Several research projects and training programs are currently underway in the Cognitive Science Laboratory (CSL). CSL research is entirely funded by extramural grants and contracts from federal agencies which have included the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency DARPA, the U.S. Army, the U.S. Navy, the U.S. Air Force, and private foundation funding from the Fragrance Research Fund and the Alzheimer's Association.

A dominant theme in all research projects is the scientific study of human perceptual, cognitive, and motor functioning, with an emphasis on attention. The goal in studying human attention is to progress both inwards, to an examination of the computational processes, brain functions, and genetic mechanisms of attention, and outwards, to the study of the role of attentional functions in the performance of daily tasks and in interaction with complex technologies such as those used in aviation and air traffic control.

Thus, in general, research in the CSL falls into two broad areas: Cognitive Neuroscience and Human Factors. However, interaction and collaboration between these two areas of research is not unusual within the CSL, and may become more common in the future (Neuroergonomics).

Cognitive Neuroscience

Human Factors

Neuroergonomics