News Staff

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Author Archives: News Staff

Bridging the “last centimeter barrier” in electronic communications

By | January 2, 2019
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spoof surface plasmon polariton (SSPP) computer chip

Michigan Engineering researchers are addressing a performance bottleneck that currently exists in the information transfer between electronic chips located a few centimeters apart in a computing system. Led by electrical engineering professor Pinaki Mazumder, their work – dubbed the “last centimeter barrier” – will enable a new generation of electronic systems with ultra high speed data transfers. Electronic chips… Read More »

New device mimics brain-like computing

By | December 20, 2018
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A new electronic device developed at U-M can directly model the behaviors of a synapse, which is a connection between two neurons. “Neuroscientists have argued that competition and cooperation behaviors among synapses are very important. Our new memristive devices allow us to implement a faithful model of these behaviors in a solid-state system,” said Wei Lu, U-M professor… Read More »

Great Lakes update: December 2018

By | December 19, 2018
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server rack

The Great Lakes service is a next generation HPC platform for U-M researchers that will provide several performance advantages compared to Flux, primarily in the areas of storage and networking. Great Lakes is built around the latest Intel CPU architecture called Skylake, and will have standard, large memory, visualization, and GPU-accelerated nodes. For more information on the technical aspects of… Read More »

Florian Schaub publishes book on privacy in computing

By | December 18, 2018
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Florian Schaub

Florian Schaub, an assistant professor in the School of Information, is the co-author of the book Privacy in Mobile and Pervasive Computing, which has just been released. Schaub and his co-author dissect and discuss the privacy implications of mobile and pervasive computing technology. They not only look at how technology affects our expectations of (and ability to enjoy) privacy, but they… Read More »

U-M hits online enrollment milestone

By | December 18, 2018
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michigan online wordmark

In the four years since U-M announced a centralized effort to promote digital learning and two years after President Schlissel announced Academic Innovation as a major initiative, the university has experienced more than 7 million enrollments in online learning opportunities that involved people in 190 countries. In addition, there has been impressive participation from faculty, staff, students and… Read More »

CSCAR offers free workshops starting in January 2019

By | December 13, 2018
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CSCAR wordmark

Beginning in January of 2019, Consulting for Statistics, Computing and Analytics Research (CSCAR) will offer most of its workshops free of charge to U-M students, faculty, and staff. CSCAR is able to do this thanks to funding from U-M’s Data Science Initiative. Registration for workshops is still required, and seats are limited. CSCAR requests that participants please cancel their… Read More »

Parents, kids talk more about using tech than content

By | December 12, 2018
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illustration of child with computer and mobile devices

A recently published study led by former U-M researcher Sarah Domoff found that parents spend more time talking with kids about the mechanics of using their mobile devices than they do about what their kids watch and download on those devices. Domoff, now an assistant professor at Central Michigan University, said the findings revealed some concerning trends in how… Read More »

Connecting Digital Scholarship, Jan. 23

By | December 10, 2018
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B&W photo of laptop, book, notebook, and phone

Join us as we engage in a lively discussion focused on Digital Humanities/Digital Scholarship/Digital Studies. This event will offer a series of lightning talks and a panel discussion that showcase several faculty involved in DH/DS projects. Participants will reflect on the potential of and challenges related to digital scholarship and its role in teaching, research, and publishing. In other words, how do you… Read More »

The web really isn’t worldwide – every country has different access

By | December 7, 2018
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What the internet looks like to users in the U.S. can be quite different from the online experience of people in other countries. Some of those variations are due to government censorship, but private companies – many based in the U.S. – are also building obstacles to users from around the world who want to freely explore the… Read More »

Taking on the limits of computing power

By | December 6, 2018
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DNA strand

The emerging field of genomic analysis is on the cusp of revolutionizing the understanding of diseases and the methods for their treatment and prevention. However, current DNA analysis is restricted to using limited data due to the large time and cost for Whole Genome Sequencing (WGS), restricting progress. As biochemical sequencing is getting faster and cheaper, the bottleneck… Read More »

Precision Health Award for measuring moods via novel tech approach

By | December 5, 2018
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Computer Science And Engineering Professor Emily Mower Provost and collaborators on the Prechter Bipolar Research team were one of 10 recipients of the Michigan Precision Health Investigators Award. Mower Provost and her team propose novel technology, data collection, and computational models that will provide objective assessments of an individual’s behavior and social environment based on analyses of comprehensive… Read More »

Most patients wary, unaware of benefits of using health portals

By | December 4, 2018
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illustration of computer monitor with health care worker

Two-thirds of patients who visited a doctor in 2017 did not use a health portal that could help improve their health in the long run, according to a new study by U-M. Health portals—secure online websites that give patients 24-hour access to health information—can enhance patients’ engagement in their own health, said lead author Denise Anthony, professor of… Read More »

U-M approves graduate certificate in computational neuroscience

By | December 3, 2018
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illustration of brain with interconnecting pathways

The new Graduate Certificate in Computational Neuroscience will help bridge the gap between experimentally focused studies and quantitative modeling and analysis, giving graduate students a chance to broaden their skill sets in the diversifying field of brain science. “The broad, practical training provided in this certificate program will help prepare both quantitatively focused and lab-based students for the… Read More »

Changing the conversation: Seniors and technology

By | December 3, 2018
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Older man and woman looking at a computer

Stereotypes of seniors confused by and struggling with technology might be amusing, but not necessarily accurate, says School of Information researcher Robin Brewer, an SI presidential postdoctoral fellow. Technology isn’t necessarily befuddling for older adults in and of itself, says Brewer. Most of the challenges are because of changes in abilities that make traditional devices and systems tougher for… Read More »

U-M hosts new data center for educational research collaboration

By | November 30, 2018
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The launch of a new research collaboration and a data center at the University of Michigan marks the start of a unique collaboration between U-M, Michigan State University, the Michigan Department of Education and the Center for Educational Performance and Information. The new Michigan Education Research Institute and Michigan Education Data Center will facilitate research projects in education,… Read More »

U-M awarded $270k grant to support women in STEM

By | November 28, 2018
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Female professor surrounded by female students.

The Clare Boothe Luce Program of the Henry Luce Foundation awarded a $270,000 grant to U-M. The funding will support women PhD students through the Michigan Institute for Computational Discovery and Engineering (MICDE). The program  encourages women “to enter, study, graduate and teach” in science, and the funding will support women PhD students who make use of computational… Read More »

Hey, Alexa, stop listening to everything I say

By | November 27, 2018
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Google Home and Amazon Alexa devices

Smart speakers like Amazon’s Alexa and Google Home that can give you the weather forecast, play your favorite tunes, or control the lights in your house are a hot ticket item for the holidays. But not for everyone. Recent research from the U-M School of Information looked at privacy perceptions, concerns, and privacy-seeking behaviors with smart speakers. Florian… Read More »

Why everyone should know programming

By | November 26, 2018
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CU of hands on laptop with code on screen

Putting a bandage on a cut doesn’t mean you want to be a doctor. But in the world of computer science, people assume that everybody with an interest in programming wants to become a computer scientist. It is precisely this thought that Charles “Dr. Chuck” Severance, clinical associate professor at the School of Information, is trying to change. Speaking… Read More »

Symposium celebrates 30 years of Artificial Intelligence at Michigan

By | November 23, 2018
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The Michigan AI Lab celebrated 30 years of leading research with its first AI Symposium, AI for Society, which took place on November 10. The event welcomed 250 participants from U-M and around the country for a day of presentations, panel discussions, and poster sessions. Presenters gave a broad picture of AI’s applications in the modern world, from finance to health,… Read More »