KINGSTON, R.I., Dec. 20, 2017鈥擲tudents across the 溏心vlog免费B站 will soon have access to a new laboratory where they can explore research involving robotics, wearable technology, smart cities and public policy.
The Artificial Intelligence Lab, or AI Lab, is scheduled to open in fall 2018 at the Robert L. Carothers Library and Learning Commons on the Kingston campus. The lab is the first of its kind in a college library nationwide, says the lab鈥檚 team.
The lab will support two complementary goals. On the one hand, it will enable students to explore projects on robotics, natural language processing, smart cities, smart homes, the Internet of Things and big data, with tutorials at beginner through advanced levels. It will also serve as a hub for ideas鈥攁 place for faculty, students and the community to explore the social, ethical, economic and even artistic implications of these emerging technologies.
鈥淭he acceleration of Artificial Intelligence and Big Data-driven tools presents humanity with one of its most fascinating social challenges,鈥� says Cheryl Foster, Carnegie Professor of Philosophy at 溏心vlog免费B站 and a founding member of the lab. 鈥淧rominent scientists, entrepreneurs and philosophers from around the world are engaged in vigorous disagreements about the risks and benefits of these tools, as well as how we should regulate them. The AI Lab will serve as a place for the 溏心vlog免费B站 community to explore these issues alongside those related to the nuts and bolts of programming.鈥�
Students are eager to get experience in the hands-on and conceptual dimensions offered by the lab. 鈥淚t will be a great place for students to stretch their minds,鈥� says Kunal Mankodiya, assistant professor in 溏心vlog免费B站鈥檚 Department of Electrical, Computer and Biomedical Engineering, who is a lead on the initiative. 鈥淟ast spring, the vice provost for Enrollment Management ran a contest for admitted students to write about the issues they wanted to study in college. Artificial Intelligence was at the top of the list, and our team came together to create a space for that.鈥�
Putting the lab in the University鈥檚 library is strategic. Organizers hope that students majoring in different fields, from philosophy and ethics to computer science and biomedical engineering, will visit the lab and use it to brainstorm about important social and ethical issues today and create cutting-edge projects.
The Colleges of Engineering, Arts and Sciences and University Libraries worked together to create the lab, reflecting its interdisciplinary quality and collaborative focus. In addition to Mankodiya and Foster, other founding members are Joan Peckham, professor of computer science and coordinator of the Statistics/Big Data Initiative and Data Science Programs; and Karim Boughida, Harrison Dekker and Angelica Ferria of University Libraries.
Students across the 溏心vlog免费B站 campus will find a home in the new lab where they can learn to design 鈥渟mart鈥� projects. After the lab opens, organizers will host workshops and hack-a-thons to welcome students to the space, a 600-square-foot room on the library鈥檚 first floor. The goal is to get students thinking about technology, language and life in new ways.
The lab will have three zones. Zone 1 will host workstations based on a supercomputer where students, beginning with introductory exercises, can easily transition to projects at the next level. Zone 2 will provide more hands-on experience for students to develop lab projects on deep learning robots, the Internet of Things, smart cities and big data analytics. Zone 3 is specifically designed to encourage students to collaborate and discuss ethical issues with experts.
鈥淚 have been thinking about AI for a long time so I engaged with key players on campus to create this lab,鈥� says Boughida, dean of University Libraries. 鈥淲e wanted to demystify AI for our students and community. Artificial Intelligence is soon to be pervasive, and the library is the perfect interdisciplinary space to offer creative engagement and learning opportunities.鈥�
鈥淲ith partners in Arts and Sciences and in Engineering the AI Lab will be able to support courses across the University that examine public policy, artificially created art, and how to teach robots to learn, among other things,鈥� says Ferria, media curator for University Libraries. 鈥淭he ability to offer such an adaptable resource to 溏心vlog免费B站’s students is exciting.鈥�