Institute news and updates
SAIL engineers create software that helps researchers understand mechanisms underlying cancer
BY GINA MANTICA Different types of cells in the body such as skin cells and eye cells are made by turning different sets of genes “on” or “off”. With state-of-the-art technologies like single cell RNA-sequencing (scRNA-seq), researchers can now study the diversity of genes turned on or off in different cell types to better understand […]
Graduate Student Fellow Helps Computers Interpret Human Languages
BY: ALEX JOHNSON Computers don’t speak the same language as humans, but Afra Feyza Akyürek uses machine learning to help computers process and interpret human languages better. Akyürek, a PhD student in Computer Science at Boston University, aims to improve the dialogue between humans and computers and refine programs like Siri or Alexa. Akyürek’s primary […]
Pregnancy models give birth to new health insights
BY ALEX JOHNSON Having a baby is a life-changing decision that often requires a great deal of time and energy to ensure a positive outcome. But the cost of assisted reproductive technologies like artificial insemination or in-vitro fertilization (IVF) and the emotional impacts of infertility can be a lot to bear. To try to improve […]
Focused Research Program Faculty Member Uses Computational Models to Design Better Batteries
BY GINA MANTICA Every time you plug in your cell phone, tiny lithium ions travel back to the battery’s surface and give it the charge, or energy, that it needs to power on. But if the battery’s surface isn’t perfectly flat, spiky growths of metal called dendrites can form and decrease the battery’s efficiency or […]
Faculty Fellow Uses Digital Data to Advance Public Health Practices
BY: ALEX JOHNSON For many people, walking just one block around their town or city will result in them passing hospitals, pharmacies, and grocery stores. These things exist as a part of a public health network for local communities, but access is not always equal to everyone. Elaine Nsoesie, a Faculty Fellow at the Hariri […]
IRS Stares Technological Advancement Issues in the Face
BY ALEX JOHNSON Almost every American is used to sharing information with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), but people were about to become eerily intimate with the agency after they announced the launch of a new website requirement: live video identity verification. The agency partnered with the third-party company ID.me to prevent scammers from benefiting […]
Ask the experts – What is algorithmic accountability?
By Gina Mantica Artificial intelligence (AI) technology can determine your ability to buy or rent a house, gain employment, get approved for a loan, and more. But many of the algorithms that drive AI are biased and may lead to discriminatory business practices. Federal lawmakers introduced the Algorithmic Accountability Act of 2022 to Congress earlier […]
Machine learning reveals new factor for predicting a stroke survivor’s ability to regain language skills
Boston University researchers developed a machine learning model that found that the brain’s resting state functional connectivity can predict how stroke survivors with aphasia recover their language skills. BY GINA MANTICA & ALEX JOHNSON Despite centuries of study, the human brain remains one of science’s greatest mysteries. Most research focuses on how the brain responds […]
Will J. Tomlinson Takes the Helm of SAIL, Bringing Industry Knowledge to Expand Services
BY GINA MANTICA Will J. Tomlinson will lead faculty members into a new era of research convergence. As Director of the Software & Application Innovation Lab (SAIL), Tomlinson will elevate SAIL’s software development within and beyond Boston University. He will develop a diverse, resilient culture that researchers leverage to advance their projects and deploy their […]
Why simple can be better when determining how to allocate pandemic resources
Boston University researchers developed a model to project COVID-19 quarantine housing needs in congregate settings ten days in advance. BY GINA MANTICA It’s difficult to plan ahead when SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, is so unpredictable. But, there is now a straightforward method for predicting one of the resources needed to slow the spread […]