In an empty classroom at Stanford University, six students were busy preparing their speeches later, waiting for Daniel who they are from the Stanford artificial intelligence laboratory. Files scattered on the table, clothes also turn in the Chair. One of the students brought in a pair of Pi earrings, another t-shirt that said "I: reason! PI: do yourself! "A white poster board in a corner, use a black marker to write the above:" monitoring health equipment based on computer vision. "
After a while they will start the final rehearsal. Students with this script, vividly depicting them at Lucile Packard Children's Hospital at Stanford to photos taken next to the sink. They want to use new technology to change some of the common things people action to automatically determine whether everyone wash their hands properly. Then they will make video presentations, video that does not wash brings harm, One Direction of background music from the popular band. While watching this video, some girls secretly laughed, a 15 year old girl said: "this is too funny. "
The demo day event organized by the SAILORS, it was summer promotion project of the artificial intelligence laboratory at Stanford University, United States first special AI for girl summer camps. Access to a wide range of support, including more than 40 University professors, postdoctoral scholars, graduates of the laboratory, and even Google and other companies. Summer camp aims to solve the intelligence community as a whole, or even computer science problems--an acute shortage of females.
Woman to earn a Bachelor's degree in computer science, fell from 37% in 1984 to 18% in 2014, this is not a good trend. It's complicated, some of which are not so obvious. From the Bureau of labor statistics data shows that by 2020, computer science-related work would increase, and the number of graduates do not meet industry needs, human resource gap will even reach 1 million, while women and minorities could well fill the gap.
SAILORS have participant explain how to use natural language processing technology to enhance user experience with social networks
Just like any other project (Qualcomm had a similar summer camp), SAILORS believed to be from the kids. Before these girls grow up, summer camp to teach them some computer literacy, particularly the field of artificial intelligence, because it is the fastest-growing computer science, have the most potential. In recent years, the industry giants such as Google, Facebook and Microsoft are betting on artificial intelligence, automatic face recognition system of the human brain using class, real-time translation, simple artificial intelligence is everywhere, Amazon is using this technology to recommend products to you according to your preferences.
At the camp, the ninth-grade girls to explore science and technology not only how people develop good hand washing habits, and the natural language processing technology into Twitter, enhance the user experience. They use algorithms to check DNA sequences for the simplest robot programming. Summer camp courses and projects of the Stanford AI Lab, guiding their Stanford great God-level researchers, such as Professor Edward Feigenbaum, who will also visit the Googleplex and the computer history museum in Silicon Valley.
Girls advance to approach these services really can make a difference. According to the Google study, children who have the opportunity to participate in advanced computer science, 46% tend to choose computer majors. Sophia Catsambis Queensland University and Professor of sociology at the City University of New York, her research on gender and education, she said every school should set up computer courses. And SAILORS of the summer camp is just as important. "We need to provide more opportunities for the students, especially those vulnerable groups of children. "
Completely different atmosphere
SAILORS like Olga Russakovsky child, she built the camp, she just recently got his doctoral degree, she spent eight years at the Stanford AI Lab. Her specialty is computer vision, under the guidance of the teacher Fei-Fei Li focused on large-scale identification research. Last December, she discussed with the instructor how to enrich at Stanford last year, after this discussion, girls summer camp idea was born.
Fei-Fei Li and Olga Russakovsky
Russakovsky participated in the Stanford math camp as a child, and also worked as a tutor there, she knows the significance of this kind of summer camp for children, and is particularly interested in girls and ethnic minorities took part. "If we want to let the girl and neglected minority became a member of the computer science, if we wanted to broaden the horizon of AI development, it is imperative to this summer camp. "She told the instructor, who also share her point of view, and said several years ago, want to do something in this regard.
Rick Sommer is Dean of the Academy of Sciences at Stanford University, but also Russakovsky mathematical summer camp instructors, in this work, he gave a lot of support. In addition Russakovsky also looking for volunteers to help, including his mother, after which they began to advertise at the Campus Forum, less than three days, 300 people had applied for the project. Because unable to meet so many applications, the school had to take down ads, and chose AI with 24 students participated in the first camp. School choice students are just rising into the high school girl, and was selected most of the children are Asian or South Asian, and only two white children.
As the daughter of two math teachers, Russakovsky don't think science should be dominated by men from an early age, but she also knows it's complicated. During her schooling, she more than once thought, mathematics, woman is a heterogeneous, but through their own efforts, she has been completely dismissed the idea. She also wants to pass this summer camps help girls who have the same problem. "I have seen too many women give up this business, they all felt very tired and not get bored with science or mathematics, but feel aggrieved by the surrounding atmosphere. "
Her teacher Fei-Fei Li also shares her views, she also stressed the need for these girls. "Engineers need to learn some morals and social stuff now. Bring the education and perspective to the industry is very important, we need to appeal to different people. "
Olga Russakovsky and campers on Google's Ball playing in the pool
"This is your father help you? "
One day in August, 24 children in the camp to go to mountain view Googleplex (Google's headquarters) to visit. Here they will and three AI of female experts to engage in a dialogue, the girls are very excited, they very much look forward to this dialogue.
Some girls ask the experts, Google's AI engineers work every day to be like (answer: meetings meetings meetings), was also asked to do with the respective advantages and disadvantages. Google experts explain these kids listen to exception seriously, make a lot of jokes in the Middle, of course, without camera magic.
Then girls ask gender discrimination. While experts say it's not a problem, but then a girl also said she was discriminated against.
"I experienced that feeling, I was the only girl robot, the day I walked into the classroom, everyone looked at me with a strange look, as if I was in the wrong classroom. "Anooshree, another student, said her robot group are girls. At the end of the game, she often heard the two problems, you group all girls? These are your father help you?
After everyone telling their own stories to each other, many students said they have had a similar experience. They had never thought that sex discrimination is so widespread.
Reasons for confidence
Although there is so much discrimination exists, but the children were not discouraged. "When others are still playing with Barbie dolls, I would start building a toy helicopter. "One student said. "If someone send me Barbie, I would have transferred to other children. "Another student added. But they did not go to extremes, and everyone in the game of self-reflection. "I think Barbie became a brilliant computer engineers do not clash. "The third student concluded.
They all concurred with this view, while the SAILORS gave their confidence. Although some people are completely uninterested in this area, but many students say they will encourage other girls for the next camp. Summer camp took them into the magical world of AI, so that they benefit from. Hello Kitty Galaxy S5 Case
Before you leave the Google headquarters, one girl said she wanted all friends to visit and let them see how artificial intelligence game and social network, letting them know that artificial intelligence is also our future. Other partners also agree with the idea, after all, the more hype than an experience of the touch.
viawired
780 votes
Pepper home emotional robot
Population aging of Japan, Pepper has a very strong market demand: artificial intelligence, able to perceive and control human emotions, learning ability, and has some ability to act, to take care of themselves. For most of the lonely old man is indeed a very good mate, but for the young, Pepper seemed smart enough, doing not much, SBRH may change after that.
View details of the voting >> Hello Kitty Galaxy S5 Case
