Category Archives: Campus News

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Trade in your tech…for the kids!

By | February 28, 2020

Join Computer Showcase in support of the largest student-run non-profit on the U-M campus this spring. When you trade in your old tech at the Showcase through March 28, you get instant store credit toward a new tech purchase, and we donate an additional 10% of your trade-in value to Dance Marathon at the University of Michigan!  Please… Read More »

Introducing Tech Shop

By | February 26, 2020

The campus institution that began with a computer truck load sale in 1987 will mark a major milestone this spring. When the Computer Showcase returns home to a brand new Michigan Union store space in April, they will adopt a new name: Tech Shop. When the first brick-and-mortar location opened in 1988, Computer Showcase only offered consulting and… Read More »

Emotion recognition has a privacy problem – here’s how to fix it

By | February 26, 2020

With devices listening everywhere you go, privacy concerns are endemic to advancing technology. For example, a virtual assistant that can learn to adapt to a user’s mood creates more useful, human-like interactions. But what if the audio powering these insights stores the user’s gender and demographic information on company servers – leaving the user open to identification by… Read More »

Deep learning AI discovers surprising new antibiotics

By | February 25, 2020

With the rapid rise in drug resistance in many pathogens, new antibiotics are desperately needed. Yet few new antibiotics have entered the market of late, and even these are just minor variants of old antibiotics. While the prospects look bleak, a recent article by Sriram Chandrasekaran, assistant professor of biomedical engineering, explores how researchers hunting for new drugs… Read More »

Coming soon: Campus Tech Shop for UM-Dearborn

By | February 25, 2020

A collaboration between UM-Dearborn and U-M Information and Technology Services departments is bringing a Tech Shop to the Dearborn campus. Located in the University Center, the 700-square-foot storefront space will also have certified Apple, Dell, and HP repair. Construction will begin in May with a grand opening scheduled for this fall. “We saw there was a hole in… Read More »

EECS faculty win awards for computational research

By | February 21, 2020

Two computer science and engineering professors were recently recognized for their outstanding work: Jenna Wiens, co-director of University of Michigan Precision Health, was selected for a 2020 Sloan Research Fellowship by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation for her work harnessing patient data to improve healthcare outcomes. Wiens’ primary research is in the development of data-driven predictive models needed… Read More »

U-M, Coursera offer Chinese learners nearly free access to online courses amid coronavirus outbreak

By | February 21, 2020

In response to the coronavirus epidemic that has restricted millions of Chinese people to their homes and towns, U-M and online learning platform Coursera are offering three popular online data science specializations to learners in China for $1 a month. The specializations are Python for Everybody, the most popular specialization on Coursera; Python 3 Programming; and Applied Data Science with Python.… Read More »

MIDAS Reproducibility Challenge

By | February 20, 2020

The first of its kind at U-M, the MIDAS Reproducibility Challenge aims to highlight high-quality, reproducible work at U-M by collecting examples of best practices across diverse fields. There will be a prize pool of up to $15,000 cash award for the winning teams. Besides incentivizing reproducible workflows and enabling a deeper understanding of issues of reproducibility, the… Read More »

CoE, SI react to allegations of misconduct by computer science professor Jason Mars

By | February 17, 2020

The faculty at U-M’s computer science and engineering department wrote a letter calling for professor Jason Mars to take a leave of absence, following an investigation from The Verge into his behavior as CEO of Clinc, an AI startup with ties to the school. Michigan’s School of Information also said it was suspending its recruiting relationship with Clinc due to Mars’… Read More »

U-M team reaches quarterfinal in AI competition

By | February 17, 2020

The Alexa Socialbot Grand Challenge 3 is a university competition to further the capabilities of artificial intelligence (AI) by building a conversational Alexa skill. Out of hundreds of entries from 15 countries, 10 teams were selected, including one from U-M. Teams are tasked with creating a socialbot, a robotic automated program that can have conversations about popular societal… Read More »

Safe Computing is “Best of the Web!”

Safe Computing took the top spot as winner of the Multi-State Information Sharing and Analysis Center (MS-ISAC) Best of the Web Contest for 2019 in the “Education” category.  According to MS-ISAC, “The goal of this contest is to recognize commendable sites and highlight them as best practices for others to consider when developing or redesigning their own sites.”… Read More »

LSA prof creates digital archive of Chicana artifacts

By | February 10, 2020

Maria Cotera, associate professor of American Culture and of women’s studies, is one of the founders of the Chicana por mi Raza Digital Memory Project. Launched in 2009, the project aims to preserve records of self-identified Chicana feminists by conducting interviews and digitizing artifacts in their personal collections. The repository has collected about 150 oral history interviews and… Read More »

Report finds gaps in access to career, technical ed programs

By | February 10, 2020

A new U-M report detailing access to career and technical education programs in Michigan has found that while CTE courses are popular among high school students, there’s a gap in access to them. CTE courses prepare students to work in specific careers. Some enter the labor market right out of high school, while others enroll in college. Michigan’s… Read More »

UM-Flint announces new esports team for Fall 2020

By | February 7, 2020

UM-Flint recently announced plans to introduce an esports team to campus in Fall 2020. Esports are organized, multiplayer video game competitions played by teams or individuals. Games can be played locally or against players around the globe. “We are always seeking ways in which UM-Flint can be responsive to what prospective students are looking for in a campus,” said Kristi… Read More »

Andrew Rosenberg named 100 hospital and health system CIOs to know

Michigan Medicine CIO Andrew Rosenberg was recently named one of the “100 hospital and health system CIOs to know” by Becker’s Hospital Review.  The executives featured on the list lead technology and health IT initiatives for hospitals and health systems across the U.S., overseeing EHR installations, cybersecurity, data management, and telemedicine services. See the full list.

U-M launches new Magic Bus app

By | February 6, 2020

On February 3, Logistics, Transportation & Parking (LTP) launched a new real-time bus information system. The new system will enable riders to see university bus locations in real-time and predicts precise arrival times for every campus route and stop. The old (DoubleMap) system will remain live until February 29, 2020. Riders will enjoy a number of new features,… Read More »

Halderman honored for public engagement efforts

By | February 6, 2020

J. Alex Halderman, director of the Center for Computer Security and Society in the College of Engineering, will receive the President’s Award for National and State Leadership, which honors individuals who provide sustained, dedicated, and influential leadership and service in major national or state capacities. Halderman, professor of computer science and engineering, focuses his research on computer security… Read More »

Michigan Ross alum is helping lower the cost of internet access in Africa

By | February 5, 2020

Connectivity looks very different in emerging markets, and especially in Africa, where historically the cost of internet and mobile devices have prohibited the majority of the population from accessing the internet. That’s now changing, thanks to advances in technology, the falling price of smartphones, and the work being done on the ground by leaders like 2011 Michigan Ross… Read More »

SI students help improve Ann Arbor voter experience

By | February 4, 2020

The Line Tracking Project, a partnership between three UMSI students and the Ann Arbor City Clerk’s Office, used several years of student research on voter wait times to develop a new public website that allows voters to check wait times at their local polling place and access additional tools to facilitate the voting process. The project recently won… Read More »

Videos help students with online admin tasks

In response to student requests for support and training, ITS collaborated with LSA Student Government’s Subcommittee for Technology, Advising, and Academic Resources and the Registrar’s Office to create ten videos to assist students with online administrative transactions. The new videos are posted on the UMITSCommunications YouTube channel. The videos average about two minutes in length and cover topics… Read More »