Northeast computer science professor Tina Eliasilad, whose research reveals the overwhelming impact of artificial intelligence algorithms on people’s lives, won the highest international award for her work on complex systems. I’m here.
Eliassi Rudd will be awarded the Lagrange Prize – CRT Foundation, considered the highest international recognition for scientists in the field of complex systems and data, on July 10 in Turin, Italy.
According to the CRT Foundation, which has presented the Lagrange Prize annually for 15 years, she has been honored for her “deep consideration of the evolving scenarios of artificial intelligence and the impact of science and technology on society.”
“Her work breaks new ground in understanding data and prompts us to think more deeply about the ethics of the algorithms we are creating,” said director of the Network Science Institute in Northeastern, said Alessandro Vespignani, president of the ISI Foundation working with the CRT. She won the Lagrange Award.
“Her contribution is not just about the evolution of technology, it raises fundamental questions about its impact and responsibility in our daily lives,” he says.
One of the missions Eliassi Rudd, named one of the 100 Most Outstanding Women in AI Ethics in 2021, cares about is helping people of all ages, genders, and cultures understand the role AI plays in their lives. is to be understood.
She taught two Northeastern courses called “Algorithms That Affect Your Life” for first-year honors students.
Eliassi-Rudd encouraged students to think about the ethical dilemmas created by AI, using scenarios such as an ad targeting an individual with bipolar disorder who is entering a manic state due to social media activity.
Some students argued that as long as it wasn’t illegal, they would be fine, but others said they didn’t want to be part of a society that ripped off the wallets of vulnerable people, she said.
“AI is part of a complex system. We need to educate everyone, not just undergraduates,” she says.
Eliassi Rudd also studies the impact of technology on the destabilization of democratic institutions in the United States and around the world.
“Social media is part of a complex system,” she says. A destabilizing feedback her loop can be created when algorithms bring people into contact with people who do not believe the socioeconomic and political system is working in their favor.
“Too much randomness and confusion destabilizes the complex systems we call democracies, leaving people vulnerable to demagogues,” says Eliassi-Rudd.
“Algorithms can have a huge impact. Transparency is key in this space.”
Born in the United States and raised in Iran, Eliasi-Rudd says it’s important not to limit education and opportunities to one race or gender.
“Talent is everywhere,” says Eliassi Rudd. She recently returned from teaching mathematics and network science at a summer school in a small village in Turkey to students from developing and underdeveloped countries.
“Our AI technology is embedded in broader and more complex systems. To truly understand and mitigate the harm and risks associated with AI, we must study the broader and more complex systems in which our AI technology operates. you have to,” she says.
“This kind of research requires a multidisciplinary team like the one supported by Northeastern University,” says Eliassi Rudd, a faculty member at Northeastern University’s Institute of Network Science and Experiential AI. says.
She said she was “honored and humbled” to receive the 2023 Lagrange Award from the CRT Foundation.
The Lagrange Prize CRT Foundation with a prize of €50,000 was awarded in 2011 to Albert Laszlo Balabasi, pioneer in network science and professor of physics in the Northeast.
According to the CRT Foundation, Eliassi Rudd has “multiple practical applications in both the private world and government institutions” that will contribute to combating fraud and cybercrime, finding new cures, and researching democracy. It is said that it has promoted the development of Backtracking as the instability of the socio-economic and political system.
Cynthia McCormick Hibbert is a reporter for Northeastern Global News. Email c.hibbert@northeastern.edu or reach out on Twitter. @HibbertCynthia.
