterloo
slides
February 13 Unitary t-designs.
SUMM student conference, Montreal
slides
January 7 Introduction to unitary t-designs.
INTRIQ student conference
slides
2009
November 12 Evolutionary game theory and cognition.
Guest Lecture for PSYC532: Cognitive Science
slides
November 5 Evolving Cooperation.
TEDx McGill
video
transcript
1, 2, 3
October 26 Calculus and combinatorics in quantum information theory.
SUMS Talk
October 7 Properties of unitary t-designs
Cryptography and Quantum Information Seminar
slides
August 31 Calculus, Combinators and (quantum) computation
SOCS undergraduate summer research symposium
slides
June 4 The evolution of cooperation in a competitive world.
Cognitio
poster
2008
October 17 The evolution of cooperation in a competitive world.
Undergraduate research conference
poster
August 29 Evolutionary game theory
SOCS undergraduate summer research symposium
slides