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We wanted to make something fun and silly. We like RowdyHacks to be a fun and chillax event, while also still supporting the community, Zuniga added. While we were brainstorming, I thought dinosaurs would be really cool.

Perhaps its fortunate the team wasnt inspired by a different Spielberg film about dinosaurs.

Hackers will have the opportunity to attend workshops and engage with mentors who have professional experience across a variety of computer science fields. These sessions will help students gain experience and expand their skillsets. Those trying to land jobs or internships will find that RowdyHacks provides invaluable networking and recruiting opportunities for students and recruiters, says RowdyHacks Director Meira (Mei) Sullum, a junior computer science major.

Its a really great way to get your foot in the door to directly talk to a recruiter, she said. Just showing up at an event like this is showing recruiters that youre putting in that extra effort, so it helps you stand out. Usually, recruiters end up reaching out afterwards at hackathons. Its a very good way to find companies and internships.

As part of its 10-year strategic plan, UTSA aims for 75% of its undergraduate students to participate in some type of experiential learning by the time they graduate.

Besides the experiential learning and professional development opportunities at the event, one of the key draws of RowdyHacks is that its fun. As logistics lead, ensuring that RowdyHacks is indeed a good time is one of Murrays primary responsibilities.

Theres two sides to hackathons: Theres doing the actual project and then theres also that hackathon experience, which is going there, learning, being there for the vibes. Its going to be a good time, he said. I really like it when I see people showing up and realizing we have Pad Thai from local restaurants or plenty of snacks. Having that experience and having people see the fruit of all the work that weve been doing is super rewarding. I cant wait to see it this weekend.

This years event will be the second RowdyHacks held at San Pedro I. Organizers are hoping to build upon last years successes and utilize the space to its full potential.

This year were really trying to perfect that formula and put on the best event we can for 500 hackers, Murray said.

However, in a bid to prioritize quality over size, the organizers for this years event decided to limit participation to roughly 500 students, approximately what it was last year.

Of course, 500 students from Texas and beyond is by no means a small event, nor does limiting the number of registrants imply that the event wont expand in the future, Zuniga notes.

RowdyHacks is the biggest hackathon in San Antonio, he said. When people from other universities think of RowdyHacks, they think of San Antonio; when they think of San Antonio, they think of RowdyHacks. Although were big right now, were only looking to grow.

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Programmers and paleontologists alike to compete at ninth annual RowdyHacks - The University of Texas at San Antonio

Trailblazing computer scientist Fei-Fei Lis memoir The Worlds I See: Curiosity, Exploration, and Discovery at the Dawn of AI has been selected as the next Princeton Pre-read.

The book, which connects Lis personal story as a young immigrant and scientist with the origin stories of artificial intelligence and human-centered AI, was named to technology book lists for 2023 by the Financial Times and former President Barack Obama.

President Christopher L. Eisgruber, who began the Pre-read tradition in 2013, said he hopes Lis story will inspire incoming first-year students. After reading the book over the summer, members of the Class of 2028 will discuss the The Worlds I See with Li and Eisgruber at the Pre-read Assembly during Orientation.

Wherever your interests lie in the humanities, the social sciences, the natural sciences, or engineering, I hope that Professor Lis example will inspire and encourage you as you explore the joys of learning at Princeton, a place that Professor Li calls a paradise for the intellect, Eisgruber said in a forward written for the Pre-read edition of the book.

Li is the inaugural Sequoia Capital Professor in Computer Science at Stanford University and co-director of Stanfords Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence Institute. Last year, she was named to the TIME100 list of the most influential people in AI.

She graduated from Princeton in 1999 with a degree in physics and will be honored with the Universitys Woodrow Wilson Award during Alumni Day on Feb. 24.

Li has spent two decades at the forefront of research related to artificial intelligence, machine learning, deep learning and computer vision.

While on the faculty at Princeton in 2009, she began the project that became ImageNet, an online database that was instrumental in the development of computer vision.Princeton computer scientists Jia Deng, Kai Li andOlga Russakovsky are also members of the ImageNet senior research team.

In 2017, Fei-Fei Liand Russakovskyco-founded AI4All, which supports educational programs designed to introduce high school students with diverse perspectives, voices and experiences to the field of AI to unlock its potential to benefit humanity.

Li is an elected member of the National Academy of Engineering, the National Academy of Medicine, and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.

Courtesy of Macmillan Publishers

The Worlds I See shares her firsthand account of how AI has already revolutionized our world and what it means for our future. Li writes about her work with national and local policymakers to ensure the responsible use of technology. She has testified on the issue before U.S. Senate and Congressional committees.

Professor Li beautifully illuminates the persistence that science demands, the disappointments and detours that are inevitable parts of research, and the discoveries, both large and small, that sustain her energy, Eisgruber said.

Li also shares deeply personal stories in her memoir, from moving to the U.S. from China at age 15 to flourishing as an undergraduate at Princeton while also helping run her familys dry-cleaning business.

Professor Lis book weaves together multiple narratives, Eisgruber said. One of them is about her life as a Chinese immigrant in America. She writes poignantly about the challenges that she and her family faced, the opportunities they treasured, and her search for a sense of belonging in environments that sometimes made her feel like an outsider.

During a talk on campus last November, Li said she sees a deep cosmic connection between her experiences as an immigrant and a scientist.

They share one very interesting characteristic, which is the uncertainty, Li said during the Princeton University Public Lecture. When you are an immigrant, or you are at the beginning of your young adult life, there is so much unknown. ... You have to explore and you have to really find your way. It is very similar to becoming a scientist.

Li said she became a scientist to find answers to the unknown, and in The Worlds I See she describes her quest for a North Star in science and life.

In the Pre-read forward, Eisgruber encouraged students to think about their own North Stars and what may guide them through their Princeton journeys.

Copies of The Worlds I See, published by Macmillan Publishers, will be sent this summer to students enrolled in the Class of 2028. (Information on admission dates and deadlines for the Class of 2028 is available on the Admission website).

More information about the Pre-read tradition for first-year students can be found on the Pre-read website. A list of previous Pre-read books follows.

2013 The Honor Code: How Moral Revolutions Happen by Kwame Anthony Appiah

2014 Meaning in Life and Why It Matters by Susan Wolf

2015 Whistling Vivaldi: How Stereotypes Affect Us and What We Can Do by Claude Steele

2016 Our Declaration: A Reading of the Declaration of Independence in Defense of Equality by Danielle Allen

2017 What Is Populism? by Jan-Werner Mller

2018 Speak Freely: Why Universities Must Defend Free Speech by Keith Whittington

2019 Stand Out of Our Light: Freedom and Resistance in the Attention Economy by James Williams

2020 This America by Jill Lepore

2021 Moving Up Without Losing Your Way by Jennifer Morton

2022 Every Day the River Changes by Jordan Salama

2023 How to Stand Up to a Dictator: The Fight for Our Future by Maria Ressa.

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'The Worlds I See' by AI visionary Fei-Fei Li '99 selected as Princeton Pre-read - Princeton University

By Alvin Lee

SMU Office of Research Artificial Intelligence, like almost all other technologies, can be used for both good and less-than-benign purposes. Fire provides warmth and light but can also be used to commit arson, while dynamite was originally invented to facilitate mining and construction but has been used for destructive ends.

How well you use the technology, and find a way to use it, is as important as the technology itself, noted Cheong Wei Yang, Vice Provost of Strategic Research Partnerships at SMU. Dr. Cheong was the moderator of a panel discussion on Artificial Intelligence during a Global Young Scientists Summit (GYSS) 2024 site visit to SMU on 8 January. The panellists were: Jiang Jing, SMU Professor of Computer Science, and Director of Artificial Intelligence and Data Science Cluster; Ngo Chong Wah, SMU Professor of Computer Science, and Director of Human-Machine Collaborative Systems Cluster; and Anthony Tang, SMU Associate Professor of Computer Science.

Generative AI, which is almost synonymous with OpenAIs ChatGPT, took centrestage just as it has in recent times. Elaborating on Dr. Cheongs observation of technologys dual usage, Professor Jiang pointed out that when ChatGPT was first released, one could ask the question, How can I make a bomb? and step-by-step instructions would be presented as answers. OpenAI has since addressed that loophole, but it has not stopped people from asking the same question in different ways to trick the software into giving them the information.

Related to that is the question: Who decides what is permitted and what is not?

Right now its a small group of people at OpenAI, but they are not representative of the world population, says Professor Jiang. The training data has biases. Users may not be aware of these biases. How can you ensure that users wont blindly accept the suggestions of such tools?

People look at ChatGPT and see its power answering factual questions, and get the impression that AI knows everything. If we educate users that there are biases and such, they will understand the big picture in the same way children grow up to understand advertisements are advertisements, not factual information.

Professor Ngo observed that few, if any, people fully understand how a large neural network such as ChatGPT works. He noted that most of us use mobile phones and watch television without understanding completely the underlying technology, and it does not make much of a difference whether users did or did not. But if those who created an AI system do not completely understand how it functions, then it could pose problems.

Right now, ChatGPT is software. One day, ChatGPT might be embedded into hardware, such as a robot. Robots can then talk to robots, and things might get out of control, he says.

Despite such concerns, Professor Ngo gave examples of AIs benefits. I have students from places where English is not the native language, ranging from Vietnam to Mainland China. Sometimes they dont understand each other. Right now they communicate by typing in text in their native languages to generate an image on ChatGPT, and they take it from there.

Professor Tang told the audience of 86 participants from over 50 universities worldwide that AI applications could change not only how content is produced but how it is consumed. What if when I get a large email, I put it through ChatGPT to give me a summary and maybe generate a reply, but then my recipient does the same? he says. There are questions we need to ask ourselves, such as: What happens when this becomes a substitute for interacting with one another?

During the Q&A session, when the panel was asked if the seeming obsession with AI might be a fad, Professor Tang cast the collective eye back to five years back.

Many of us sit on the review committees for research grants. Five years ago metaverse was in every grant proposal. Now the phrase generative AI has taken its place. While it is difficult to imagine it right now, one day, something else will take its place.

Disclaimer: AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert system.

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Generative AI: Users should understand its strengths, weaknesses, and biases - EurekAlert

In 1999, an up-and-coming software engineer in Switzerland was preparing for a conference in France when he learned that the Swiss computer scientist Niklaus Wirth, a pioneer in the field, was also attending and would be on the same flight.

The engineer, Kent Beck, had never met Dr. Wirth. But, he recalled in an interview, upon arriving at the airport he told the gate agent: My colleague Professor Wirth and I are flying together. Would it be possible for us to sit together?

Mr. Beck, who would eventually become a well-known programmer in his own right, said that sitting next to Dr. Wirth and talking shop was comparable to a young singer getting the chance to perform with Taylor Swift. Among other feats in computer history, Dr. Wirth had created Pascal, an influential programming language in the early days of personal computing.

It was out of character for me to be that bold, Mr. Beck said of his duplicity, but I would have regretted it the rest of my life.

The agent assigned him the middle seat next to his supposed colleague, who had the window. Sitting down, Mr. Beck confessed to the fraud right away. Dr. Wirth was mildly amused. Once a geek knows that youre interested in what they geek about, Mr. Beck said, then the conversation is off and running.

Dr. Wirth died of heart failure on Jan. 1 at his home in Zurich, his daughter Tina Wirth said. He was 89.

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Niklaus Wirth, Visionary Software Architect, Dies at 89 - The New York Times

Shrikanth Shri Narayanan, a USC University Professor known for his pioneering research in human-centered sensing, computing and information processing, has been appointed vice president for presidential initiatives, USC President Carol Folt announced Thursday.

Narayanan will be the first to hold this position. An internationally acclaimed scholar, Narayanan holds academic appointments in multiple schools and institutes at USC, including the USC Viterbi School of Engineering, the Keck School of Medicine of USC and the USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences.

Advances are taking place at an astonishing rate in the evolving fields encompassed by our moonshots. This role was created to focus not only on implementing, but also continually broadening, amplifying and weaving our moonshots together, so USC remains at the forefront of discovery and innovation, Folt said. Professor Narayanan is the perfect choice for this role. He has built teams from across multiple schools, locations, disciplines, units and approaches. His energy and innovation are infectious, and the work he takes on flourishes.

Narayanan begins the role at a pivotal time. The university now is part of an exclusive group of research institutions that have surpassed $1 billion in research spending, thanks to significant investments in the presidents moonshots.

USC also is making rapid progress on the USC Frontiers of Computing initiative, and just celebrated the launch of the USC School of Advanced Computing and the naming of its first director, Gaurav Sukhatme from USC Viterbi. Focusing on bringing these moonshots together will be a primary focus at the outset.

Narayanans experience spans academia and industry. A visiting faculty researcher at Google, he holds joint appointments in multiple areas: computer science and electrical engineering, linguistics, psychology, neuroscience, pediatrics, and otolaryngology head and neck surgery.

Shri is a Renaissance scholar who understands the why and the how of integrating diverse aspects of USC research to produce meaningful impact, said Ishwar K. Puri, senior vice president of research and innovation. Integrating the various presidential initiatives and moonshots will prime USC for research focused on creating a healthier and cleaner world.

Narayanan will report directly to the president, and will work closely with the universitys senior leadership team, deans, institute directors and scholars from all schools.

I am inspired by President Folts vision of educating the next generation to contribute to society, both individually and collectively, said Narayanan. As we advance knowledge across different domains scientific, technological, creative we must translate that knowledge into real-world solutions. The collision of creative and technological minds, which USC and Los Angeles are known for, is a powerful engine of innovation.

Narayanan envisions establishing even more connections through his new role beyond those he has built as a research director at the USC Information Sciences Institute, known for its historic achievements in computer science, and as director of the Signal Analysis and Interpretation Laboratory at USC Viterbi.

Throughout his 25 years at the university, Narayanan has been a collaborator. Shri knows how to combine the rigor of science and engineering with the heart of humanities, said Yannis C. Yortsos, dean of USC Viterbi. He has shown in his own work the value of bringing together creative teams, and his enthusiasm for discovery is a powerful force for engaging students, faculty and staff from all fields.

In 2020, for example, Narayanan and a team of computer scientists and psychologists used artificial intelligence and neuroimaging to uncover surprising connections between musical elements and physiological responses. Their work opened doors for novel music therapy to treat anxiety, pain and even dementia.

Assal Habibi, an associate professor (research) of psychology at USC Dornsife who co-authored the study, said Narayanan has a unique ability to lead teams with a clear vision, fostering a research environment where creativity and rigor thrive equally.

In other notable research, Narayanan and his team at the Signal Analysis and Interpretation Laboratory partnered with the Geena Davis Institute on Gender in Media in 2017 to develop an AI tool that uses facial recognition, audio analysis and language processing to objectively track gender bias in Hollywood films.

More recently, Narayanan has spearheaded PRECOG, which harnesses neuroscience, linguistics and human-centered machine learning to improve screening for depression and suicidal ideation. The PRECOG team of USC and UCLA researchers are developing automated screening tools that analyze subtle changes in voice and behavior to paint a more comprehensive picture of mental health and well-being.

In her letter announcing Narayanans position, Folt wrote: Many of you already know Shri and his infectious energy and passion for discovery. He shares my belief that even the smallest idea can blossom into a world-class solution, particularly if you bring in a wide range of voices from the outset. He tells me he sees a university without walls or boundaries. This is precisely the approach we need to connect and integrate talent, ideas and strengths from across the institution.

Before Narayanan became a USC scientist, he was a UCLA graduate student who often visited the University Park Campus not just for good food and music with friends, but for the sense of belonging he found at USC.

I was drawn to USCs diverse student body, especially its vibrant community of Indian students, he said. Youd hear a lot about the Trojan Family, but I didnt fully understand the meaning until years later, after becoming a member and then a parent.

In 2019 and 2020, Narayanans daughter graduated from USC with a Bachelor of Arts and a Master of Arts in English, respectively. He had the honor of presenting her diploma in 2019.

In that moment, the esteemed scholar and researcher was simply a father, beaming with Trojan pride.

My proudest accomplishment yet, he said.

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Shri Narayanan named USC VP for presidential initiatives - University of Southern California