A new type of neural network made with memristors can dramatically improve the efficiency of teaching machines to think like humans. The network, called a reservoir computing system, could predict words before they are said during conversation, and help predict future outcomes based on the present. The research team that created the reservoir computing system, led by Wei… Read More »
Faculty at the School of Information and Washtenaw Community College will collaborate on an open-source course with the goal of encouraging more students to consider a U-M Bachelor of Science in Information (BSI) degree. The two institutions have teamed up to offer WCC students, particularly those underrepresented in STEM fields, an introductory class in the popular programming language… Read More »
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) voted to end net neutrality on Thursday, which could mean the end of the open internet as we know it. In an interview with “Mashable”, Florian Schaub, assistant professor of information, discusses what internet users need to know about the decision and how it might impact access. Despite the quick vote from the FCC, throttled… Read More »
Want to help students start off the new year right? ITS Get Connected Tech Consulting Stations will be available to assist new and returning students with technology questions the first week back from break. Stations will be active Wednesday, January 3 thru Monday, January 8 (including Saturday and Sunday) inside the Angell Hall Fishbowl and both Computer Showcase… Read More »
By turning computer circuits into unsolvable puzzles, a University of Michigan team aims to create an unhackable computer with a new $3.6 million grant from the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency. Todd Austin, U-M professor of computer science and engineering, leads the project, called MORPHEUS. Its cybersecurity approach is dramatically different from today’s, which relies on software—specifically software patches… Read More »
We are coming up quickly on the winter break, with families gathered and children out of school. With that in mind, it might be fun to have some some (slightly eccentric?) options for family activities and young folk distractions. Even better if these are options that promote learning, or just understanding more about what the old folks do… Read More »
The fourth annual GIS Day event, held on November 15 on the UM-Dearborn campus, drew 270 participants. Students, faculty, and staff from the Dearborn and Ann Arbor campuses, as well as members of the community, used the opportunity to learn about GIS applications through 15 presentations, as well as from one-on-one meetings in an exhibit setting with representatives of… Read More »
Research using machine learning and artificial intelligence—tools that allow computers to learn about and predict outcomes from massive datasets—has been booming at U-M. The potential societal benefits being explored on campus are numerous, from on-demand transportation systems to self-driving vehicles to individualized medical treatments to improved battery capabilities. The ability of computers and machines generally to learn from… Read More »
University of Michigan-Dearborn has received a $1.2 million grant from the U.S. Department of Education to implement a math and science program for underrepresented youth. The Office of Enrollment Management and Student Life (EMSL) recently received a five-year renewable federal grant to implement an Upward Bound Math and Science Program, which encourages high school students to develop their… Read More »
More than 500 IT professionals from across U-M came together on November 21–22, to celebrate the expertise, innovation, and talents of the Michigan IT community. We thank all those who attended either in person or online, and we hope you enjoyed the event. Posters and presentations from the symposium are available to view on the CIO website. Look… Read More »
Last week, the Board of Regents approved my appointment as interim vice president for information technology and chief information officer. I am excited about this role and am eager to work more closely with all of Michigan IT to prepare for a successful future.
After a successful pilot in the spring of 2017, the Michigan IT Steering Committee is launching the Michigan IT Mentor program, a new option for U-M IT staff to expand their networks, share knowledge, and work towards professional development goals. Mentors and mentees who participated in the pilot shared that their commitment of time is relatively minor compared… Read More »
Information and Technology Services is redesigning and launching new web hosting platforms that are tailored to the unique and varying needs of the U-M community. “The main aspects of the hosting platforms will be reliable and robust cloud-first architecture, scalable and flexible environment, simple provisioning, and security improvements,” says Deborah Gowan, director of ITS application operations. “Individuals can… Read More »
Plan to attend! Hacks with Friends takes place Thursday, March 1 and Friday, March 2, 2018 at the Ross School of Business. Hacks with Friends (HWF) is a spirited two day hack event for IT professionals across the University of Michigan where you are encouraged to break out and have some fun doing what you do best. Pitch… Read More »
The UM-Dearborn Career Center hosted Girls Are IT! STEAM JAM 2017 on October 18. This half-day workshop targeted 50 middle school (grade 6-8) girls from Detroit Public Schools Community District. UM-Dearborn, Detroit Public Schools Community District, and Ford Motor partnered to deliver educational opportunities in STEAM for these students. These highly committed and cohesive teams worked together to… Read More »
TeamDynamix goes live as the UM-Dearborn IT service management tool on December 13. With this upgrade, campus members will have access to a full use self-service portal, putting ITS and the Service Desk at their fingertips to request services, find answers to questions, or open a ticket to seek assistance. Visit our Service Desk self-service portal to see… Read More »
The ITS Identity & Access Management team (IAM) is exploring how the university could begin moving away from use of cosign authentication and toward more modern, flexible, supportable alternatives. Cosign has been the university’s secure single sign-on web authentication system for more than 15 years. Originally designed at U-M, the open source software was once widely used across… Read More »
On October 14, 2017, more than 3,700 women and girls dressed as the iconic Rosie the Riveter—dark blue work clothes, red socks, and the effervescent, red-and-white polka-dot bandana. Together, they set a new world record of the most people dressed as Rosie the Riveter gathered in one place. Kudos to all Michigan IT staff who participated! Here’s what some… Read More »
This is a final reminder that one-button login for IP contact centers will be discontinued by ITS on December 22, 2017. The final contact center groups migrated to Cisco Finesse the week of December 6. We are making this change because the vendor is ending support for the one-button feature. For more information about this change, please visit the… Read More »
It’s like “Iron Chef,” but with data instead of ingredients. The first-ever U-M Iron Viz Championship was held on November 30, 2017, in the Arbor Lakes Dome. Using Tableau Software’s visual analytics capabilities, data analysts were tasked with building a data visualization—or viz—in front of a live audience in just 20 minutes using 45,000+ rows of data about… Read More »