Used in conjunction with books and lectures, sophisticated educational games designed for college classrooms can offer active learning that some instructors say is hard to replicate in a traditional classroom. Still, not every professor who believes well-designed games are valuable in education uses video games in courses. Barry Fishman, a professor in the School of Information and the School… Read More »
An optimal travel planning search engine and a cognitive computing solution for autonomous driving were among the seven technologies that will receive $600,000 from U-M’s Michigan Translational Research and Commercialization Statewide Innovation Hub to continue their advancement into the commercial market. The advanced transportation innovation hub is part of a statewide initiative, in partnership with the Michigan Economic Development Corporation’s… Read More »
Students and instructors use multiple systems and applications every day that collect vast amounts of data about learners. However, much of the information produced by the current learning data ecosystem is poorly understood and poorly utilized. In a recent article for Educause, Sean DeMonner, executive director of teaching and learning for ITS, and two colleagues from the University of… Read More »
This fall, U-M will test whether an automated text analysis tool can help integrate more writing into large introductory science courses without imposing significant new time constraints. The tool is the latest addition to M-Write, a program run by the Gayle Morris Sweetland Center for Writing. Anne R. Gere, professor of English language and literature who serves as director of the… Read More »
As people spend more time on social media, the lack of true friendship or in-person connections could be harming their health. Robert Pasick—a psychologist, author, and adjunct professor at the Ross School of Business—says the lack of authentic, in-person connections can lead to health problems, or even early death. According to Pasick, social media sites, like Facebook, are giving… Read More »
As IT professionals, we’re often straddling two worlds: the world of the present and the world of the future. The proliferation of big data and maturity of cloud services presents a tremendous opportunity to define a clearer path between them.
Several staff members from the HITS Research Applications & Advanced Computing (RAAC) division participated in the 6th annual Cores Technology & Services Showcase, sponsored by the Biomedical Research Core Facilities (BRCF). The Showcase, which took place June 14 at Palmer Commons, brought together more than 35 U-M units and partner vendors, including HITS, to share the latest technology… Read More »
For the third consecutive year, Michigan Medicine has been named one of the nation’s “Most Wired” health systems by Hospitals & Health Networks magazine, a publication of the American Hospital Association. The award recognizes hospitals and health systems that excel in using information technology to advance patient care and population health, protect the privacy and security of patient… Read More »
Michigan IT News is published by and for the U-M IT community to provide updates, answer questions, and spark conversation about how to improve IT services and invest in technologies that support U-M’s current and future needs. We are guided by a dedicated group of Michigan IT staff who make sure we keep focused on the issues, interests, and developments that… Read More »
Health Information Technology & Services (HITS) launched a new website. The new site provides essential information regarding the many products and services HITS provides, along with search options and intuitive navigation designed to make finding this information quicker and easier. It also links to an improved HITS Knowledgebase. This is an important next step in the unification of MCIT and… Read More »
Over the past three years, a group of volunteers from Health Information Technology & Services (HITS) has completely upgraded all technology services at the Ronald McDonald House of Ann Arbor, a valuable resource for thousands of families with children requiring critical and essential medical care. Many HITS staff members generously donated their time and skills to make… Read More »
J. Alex Halderman (second from right), professor of electrical engineering and computer science, testified before the U.S. Senate Select Committee on Intelligence at a June 21 hearing titled “Russian Interference in the 2016 U.S. Election.” It focused on the federal government’s role in safeguarding U.S. elections from outside interference. Halderman emphasized that “our highly computerized election infrastructure is vulnerable… Read More »
John Cheney-Lippold, assistant professor of American culture at U-M and author of the book We Are Data: Algorithms and the Making of Our Digital Selves, helps explain the difference between data that is trying to sell you a product, and data that truly knows who you are as a person. “I think we should take the idea of U.S. privacy… Read More »
A research team in U-M’s Mcity Michigan Traffic Lab led by Professor Henry Liu has developed an augmented reality (AR) system that enables engineers and researchers to evaluate challenging and dangerous scenarios in a safe environment. The traffic lab controls all of the signalling and tracks the vehicles on the facility. It collects and archives data from those… Read More »
The Bicentennial IT Historic Timeline showcases the rich history of technology innovation at U-M.
Lisa Callihan (LSA IT customer experience manager) presented at the HDI 2017 (Help Desk Institute) conference on May 11 in Washington D.C. Her presentation, Implementing a Major Incident Process, focused on the work she did in creating and implementing the ITS Significant Incident process used today. HDI is the professional association and certification body for the technical service and… Read More »
Experts at the crossroads of pediatrics, psychology, and AI say there’s a lot we don’t know about how virtual assistants might affect young, developing minds. Jenny Radesky, a U-M pediatrician who studies how digital media shapes children, says research around how kids understand digital assistants is limited, and studies that do exist on children and robots suggest children see… Read More »
As part of the bicentennial celebration, LSA has organized several events, including a staff scavenger hunt that began May 8 during the LSA Staff Spring Fling.
U-M computer science professor Igor Markov believes an attack by artificial intelligence on humans would sort of be like when the Black Plague hit Europe in the 14th century, killing up to 50 percent of a populatioin that had no idea what was happening or why. “This would be illustrative of what you might expect if a superintelligent AI would… Read More »
The College of Engineering’s Computer Science and Engineering (CSE) division received a NCWIT Extension Services Transformation (NEXT) Award for excellence in efforts to attract undergraduate women to the field of computing. Sponsored by the National Center for Women & Information Technology (NCWIT) and Google, NEXT Awards honor academic departments that show improved outcomes in increasing women’s meaningful participation in computing education. CSE’s… Read More »