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Human Behavior

Georgia voters get only one option for over half of upcoming legislative races – Atlanta Civic Circle

Recent Supreme Court decisions have kicked issues like abortion and greenhouse gas regulation down to the state level, making Georgias statehouse elections in November even more critical for voters seeking a say.

But for over half of the legislative races, Georgia voters will have only one optioneither a Democrat or a Republican, according to an Atlanta Civic Circle tally of primary winners from Secretary of States office data. Fully 123 of the states 236 house and senate races offer voters only one candidate.

Of the candidates wholl be running uncontested in November, 68 are Republicans and 55 are Democrats. Many Democratic voters in the north Georgia mountains and the states southern plains will not have a chance to challenge Republican primary winners at the polls in November, and Atlanta-area Republicans are in the same boat.

Democrats often run unchallenged in Atlanta and its inner south and southeast suburbs, as well as in cities like Macon and Savannah and some parts of middle Georgia where the black share of population is relatively high.

Republicans tend to dominate the mountains, some of Atlantas more far-flung suburbs and parts of south and southeast Georgia, where the white share of population is relatively high.

That leaves battlegrounds in places like Gwinnett, Walton and Henry counties and neighboring areas, as well as areas outside Savannah and Macon.

Gerrymandering and regionalism

Uncontested elections happen for two main reasonsgerrymandering and regional self-sorting, according to political experts. Uncontested elections are to some extent a natural result of human behavior, because people who vote the same way tend to flock together, but political parties also play a role through gerrymandering.

Gerrymandering plays a crucial role in the number of uncontested elections, said Daniel Franklin, an emeritus political science professor at Georgia State University. Thats when state legislatures draw electoral district boundaries to favor the party in power, whether Republican or Democratic.

In defending the draft Constitution, James Madison said in Federalist No. 10 that no man would be a judge in his own cause, Franklin said, but he noted that is precisely what happens with gerrymandering. State legislators draw their own district boundaries.Of course, they will do that in their own interest.

Our democracy would be healthier and stronger if every race were a meaningful contest between two competing camps, said GSU political science professor Jeffrey Lazarus, but he does not foresee an end to gerrymandering any time soon, despite the practices many critics.

People also tend to live near other people with similar backgrounds or political party affiliations, which can create single-party districts that are either majority Democratic or Republican, Franklin said.

It used to be that sorting was generally along racial and class lines.Now, racial sorting is still there, but less prominent.Sorting now is more likely to be along ideological lines, he said.

Uncontested election risks

Gerrymandering and regional self-sorting are big reasons why uncontested elections are pervasive, both in Georgia and nationally, but the difficulty of fundraising for potential challengers with low odds of getting elected is also a factor.

A high concentration of uncontested elections calls into question how much freedom of electoral choice some U.S. voters actually have, and it risks creating a political environment where legislators shirk their lawmaking duties to voters. But Franklin said the United States still has a functioning democracy.

The Soviet Union had regular electionsso does Iran. They are certainly not democracies. It takes more than elections to have a democracy. You must have a genuine choice, otherwise elections are just for show, he explained. We are certainly not Iran or the Soviet Union. In our federal system, elections are competitive at some level. [And] in Georgia, statewide elections have become quite competitive.

In electoral districts that are heavily Democratic or Republican, many potential candidates from the opposing party decide not to run because they already know theyll lose, said University of Georgia political science professor Trey Hood, an expert in Southern elections.

A lot of people wont run against incumbents because its not easy to defeat an entrenched [one], Hood said. In a district that skews heavily Republican or Democratic, he added, a candidate from the opposing party will likely have a difficult time garnering support and raising money.

Political parties also dont have much incentive to fund candidates in districts where the partys voters are heavily in the minority, Hood said. If you do give them resources, its still likely theyre going to loseand those are resources that are being diverted from other races that are more competitive.

The real conversation might be in the primary for those districts, he addedthat is, in the primary for the districts dominant party.

Uncontested elections can create powerful incumbent legislators who, unchallenged, may shirk their lawmaking duties, Franklin cautioned. Even more concerning, he added, theyre likely to become less representative of their constituents if they no longer think they need to listen to voters to get reelected.

However, Hood said, even in uncontested districts lawmakers are still keeping future competition in mindas a threat in their partys primary, at least, if not from the opposing party.

These lawmakers are acutely aware that they could be challenged in an upcoming election if they do shirk their responsibilities too much, Hood said. Weve asked legislators in surveys, and, usually, their number one goal is reelection. Even if theyre not being contested, theyre still thinking about what their constituents are thinking.

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Georgia voters get only one option for over half of upcoming legislative races - Atlanta Civic Circle

Human Behavior

ASU New College recognizes 1st graduates of growing law and psychology PhD program – ASU News Now

July 14, 2022

This summer, Arizona State Universitys New College of Interdisciplinary Arts and Sciences recognized Emily Denne and Kristen McCowan as the first two graduates of the growing law and psychology PhD program.

The fact that we were able to get such high-caliber students during our first year was key to the growth and reputation of our PhD program, said Nick Schweitzer, founding director of the Law and Behavioral Science initiative and associate professor in the School of Social and Behavioral Sciences. We are so proud of Emily and Kristen not just for their success in our program, but in how they are using their experience and training to tackle such important issues. This summer, ASU's New College of Interdisciplinary Arts and Sciences recognized Emily Denne (left) and Kristen McCowan as the first two graduates of the growing law and psychology PhD program. Download Full Image

The program, which was established in 2017 as part of the universitys Law and Behavioral Science initiative, melds the fields of law and psychology to help explain how human behavior interacts with and is affected by the legal system. The program aims to train students by taking a broad interdisciplinary approach with the goal of encouraging them to use this knowledge to tackle understudied areas where the legal system is in need of empirical psychological research.

"Emily and Kristen were wonderful students who started together as part of the first cohort of the PhD program, said Tess Neal, associate professor in the School of Social and Behavioral Sciences. They learned leadership and mentorship skills, honed their craft in empirical methodology and statistics, and enriched the lives and labs of the students and faculty in the law and behavioral sciences program. We are proud of them and will miss them as they move on into the next stages of their careers, continuing on their quest to improve understanding and functioning of the justice system."

Here, Denne and McCowan share about themselves, their experiences and whats next for them.

Denne was born in England and moved to the U.S. when she was 6 years old. She grew up in a small town in Indiana and completed her bachelors degree in psychology at the University of Evansville.

It was there that I began research on child maltreatment under the mentorship of Professor Margaret Stevenson, Denne said. Her work on child custody coupled with my own lived experiences sparked my interest in child maltreatment research more broadly.

She began studying law and psychology at ASU in 2018 and was awarded a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship to fund her education. She successfully defended her thesis on understanding childrens reports of grooming in child sexual abuse cases.

Question: What inspired you to pursue the law and psychology PhD program at ASU?

Answer: I met Jessica Salerno, a professor in the law and psychology department, at the American Psychology-Law Society conference in 2018. At the time, I had just withdrawn from a school psychology PhD program and was struggling to find direction for my research interests. She introduced me to the work of Professor Neal and Professor (Stacia) Stolzenberg at ASU. Both lines of work were exciting and interesting to me and directly aligned with my own research interests the investigation and prosecution of child maltreatment. It was Professor Salerno who introduced me to this exciting work and gave me a foot in the door at ASU. I am very grateful for the opportunity she gave me.

Q: What was your favorite part of this program?

A: I have many fond memories from the program. I have really enjoyed the meaningful connections and relationships I have built with my mentors and other students in the program. It has been exciting to learn with them, from them, and grow as an academic.

Q: How does this PhD help you to achieve your goals?

A: I am deeply grateful to the rigorous law and psychology program that the faculty at ASU have built. I have learned so much about myself, my ability to do hard and challenging things, as well as developing content area expertise in child maltreatment. I have been given so many opportunities and so much support for my advisers. When I began graduate school, I hoped to publish 10 peer-reviewed articles by graduation. By the time my degree is conferred, I will likely have reached this goal. I could not have done so without the incredible support and guidance of the faculty in the law and psychology program.

Q: Whats something you learned while at New College in the classroom or otherwise that surprised you or changed your perspective?

A: At New College, I learned so much that challenged my perspectives and drove me to really value being a consumer of science on a daily basis. One thing that's stuck with me the most was something I learned in Professor Neal's lab. She continually challenges us to engage with the opposite point of view, to consider adversarial collaborations and critically evaluate both sides of an argument. This idea of adversarial collaboration, or directly engaging with and working with those who would have opposite viewpoints, has been something I have worked to do in both my personal and professional life. It has helped me really develop my own opinions and stances, but has also challenged me to be open to changing my opinion in light of new and different evidence.

Q: What are your post-graduation plans?

A: I hope to spend some time working as a child forensic interviewer. I study how forensic interviewers gather reports from maltreated children, so I hope to really immerse myself in the field and learn more from those who do this work directly. I am also currently pursuing a post-doctorate at Griffith University in Australia at the Center for Forensic Interviewing. Should I receive the postdoc, I will have the opportunity to study under Martine Powell and Sonja Brubacher at the center.

McCowan is originally from Chicago, Illinois, and has lived in Phoenix since she first started attending ASU. She received her bachelors degree in psychology from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.

She first became interested in legal psychology after taking a psychology and law course and learning about the limitations in our criminal justice system. After learning more about the field, she became involved in research looking at jury decision-making in a sexual assault case, which sparked her interest in jury research and how people weigh different types of evidence and the effect of biases on judgments throughout a case.

Knowing I wanted to do this type of work, Professor Tess Neal's research stood out to me, and I liked that the program had a strong emphasis on the intersection of psych and law, with classes that were specific to this area of research, McCowan said.

She successfully defended her thesis on predictors of jurors understanding of evidence strength.

Question: What was your favorite part of this program?

Answer: My favorite part of this program was expanding my areas of interest and getting to work closely with Tess and the rest of the faculty and students. The program would every once in a while have other researchers in the field visit to present their work, and it was a great chance to get to know people better in both an academic and social setting afterwards. The courses we were able to take specific to the intersection of psychology and the legal system also taught me a lot about the field, and with the classes being smaller and discussion-based, it was great getting to hear everyone's perspectives on the research we read.

Q: How does this PhD help you to achieve your goals?

A: As a whole, the program's emphasis on research methodology and writing helped me on the job market pursuing a research-centric position. Tess' research lab gave me opportunities to take leadership roles in the research process which, as a research analyst, taught me skills I continue to use day to day. The faculty also encouraged students to attend conferences and give research talks that helped with networking and getting involved in the field.

Q: Whats something you learned while at New College in the classroom or otherwise that surprised you or changed your perspective?

A: I learned a lot about the diverse career opportunities that opened my eyes to ways to make positive changes in the legal system through research without necessarily having to pursue a strictly academic-based job.

Q: What are your post-graduation plans?

A: Post-graduation, I am going to continue working in the legal psychology realm, working as a research analyst for the Center of Integrity in Forensic Sciences doing research for forensic evidence reform.

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ASU New College recognizes 1st graduates of growing law and psychology PhD program - ASU News Now

Human Behavior

Dangers of aggressive dog breeds and threat of not training them well – The Statesman

An 82 years old woman, Savitri, was fatally attacked by her pet dog and suffered grave bite injuries in her abdomen and neck and died during treatment at a trauma center in Qaiserbagh area of Lucknow, on Wednesday. This unfortunate incident raises a lot of questions on why pets attack the very owners who train and raise them.

Is it because of the fact that the pet owners in most cases, while selecting the breeds, are ignorant about the temperament of the animal they bring home. Also, people who live in close proximity with aggressive pet breeds are not well equipped with knowledge about the special training needed for breeds like Pit Bull. In the above incident the dog of the said breed, attacked its owner to death.

Dog care and training go hand-in-hand. Even if you consider your dog as your family member, you cannot turn your back to the fact that it is, after all, an animal and would behave in a certain manner.

Some dog breeds are considered to be aggressive and they require special training. In certain cases, people love to own fancy dog breeds as a fashion-statement, while they dont pay much attention to the special care these breeds require. It is entirely not about the breed of the dog, it is about proper care and training. Many breeds have special training requirements.

If you wish to bring home a pet and make it your family member, you must keep certain things in mind:

Dogs are social

Dogs of all breeds are some of the most social animals. They have excellent people-skills and they love to be surrounded by other animals and humans. The more they interact with people, the better their mind functions and they remain calm and composed.

According to a research based article, Dogs Supporting Human Health and Well-Being: A Biopsychosocial Approach, Through the processes of domestication and natural selection, dogs have become adept at socializing with humans.

In reality, it is discouraging to see most people keeping their pet dogs confined to a particular area, away from people. Such dogs become very tired of their solitary state and tend to develop an overtly aggressive behavior.

Treat them well

Dogs require special treatment at times. Once domesticated, they must be allocated a particular place and their boundaries must be defined for them. Catering to their needs is considered as a motivating action and dogs are very reciprocative to the ones who treat them well.

According to The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA), The safest and most effective way to treat an aggression problem is to implement behavior modification under the guidance of a qualified professional. Modifying a dogs behavior involves rewarding her for good behavior so youll likely be more successful if your dog enjoys praise, treats and toys.

Proper training

Training is very important especially if you live with a dog breed which is considered aggressive. The root cause of any untoward incident involving a dog is; human behaviour itself. The very concept of being a dog lover is misconstrued. Domesticating an animal is against its very basic nature, which is meant to behave untamed. With proper training by a certified dog trainer, the behavior of the dog can be mended according to the domestic surroundings. It is just like sending your kid to school. It is for their and your benefit. A well trained dog would know about the areas where they are allowed inside the house and how to conduct themselves.

According to Importance of Puppy Training for Future Behavior of the Dog, published in Journal of Veterinary Medical Science, Adequate socialization is necessary for producing a well-balanced and well-adjusted dog.

Some important tips to keep in mind:

Above all, mend your own behaviour. If you are disciplined, your dog will replicate.

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Dangers of aggressive dog breeds and threat of not training them well - The Statesman

Human Behavior

The Shopping Cart Theory – Columbia Star

If youre on top of the Interweb universe like me, you probably already know The Shopping Cart Theory is the latest thing to mindlessly discuss. Ive been interested in shopping carts for yearsbuggies to Southernersbut didnt know the things were a barometer to a persons possible conduct.

The Shopping Cart Theory states whether a person places their cart back into the rack rather than leaving it wherever they please determines the goodness of that person. Not sure Im buying what theyre selling, but thats what the theory claims.

Sylvan Goldman invented carts in 1937 to get groceries from the store to the vehicle to help the customers save energy and also surreptitiously encourage them to buy more. Carts seem like a great service. All the customer needs to do is place the cart in the handy rack near their parking spot when finished.

The Theory claims that since there is no punishment for leaving the cart next to ones auto, the only pressure is societal norm. People who are innately good will return the cart to its resting place, and those who arent wont.

My first discovery of anything involving buggies was noticing when anyone left his or her cart in an unacceptable place someone else would soon leave a second cart next to it. A subtle permission slip since the second guy only copied another persons dubious action.

For those folks, like this one, who were raised by a mother who would immediately retort, If Tommy jumped off a cliff, would you? that implied permission is null and void. But I find this part of the Shopping Cart Theory to be more indicative of human behavior than the simple good vs. bad analogy.

Very little about human behavior is simple. We are influenced by all kinds of conflicting signals, most of which we havent even discovered yet. Our brain rewards us for actions that promote our survival and punish us for things that threaten it. We have all types of societal norms based on myths from centuries ago and more modern theories based on unreliable internet postings.

Most people refusing to return carts to racks may simply be lazy. They then complicate things by justifying their choice with excuses. I didnt see a cart caddie nearby. I was too tired to return it. I was saving someones job. Food is too expensive for me to do their work. When you want to justify something questionable any excuse will do.

I think many of us want determining the goodness of people to be simple. We like to think that societal norms and upbringing can determine the internal quality of a person. Many religions claim to be the originator of morality, yet there were people coexisting peacefully with each other for hundreds of thousands of years before the first religion was ever established.

I consider myself a good judge of character, yet Ive been surprised many times by people doing the opposite of what I thought they might do. The truth is we have no idea how to determine a persons goodness.

Maybe its time to stop judging people. You know, like the Good Book says.

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The Shopping Cart Theory - Columbia Star

Human Behavior

Many countries have given us a preview of what’s to come with COVID subvariant BA.5. Prepare. – The Boston Globe

Though we have faced waves of several different variants since the original strain was first detected in Wuhan, BA.5 is a new beast with a host of challenges that we have not seen before. Not only does BA.5 have critical mutations in its spike protein, it also has numerous non-spike mutations in other areas of the protein, allowing it to largely evade immunity from prior infection (even recent infections), prior vaccination (even with boosters), and hybrid immunity a combination of vaccination and infection that was believed to denote a higher degree of protection, but is unable to prevent reinfection from BA.5. COVID-19 vaccination is still expected to provide substantial protection against severe disease leading to hospitalization and death. However, it is far less effective at preventing infection and transmission now than it once was, and every infection and reinfection is accompanied by the risk of long COVID.

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Our fate over the next few months will be defined by not only the behavior of BA.5 and emerging subvariants, but by human behavior. For the most part, mandates have disappeared in the United States and are unlikely to return. With the prevalence of pandemic fatigue, it is also doubtful that universal masking will return, no matter how large the surge.

Over the next few months, either BA.5 will infect so many people that it will burn itself out, or it will be replaced by a variant that is even better at infecting people. High-quality masks (N95/KN95), proper ventilation, physical distancing, and air filtration would help, but it seems unlikely that leadership at the local, state, or federal level will act on the coming BA.5 COVID-19 wave unless hospitals again become overwhelmed. Boosters would also help, but only about 1 in 4 of those 65 and older who received the first booster have received the second. A second booster will not protect fully against reinfection, but it significantly reduces the risk of dying from COVID-19 especially for those over the age of 50. People who can get a second booster, absolutely should.

The ever-changing nature of the pandemic means that there is a constant flow of new information, as well as endless opportunities for misinformation to spread from the distortion of facts on vaccine safety and effectiveness to ignorance about long COVID and misconceptions about new variants. I am a part of Team Halo, a global team of scientists and vaccine experts working with the United Nations to combat COVID-19 vaccine misinformation. As we learn about new variants and gather additional details about vaccine effectiveness, I use social media platforms like TikTok (@dr_asherwilliams) to bring updated information to the public and educate and engage those who get their news mostly through social media. When people choose not to get vaccinated or disregard public health measures based on inaccurate information, they put the health of many at risk leading to premature and preventable deaths in some cases. The fight to educate the general population is an often overlooked but vital component of public health.

On the horizon, we have Modernas Omicron bivalent booster vaccine candidate with promising data recently released showing higher efficacy against all variants of concern, including BA.5, compared to current boosters. Keep in mind that it took more than seven months for the bivalent Omicron booster to be tested. Meanwhile, this virus continues to outrun us. The time between new variant waves is becoming shorter as new versions of the virus continue to accelerate, and our rollout of adapted vaccines, clinical trials, and the Food and Drug Administration authorization timeline is racing to keep up with this furious pace. More focus should be placed on developing universal vaccines that are variant-proof and can protect against a wide range of coronaviruses.

Additionally, there needs to be further exploration of nasal vaccines, which harness the protective benefits of mucosal immunity and can deliver vaccines directly to the site where the virus first makes contact. In the meantime, it is up to each of us to determine our own risk tolerance, individually and as families, and use this to govern our behavior. If youve already had COVID, this is no excuse to throw caution to the wind as there is now evidence that long COVID risk increases with each reinfection.

Regardless of COVID-19 history and vaccination status, everyone will need and benefit from reinfection prevention strategies like universal masking while vaccine-makers are working on updated shots. Unfortunately, variants have changed the game for us and BA.5 is yet another COVID challenge to be dealt with.

Asher Williams is a postdoctoral fellow at Cornell University and incoming professor of chemical engineering at Columbia University.

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Many countries have given us a preview of what's to come with COVID subvariant BA.5. Prepare. - The Boston Globe

Human Behavior

On The Dogma of The Self-Contained Voicebot – – Opus Research

In a previous essay, I proposed that Voice User Interface (VUI) design, as currently practiced, has been informed by two dogmas. The first is the dogma of emulation: The belief that VUI designers should aim to build voicebots that emulate how a human being interacts with another human being. For instance, the voicebots text-to-speech should sound as human as possible, its prosody should be crafted to convey the right emotion at the right time, that it should open interactions with human beings with pleasant greetings, that it should speak naturally and conversationally, and so forth. I argued that this dogma not only sets up the designer for failure by inflating the human users expectations only to deflate them as soon as the voicebot makes an error that a human being would not make (for instance, not understand something that the human said and that the human believes the voicebot should have easily understood), but also because it needlessly limits the ability of the designer to innovate: to use non-human sounds, to establish new protocols, to use new patterns and strategies, all focused on one thing: delivering the most effective voice interface that will enable the human user to get the job of solving their problem done using the voicebot.

In this essay, I propose to highlight a second dogma that I believe is inhibiting effective voicebot design: what I call The Dogma of The Self-Contained Voicebot. This is the dogma that holds that thanks to the expert work of the VUI designer, deploying the full power of their talent, skills and knowledge, the aim of the designer should be to deliver voicebots that will enable any human user, coming in cold to the voicebot, not even knowing what the voicebot does or why it was created, to use that voicebot effectively. According to this dogma, the designer should build a robust voicebot that can take a user who comes to the voicebot potentially almost as a blank slate and guide them to successfully to use the voicebot. This dogma holds that it is in fact the responsibility of the VUI designer to ensure that any human user is able to learn what the voicebot does in real time, on the fly, on the go, as it interacts with that human user in the heat of the exchange.

An example of a rule that flows directly from this dogma is the following: Never open a voicebot conversation by simply asking the user: How may I help you? Instead, the best practice proposed advises us to give the human user first a general sense of what the voicebot is about and then to provide them with a list of options that the human can select from. For instance: Welcome to Dominion One. I am here to help you with your banking needs. Which of the following do you want me to help you with: Check your balance, transfer money, or something else?

The Simplicity of Voicebot Menus Enable Swift, Accurate Conversations

Before I elaborate on why I believe that this dogma is not only unnecessary but that it undermines the very goal that it is earnestly trying to deliver on (the goal of usability), let me point out two things. First, I am not a detractor of clear and simple voicebot menus. On the contrary, I am a fan of simplicity, and voicebot menus are a powerful instrument that, if and when crafted carefully and with care, can help the human user move swiftly through a voicebot conversation. Moreover, I am attracted to the simple menu device because menus are not how human beings talk to other human beings, which, for me, is a refreshing violation of the first dogma the dogma of human emulation.

Which brings me to my second point: Although I caution against the dogma of emulation, I do not hold the flip dogma of never emulating human behavior under any circumstances. If there is a dogma or a principle that I follow, it is the one that cautions against all dogmas any and all rigid rules that will trap us and force us to act against our ultimate goal of delivering effective voicebots given the situation that we are designing for.

And so, against the often cited best practice of Never open your voicebot conversation by simply asking the user: How may I help you? I propose the following best practice: Whenever possible, open your voicebot conversation by simply asking the user: How may I help you?

Why would I say such a heretic thing? Isnt this how human beings open their conversations after they announce themselves? And if so, does this emulation not fly in the face of the first dogma that I am denouncing?

The answer is twofold: First, in my countering the dogma of emulation, I am, again, not condemning instances where the designer emulates the behavior of a human being, but rather the dogma itself which strives to always emulate a human being, or, emulate the human being whenever one can. In contrast, I propose that the designer should, whenever they feel it is appropriate, lean on the human-to-human model, but do so not as a matter of principle or dogma but opportunistically, when the emulation will lead to a felicitous interaction.

Why Voicebots Should Engage with Open-Ended Questions

But more importantly, I propose the best practice of having the voicebot open by asking the open question: How may I help you? for the following reason: For a voicebot that starts with that bold open question to succeed, the human users that come to the voicebot must come to it with a set of wants and goals that the voicebot is ready to understand and deliver on. And for that to happen that is, for the voicebot to systematically encounter only humans who come to it with the expected limited set of questions that the voicebot has been built to handle successfully two sets of crucial activities that are not within the VUI designers bailiwick must take place: (1) Voice UX research on who the user of the voicebot will be and what problems those users wish to solve, and (2) Post-launch socialization of the voicebot to ensure that those for whom the voicebot was built are aware of its existence, what its purpose is, and what they should expect it to help them with.

In other words, the mark of a great voicebot that will deliver value to as many humans who can benefit from that value as possible is a voicebot that can boldly open its engagement with the human being by asking the open question: How may I help you?&n; A voicebot cannot afford to ask that question is a voicebot that is usually failing on one or both of the following fronts: (1) The voicebot is engaging with people who are coming in with the expected closed set of questions and problems to solve, but the voicebot is not able to understand what the users are saying or fails to successfully help the human users solve their problems. Or, (2) The voicebot is engaging with people who are coming in with questions and problems that the voicebot was not designed to field in the first place. Only the first of these two is the fault of the designer. The second problem the one that accounts for the vast majority of voicebot failures and that leads VUI designers to avoid the open question conversation opening is not the fault of the designer but rather that of the voicebots Product Manager, the one who is supposed to ensure that: (1) Solid UX research is conducted so that we know what the people who are being targeted will ask for, (2) That such solid research is taken seriously by the Product Manager who will write up the functional requirements and the VUI designer who will design the voicebot, and (3) That the voicebot is marketed and surfaced to the users for whom the voicebot was designed and built in the first place.

In a nutshell, I propose a rejection of the dogma of the Self-Contained Voicebot that puts the burden of delivering a usable and robust voicebot almost wholly on the shoulders of the VUI designer because I believe that the only way to deliver a great voicebot is by elevating the (almost always) neglected activities and findings of both UX Research and Post-launch Marketing. Build a voicebot that can consistently handle, How can I help you? and you know that you have pinned down exactly who your target users are and what problems they want to solve, that you have designed your voicebot well, and that you have messaged the voicebots existence, how to engage with it, and what it was built to do for them, to exactly those who will benefit the most by giving a chance to the voicebot to help them help themselves.

Dr. Ahmed Bouzid, is CEO of Witlingo, a McLean, Virginia, based startup that builds products and solutions that enable brands to engage with their clients and prospects using voice, audio, and conversational AI. Prior to Witlingo, Dr. Bouzid was Head of Alexas Smart Home Product at Amazon and VP of Product and Innovation at Angel.com. Dr. Bouzid holds 12 patents in the Speech Recognition and Natural Language Processing field and was recognized as a Speech Luminary by Speech Technology Magazine and as one of the Top 11 Speech Technologists by Voicebot.ai. He is also an Open Voice Network Ambassador, heading their Social Audio initiative, and author at Opus Research. Some of his articles and media appearances can be found here and here. His new book, The Elements of Voice First Style (OReilly Media, 2022), co-authored with Dr. Weiye Ma, can be found here.

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On The Dogma of The Self-Contained Voicebot - - Opus Research

Human Behavior

‘The Black Phone’ Ending, Explained: Does Finney Come Back? Is The Grabber Dead Or Alive? | DMT – DMT

The Black Phone, the 2021 horror/thriller, is directed by Scott Derrickson and based on a short story by Joe Hill. Derrickson says that he took instances from his life, molded them, filtered them, and made this short story into a full-fledged feature film. There is an uncanny resemblance between the writing of Joe Hill and his father, Stephan King. In a lot of Stephan Kings stories, you often saw flawed human behavior, you saw abuse, you saw innocence and the lack of it, and most importantly, you were left with a bittersweet nostalgia that took you back to your old days.

Though The Black Phone is supposed to be a horror/thriller, it is more about the developments that take place within than the ones taking place in the outer world. Derrickson grew up in Denver, Colorado, and he witnessed abuse and violence everywhere. Most of the children he knew had to face a lot of bullying. Those who were spared from it somehow, had to face the wrath of an abusive parent back home. It is important to warn everybody that before watching The Black Phone, you should be aware that horror and suspense are subordinate elements in this film. The film is about standing for another, always having the back of your loved ones no matter what, and about a different kind of maturity that doesnt wait for age to increase but takes its full shape and form through the experiences one has in life.

Spoilers Ahead

It was 1978, and a baseball match was taking place. Finney Blake had managed to get two strikes when Bruce Yamada hit him for a home run. Bruce was kind enough to come to Finney after the match and tell him that he had almost got him. Finney wasnt used to that kindness. He had always been bullied by his peers and had gotten used to that behavior somewhat. Things were not great at home either. His father was an alcoholic who often beat him and his sister, Gwen. Somewhere, his father wasnt able to deal with the loss of his wife. Though The Black Phone does not reveal anything about his past, you do make the speculation that things would have gone haywire after his wife departed. She used to see things that werent real, and that drove her crazy. He often used to get angry at Gwen when she told him that she also saw dreams that sometimes turned real. He told Gwen that her dreams were just dreams and nothing else. Though Finney didnt have many friends, Robin was a colleague, who not only considered him his good friend but also respected the fact that Finney never resorted to violence. He saved him multiple times from bullies, but at the same time told him that one day he would have to stand for himself.

Children were disappearing from the neighborhood Finney stayed in, and not even the authorities had a clue about what was happening. One day after the disappearance of Bruce Yamada, Gwen was called by her principal as Detective Wright, and Detective Miller had come to ask her some questions. They were on the lookout for a guy suspected to be behind these kidnappings, whom the people had nicknamed The Grabber. Gwen had told her friend, Amy Yamada, sister of Bruce, that she had seen in her dreams that Bruce was taken by a guy in a black van who happened to carry a lot of black balloons in it. The detectives had actually found two black balloons at the scene, and that piece of information wasnt revealed by them. The detectives suspected that Gwen knew something more, as it was not believable whatever she was telling them.

The next morning, Gwens dad whipped her mercilessly. He was beating her as the police had come to the office and asked about Gwen. Finney stood there in horror and saw his beloved sister being beaten by his father. He was petrified, yet there was a fire raging inside him. He wanted to go ahead and stop his father, but he didnt have the courage. The next day, Robin Arellano went missing, and Finney was distraught, as he was his friend. On Fridays, Gwen used to do a sleepover at her friends and Finney, while departing, always used to tell her to have fun, and that he would take care of their father. But that day he didnt reach home to look after his father. He was taken by the Grabber. A shattered Gwen, after hearing the news of her brothers disappearance, runs back to her home and starts praying to her God, hoping that some miracle would happen and he would come back safely.

Finney was taken to a basement by the Grabber. There was just a mattress and a landline phone, with its wire cutoff. The Grabber suddenly heard a phone ringing somewhere and told Finney that he would come back with a soda for him after he attended the call. The phone in the basement started ringing too, and Finney didnt understand how it was happening. The Grabber had told him that the phone hadnt worked since his childhood. But that was not true. The Grabber was in denial. He, too, heard the phone ringing; he just didnt want to accept it. Finney heard the phone ringing a couple of times more, but nobody spoke from the other end. The basement was soundproof, and Finney had a feeling that he wouldnt be able to escape from there ever. But then something inexplicable happened. A boy spoke from the other end. He didnt remember his name, but Finney recognized him. It was Bruce Yamada. He told Finney that it rang when he and the other kids were there too, but none of them could hear anything. He tells him that there was a dirt section on the other side of the hallway, beneath the floor itself. He asked him to dig it up. Finney started digging as much as he could. He covered the section with a carpet and flushed the dirt that he took out into the pot.

The next time the Grabber came, he brought some breakfast. But surprisingly, when he went, he left the door open. Finney saw that and was about to escape when the phone rang again. This time it was Billy Showalter, who also couldnt remember his name. Finney recognized him as he said that he used to deliver newspapers. Billy told him to not go out of the room as it was a trap. The Grabber was waiting upstairs for him to escape. Billy says that in all probability he would be caught by the Grabber who would then start beating him with a belt. Billy told him on the next call that there was a cable that was under one of the walls that he had torn loose during his stay in the basement. Finney finds that cable, and tries to escape from the window using it. But even after multiple attempts, he is unable to do it. The next call he got was from Griffin Staggs, who told him that just because he was not taking the bait of the Grabber, it was making him restless. The Grabber used to call this game Naughty Boy, and he had kept the door unlatched for a reason. He would win the game by beating the kids who tried to escape and then move on to the next level. Finney was not escaping, and Billy says that he would have to let Grabber beat him once, to buy some more time before he kills him. Billy also told him that on his door, he had put a lock that he used for his bike. He had carved out the lock combination on the walls and asked Finney to check for it. Finney gets it and goes upstairs. He escapes, but The Grabber catches him just in time and brings him back.

The next call was from Vance Hopper, a person from whom Finney was once very scared. Vance was an outlaw who was known for his rugged behavior. He told Finney that there was an outlet through which he could get into the storeroom on the other side, via a freezer. Finney tries that too, but to no avail. He is scared, frustrated, and slowly losing hope that he will ever be able to escape. The last call he gets is from Robin, his friend. Finney came to know that each and every child he had talked to, was already dead. The phone acted as a portal that connected the people in this realm to those who had departed. The boys had done their best but were not able to escape. Robin tells Finney that he had to escape, if not for himself, then for all those people who had met their fateful end in that very basement. He tells him to fill the telephone receiver with dirt and practice a hook, which he could use on the Grabber when the time comes.

Meanwhile, Gwen had gotten a dream where she had seen a house with a number, 7741. She knew that something was happening there. She informs the authorities about the same. Finney was waiting for The Grabber to come, but his brother, Max, showed up instead. Max was a cocaine addict and a conspiracy theorist. The police had once come to the house, but after listening to all his theories, they thought of him as just another addict who had lost his mind and was talking nonsense. The Grabber came from behind holding an ax and killed his own brother. He came after Finney, who ran to the other side of the room. He came chasing him, but tripped on a wire and fell inside the hole that Finney had dug in the floor. Finney had created a trap using all the things that he had found through the callers. Next, he hits The Grabber with the phone receiver and snaps his neck using the phone wire. Once again, the phone rings, but this time Finney knew it was not for him. The dead kids had called to curse The Grabber and tell him that they had finally gotten their revenge. Finney used the meatloaves he had got from the freezer to distract The Grabbers dog. He came out of the house and found his sister sitting on the other side of the road, surrounded by police vans. The police came to know that there were two houses; in one, The Grabber used to torment the children, and in the other, he used to bury their dead bodies. Gwen reunited with her brother and gave him a warm and tight hug. Finally, Finneys nightmare came to an end, and with it, the case of the Grabber was also solved, which gave respite to each and every resident of North Denver.

The Black Phone is a 2022 Drama Thriller film directed by Scott Derrickson.

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'The Black Phone' Ending, Explained: Does Finney Come Back? Is The Grabber Dead Or Alive? | DMT - DMT

Human Behavior

Inflammation May Link Sleep Disturbances and Alzheimer’s – Technology Networks

A multisite research team from the University of California, Irvine, the University of WisconsinMadison and Wake Forest University has discovered that brain inflammation may link Alzheimers disease risk with sleep disturbance, which may aid early detection and prevention efforts by identifying novel treatment targets at preclinical stages.

Brain inflammation, sleep disturbance and disrupted brain waves have all been associated with Alzheimers disease, but the interactions among them have not been investigated until now. The study, published online today in the journalSleep, examined whether inflammation had any effect on specific brain waves called fast sleep spindles, which have been shown to promote long-term memory retention.

Our findings indicate that age-related increases in brain inflammation have a downstream effect on Alzheimers disease-related tau proteins and neuronal synaptic integrity. This results in deficits in the brains capacity to generate fast sleep spindles, which contribute to age-related memory impairment in older adults. Discovering these mechanisms is an important step in identifying at-risk individuals as early as possible and developing targeted interventions, said Bryce Mander, Ph.D., UCI assistant professor of psychiatry & human behavior and the studys lead and co-corresponding author.

Chronic activation of the brains immune cells, called glial cells, increases with age, elevating production of beta-amyloid and tau proteins, the hallmarks of Alzheimers disease. Independently, sleep disturbance has been linked to Alzheimers disease pathology in the brain, and studies have also indicated an association between sleep disturbance and inflammation. Selectively disrupted fast sleep spindles have been identified in normal aging as well as preclinical stages of Alzheimers disease, but it has not been clear what causes this and what it means for memory impairment in older at-risk adults.

For the study, 58 cognitively unimpaired adults in their 50s and 60s were examined at the University of WisconsinMadison. All had a parental history of Alzheimers or a genetic risk factor for it, but none of them had beta-amyloid plaques or neurofibrillary tau tangles. Sleep was recorded overnight using high-density electroencephalography to map brain wave expression during sleep, and overnight memory retention was assessed. Participants also underwent a lumbar puncture so that cerebrospinal fluid biomarkers of central nervous system inflammation, beta-amyloid and tau proteins, and neuronal integrity could be examined.

Statistical tests were used to evaluate whether the effect of age on fast sleep spindles was mediated by Alzheimers-related proteins. Researchers found that activation of two types of glial cells microglia and astrocytes, which trigger brain inflammation was associated with disrupted expression of fast sleep spindles. The fact that these relationships were identified in people without any accumulation of beta-amyloid plaques or neurofibrillary tangles indicates that sleep deficits and inflammation might be among the earliest warning signs of Alzheimers disease.

We dont yet know whether anyone in this study will develop Alzheimers disease dementia, but one of the reasons that our studies enroll participants in midlife is so that we can potentially detect problems before people develop disease symptoms, said co-author Barbara Bendlin, Ph.D., professor of medicine at the University of WisconsinMadison.

These findings show that the effects of brain inflammation on sleep spindles and memory occur through its effects on neuronal activity and Alzheimers disease-related proteins and are apparent even before pathological positivity, said Dr. Ruth Benca, the studys senior and co-corresponding author and Wake Forest professor and chair of psychiatry and behavioral medicine. This offers a promising therapeutic target to stop cognitive decline associated with aging and Alzheimers.

Reference:Mander BA, Dave A, Lui KK, et al. Inflammation, tau pathology, and synaptic integrity associated with sleep spindles and memory prior to -amyloid positivity. Sleep. 2022:zsac135. doi:10.1093/sleep/zsac135

This article has been republished from the following materials. Note: material may have been edited for length and content. For further information, please contact the cited source.

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Inflammation May Link Sleep Disturbances and Alzheimer's - Technology Networks

Human Behavior

Pocket Gophers May Be the First Non-Human Mammal to ‘Farm’ – Smithsonian Magazine

The gophers spend most of their time underground and only venture to the outside world to forage for food or mate. Veronica Selden/UF

Beneath North and Central American grasslands, pocket gophers dig labyrinths of winding tunnels hundreds of feet long. Now, researchers have found that the rodent architects may also be farmers, tendingto underground roots they harvest for food.

As the gophers construct their large tunnels, they turn over the soil, aerating it in the process, and munch on roots that grow and hang in the tunnels over time, reports Evrim Yazgin forCosmos. The behavior is not advanced agriculture, but it is a carefully managed food production system that provides the optimal conditions for root growth, Oliver Whang reports for theNew York Times. This week, details on the mammals root cropping behaviors were published inCurrent Biology.

Pocket gophers are brown rodents about the size of a Guinea pig. Their dietconsists of roots, stems,and some weeds and grasses above ground, reportsSciencesKatherine Irving. The gophers spend most of their time underground and only venture to the outside world to forage for food or mate.

To find out how and why the gophers construct large tunnels on their plant-based diets, scientists at the University of Floridadug trenches around three gopher tunnel sections in a Gainesville pastureand placed oil barrels at each trench to keep them out,Sciencereports. From here, the team photographed the blocked sections and noticed thatroots grew and filled the areas, whereas, in the places left open for the gophers to roam, the roots stayed short.

The researchersthen calculated the daily root growth to determinehow much of the gophers energy needs could be met by harvesting the roots, astatementexplains. Previously, it was thought that the gopherssurvived by eating away at roots they encountered while constructing their tunnels. Based on the calculations, the scientists found that the energy needed to dig a tunnel is too much to be supported by the roots that gophers eat while excavating it, but if they eat roots grown in other tunnels that are already dug, they can meet the energy expenditure, reports Sofia Quaglia forNational Geographic.

Through building and maintaining the extended networks of tunnels, the gophers create an environment for roots to thrive. The animals also scatter their poop and urine within the tunnels, which fertilize the growing roots, perNational Geographic. Theyre providing this perfect environment for roots to grow and fertilizing them with their waste, says Veronica Selden, a zoologistat the University of Florida and the studys first author, in a statement. When the potato-sized mammals nibble on the dangling roots, they also encourage growth.

Youre a small mammal going along, and you encounter a large root, and you bite it off, but its not very digestible because it has a lot of lignin or celluloses, its tough, its hard, says Francis Putz, an ecologist and study author at the University of Florida, toNational Geographic. But in response to being cropped, that root will make many small roots, and those will be really tasty and more digestible. By harvesting the root crops, the gophers can supply 21 to 62 percent of their energyneeds, making up the rest of the calories needed to continue their burrowing habits.

While some expertsargue that the gophers aren'ttechnically farming because they dont plant, weed or distribute their crops, the researchers involved in thisnew study think the finding opens upthepossibilitythat other ground-dwelling rodents could have behaviors that qualify as husbandry too.

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Pocket Gophers May Be the First Non-Human Mammal to 'Farm' - Smithsonian Magazine

Human Behavior

Precision health perspectives – UCI News

In February, UCI launched the Institute for Precision Health, a campus-wide, interdisciplinary endeavor that merges UCIs powerhouse health sciences, engineering, machine learning, artificial intelligence, clinical genomics and data science capabilities. The objective is to identify, create and deliver the most effective health and wellness strategy for each individual person and, in doing so, confront the linked challenges of health equity and the high cost of care.

IPH will bring a multifaceted, integrated approach to what many call the next great advancement in healthcare. The institute is an ecosystem for collaboration across disciplines that comprises seven areas. Along with co-directing the institute, Leslie Thompson Donald Bren and Chancellors Professor in psychiatry & human behavior and neurobiology & behavior co-leads the precision omics section, which generates and translatesgenomic, proteomic and metabolomic research results into clinical applications.

Thompson is among the earliest trailblazers in pursuing personalized treatment strategies for neurodegenerative diseases. Under her co-direction, IPH pushes for understanding the mechanisms for neurodegenerative and other diseases for which there are currently no treatments available. A long-time Anteater, Thompson earned her masters and Ph.D. from UCI.

Why is the Institute for Precision Health so important to you?

So far, precision medicine approaches have mostly commonly been used to treat cancer. Clinicians can utilize data-driven approaches to determine whether a given drug would be expected to work in a specific individual. Ive dedicated my career to studying neurodegenerative diseases like Huntingtons and ALS. With so many of these diseases, including the more common Alzheimers and Parkinsons disease, there is no treatment available that changes the course of the disease, and so many clinical trials have failed to show benefit to patients. Many researchers think the reason there is so little by way of treatment is because we havent been able to fully understand the diseases in individuals that there is not a one-size-fits-all in disease treatment. We need to have ways of understanding diseases in subgroups of patients that incorporates their genetics, environment and other factors that influence health so that we can define diseases better, understand them better and hopefully treat them better. Thats one aspect of IPH that really motivates me.

The capabilities of Institute for Precision Health might allow for better treatments?

Yes. And more. With the resources of IPH, what we can do has broadened significantly. So not only can we use data to understand these diseases and subgroups of patients better, but we can also develop and use state-of-the art analytic tools such as machine learning and artificial intelligence to distinguish individual disease features and or predict the course of disease. The capabilities of IPH through efforts of clinicians who use AI have enabled establishing a scoring system to inform which COVID-19 patients would be predicted to lead to more severe disease and thus greater medical intervention and optimized patient treatment. A critical aspect of healthcare is to understand the needs of the community as well, which is a major component of IPH. A goal is to utilize the infrastructure being developed through IPH to help clinical trials happen much more rapidly with the right cohort of patients, have new ways to evaluate effectiveness of treatments, engage communities and move into a realm of greater partnership with patients and their communities.

The capacity of UCIs Collaboratory the data center of IPH is key?

Yes. It is extremely challenging to put the various forms of data and information for, say, a given person or a given disease together in one place one platform so that researchers, clinicians and other partners can access and work with the data. With UCIs Collaboratory and our platform provider Syntropy, we can gather not only the de-identified health information that is in the medical record but also relevant genomic or other clinical or research data. The goal is to provide broad benefit to UCI and broad engagement across campus. And really beyond the campus.

Does this feel a little like the launch of the first smart phone, where in the beginning we marveled at the cool features and then, almost immediately, we couldnt imagine life without it?

I think so. And, you know, we had so many of the components here at UCI that have been brought together AI tools being developed across campus and the ability to carry out genomics and other omics, and then the efforts of the Collaboratory and the platforms that can house data. But while components were there, they hadnt yet been integrated into that smart phone, so to speak. Now were putting the components together and continually improving capabilities. Our vision is to provide a systematic approach to accomplish things we have never been able to do previously. Even seemingly small things like, how do you track one patient without any identifiers and all the information thats relevant to that patient and their disease? And so much more.

Youve been a part of groundbreaking research and have had so many professional accomplishments. How exciting is IPH in comparison to what youve already done?

Ive been involved in many very meaningful research projects in my career, but to be perfectly honest, this is huge for me, as I feel it ultimately can help the families that I so passionately care about. I see this as my whole career in human genetics and studying human disease has led up to IPH.

The vision is right, the opportunity is here, and UCIs leadership is so supportive of IPH. There is a growing excitement that, yes, we can do something transformative. So, I hope for big things to come out of IPH. Yes, Im all in.

You mentioned that you believe the work IPH does will benefit people beyond the campus. Can you talk a little bit about that?

I think well see further relationships with industry, with community groups, with other research institutions and clinical entities and most importantly with the patients themselves. We are building something that increases our ability to use and integrate data, and that will be useful to so many people and will enable greater health equity.

Do you have any sort of success timeline in mind?

I think most researchers hesitate to think that way because there have been diseases many of us thought wed have a cure for in 10 years, and 30 years later there isnt even an effective treatment. But, that said, I do think that the great thing with this is that many of the components have already been initiated and are working and we have incredible opportunities to now integrate efforts and diverse sets of data to inform patient health and disease. Im confident that there will be immediate goals that IPH will achieve throughout the next year or two. Then there are longer goals that will take five years or 10 years. And even longer-range goals that will be refined as we go.

Do you believe that even in a year or two patients who get care through UCI will feel the effects of IPH?

Yes, absolutely. Patients are already impacted because of IPHs work with COVID-19. One project involving genomics is to try and pinpoint the diagnosis for patients with a muscle weakness disorder that has defied genetic diagnosis. During this next year, well see if we can find genetic causes of that disorder. And through efforts of the AI groups, there will be development of algorithms to assess effectiveness of tools or treatments recently deployed in the hospital. Those are just a couple examples.

Do you see a day where many diseases are diagnosed quicker and more accurately?

Thats certainly one of our goals. IPH researchers have already developed an AI tool to diagnose stroke much more quickly compared to more standard methods. I suspect IPH will be working on many more tools that function in similar ways.

What does UCI bring to the table that maybe some other institutions dont?

One big strength is the support from Chancellor Howard Gillman and other campus leaders. [Vice Chancellor of Health Affairs] Steve Goldstein has led the charge for this institute to become a reality. Also, the fact that we have so much AI, machine learning and artificial intelligence expertise across UCI along with many acclaimed clinicians and medical researchers. Having an academic medical center certainly presents opportunities that researchers elsewhere might not have where they may have great AI expertise but without a medical center. We also perhaps have a unique focus health equity with existing relationships with the community. So, we are distinctive in the fact that we have all the pieces here. UCI is also a uniquely collaborative and nimble institution. We come together and make things happen quickly at UCI. Thats a characteristic of this university that Ive seen play out during my whole career here.

Will there be opportunities to study Orange County to see, as a community, what kind of impact IPH has?

IPH is engaged in this already, and it is a major goal moving forward.

And the way youre able to use data is special?

Yes. Quite often researchers have pulled information from the medical records that is structured data, that has an important role in research that has been facilitated at UCI through efforts of the Collaboratory. However, one of the things that is unusual about the platform is that there will be ways to capture all the structured and unstructured data. This is a big deal.

Everything needs funding, though. Whats happening in that regard?

Yes, great question. Certainly, one of the biggest challenges for any endeavor is raising money. Through support by UCI, we have the funds to launch IPH efforts, but there will need to be extensive fundraising and plenty of grant writing. Philanthropy will be integral to our success and visionaries to relay the excitement about our mission.

If you want to learn more about supporting this or other activities at UCI, please visit the Brilliant Future website athttps://brilliantfuture.uci.edu. Publicly launched on October 4, 2019, the Brilliant Future campaign aims to raise awareness and support for UCI. By engaging 75,000 alumni and garnering $2 billion in philanthropic investment, UCI seeks to reach new heights of excellence instudent success,health and wellness, research and more. UCI Health Affairs plays a vital role in the success of the campaign. Learn more by visitinghttps://brilliantfuture.uci.edu/uci-health-affairs/.

About UCI Institute for Precision Health: Founded in February 2022, the Institute for Precision Health (IPH) is a multifaceted, integrated ecosystem for collaboration that maximizes the collective knowledge of patient data sets and the power of computer algorithms, predictive modeling and AI. IPH marries UCIs powerhouse health sciences, engineering, machine learning, artificial intelligence, clinical genomics and data science capabilities to deliver the most effective health and wellness strategy for each individual person and, in doing so, confronts the linked challenges of health equity and the high cost of care. IPH is part of UCI Health Affairs, and is co-directed by Tom Andriola, vice chancellor for information, technology and data, and Leslie Thompson, Donald Bren Professor of psychiatry & human behavior and neurobiology & behavior. IPH is a comprised of seven areas: SMART(statistics, machine learning-artificial intelligence), A2IR(applied artificial intelligence research), A3(applied analytics and artificial intelligence), Precision Omics(fosters translation of genomic, proteomic, and metabolomic research findings into clinical applications), Collaboratory for Health & Wellness(providestheecosystem that fosters collaboration across disciplines through the integration of health-related data sources), Deployable Equity(engagescommunity stakeholders and health-equitygroupsto create solutionsthat narrow the disparities gap in the health and wellbeing of underserved and at-risk populations.) and Education and Training (brings data-centric education to students and healthcare practitioners so they can practice at the top of their licenses).

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Precision health perspectives - UCI News