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Artificial Intelligence Research is for Everyone!

Friday, September 18, 2020 (Central Time) — 2:00PM - 3:15PM

This technical workshop will introduce undergraduate students to many of the activities graduate students do and to what is expected from a researcher. The objective is to expose students to what research is and to show that research is doable, can be fun, and opens up many rewarding career opportunities. Unfortunately, too few students from underrepresented groups consider research as a career path, and, as a result, their numbers in graduate programs are much lower then their already low numbers in undergraduate programs. The explosive growth of Artificial Intelligence (AI) creates an unprecedented opportunity to broaden and diversify the population of researchers. Research in AI is exciting and has the potential to change the world. The workshop will include a mix of short lecture-style information sharing with audience participation and small groups hands-on activities. We will talk briefly about what research is and what differentiates a research project from other academic activities. We will do short guided hands-on activities in small groups to read and discuss a research paper, and we will introduce exciting AI applications. Each participant will receive a workbook with the material we will cover and guidance for the small group activities. The workbook will also include information on research, such as guidelines for writing a literature review and research opportunities, plus information on how to prepare for graduate school, such as what courses would be useful, how to obtain letters of recommendation, how to find research opportunities, and how to apply to graduate school.

Workshop Organizers:
Maria Gini, Monica Anderson, Rogelio Cardona-Rivera, Nate Derbinsky, Shana Watters