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Q. How is AI changing the way research is done? What does that mean for Columbia?

A. In traditional computing, people write programs. In machine learning, people feed the computer data, and the computer itself writes the program; itlearnsthe program from data. The termmachine learningis germane here. The machine learns the rules on its own. Because the machine, not the human, is writing the program, the program is not easily interpretable to us. In the case of deep learning, the most successful machine-learning technique to date, we dont really understand the science of how it works or why its so successful. Its an example of applications coming ahead of theory.

These tools are already in our daily lives. AI systems recommend movies and books, respond to our voice commands, and translate web pages from one language to another. AI also adds to our repertoire of scientific methods. In medicine, deep-learning models are processing medical scans faster than humans and catching warning signs that even the experts sometimes miss. And they dont get tired! In astronomy, theyre analyzing images from telescopes and space probes to make new discoveries about our universe. In climate modeling, theyre helping to reduce the uncertainty around climate change and its impacts.

These tools are accelerating science, and I expect the trend to continue. AI holds great promise for the social sciences, too. At Microsoft, I saw how bringing economists together with machine learning experts helped the company better forecast sales of some products.

Q. What are you most proud of accomplishing at the Data Science Institute?

Creating bridges. Everything I did was about building collaboration across schools and disciplines. The Data Science Institute connected a lot of dots across campuses and beyond Columbias gates. When people from different perspectives and areas of expertise come together, sparks fly. Through data science, researchers and educators asked questions they never would have thought to ask, let alone answer.

I also feel good about creating theTrustworthy AIinitiative to investigate some of machine learnings unintended consequences. Our goal is to find out whether the AI systems making decisions about peoples lives can be trusted: Do I really have cancer? Is the moving object in front of my car a ball or a child? Will the bank approve my loan? It turns out that its hard to formally define the properties of trustworthiness, let alone prove and guarantee that an AI system has any of them.

A. Columbia Engineering and the Data Science Institute built the IBM Center on Blockchain and Data Transparency under your tenure. And Columbia continues to court corporate funders. Why is industry collaboration so vital?

In certain areas of research, AI especially, industry is ahead. They have the data, which is mostly proprietary consumer data. They also have vast amounts of computing power. Amazon, Microsoft, Google have nearly limitless computing power through their cloud infrastructure. They have GPU clusters academia could never afford. I see enormous potential for collaboration. If faculty could gain access to data and compute, they could validate their algorithms at scale and identify new research directions.

Its a mutually beneficial relationship. Industry looks to academia for new ideas and talent.Academia looks to industry for real-world problems to solve, and opportunities to scale solutions. Its an important way to broaden our impact.

Q. Youve held leadership roles in academia, industry, and the federal government. What skills allowed you to succeed in such different cultures?

A. To be able to listen and learn. To know what you dont know, and to surround yourself with superb talent.

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Meet the Computer Scientist Overseeing Columbia's $1 Billion Research Portfolio - Columbia University

BOSTON The wild-card game is not fair. Long live the wild-card game.

Those might be contradictory opinions, but it all depends on your perspective. If youre a player, you hate it. If youre a viewer, you love it.

Is it fair? No, its not fair, Curtis Granderson, the former major league outfielder, said on Tuesday. Is it fun? Absolutely.

The Yankees fell to the Boston Red Sox, 6-2, in the American League wild-card game at Fenway Park on Tuesday, a day before the National League game between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the St. Louis Cardinals at Dodger Stadium. The winner of each advances to a division series, meaning that the Dodgers are already facing elimination despite tying their franchise record for victories with 106.

The reason is a quirk: As great as the Dodgers were, they played in the same division as the San Francisco Giants, who were one game better. The Cardinals needed only 90 victories to share the stage.

Theres no crying in baseball. Were in second place. Were in the Wild Card game, said Dodgers pitcher Max Scherzer, who also said he liked that the playoff format encouraged competition to the very end of the season.

If Im playing on a team that just won 100 games, I want to have the right to be out there and kind of stretch my chances for at least three games not just one and done, said the Hall of Famer Pedro Martinez, who will analyze the playoffs for TBS with Granderson and Jimmy Rollins. The efforts of my entire team, my entire organization, going down the drain by losing one game? One little mistake?

Martinez won his only championship with a wild-card team, the 2004 Red Sox. Back then, baseball gave a wild-card berth to just one team in each league, and the playoffs started with the best-of-five division series. The format changed in 2012, with each league staging a knockout game between two wild cards to open the postseason.

The games have often brought high drama: rollicking comebacks in Kansas City and Washington, a walk-off homer by Edwin Encarnacion in Toronto, two road shutouts by Madison Bumgarner for the Giants. Whatever you think of the format, its pull is irresistible.

Im going to watch both games, and Im going to enjoy them as a spectator, said Bud Black, who has won a wild-card game and lost another as the Colorado Rockies manager. But when its over that quickly bam, youre done. Youd like to have a chance to show why you got into the playoffs with at least three games. I think thats the viewpoint of any player, manager, general manager, coach. But from a fans standpoint, theyre great.

Should baseball keep the wild-card game because its so much fun? Or kill it because its a gimmicky way for a team to risk its season? Ultimately, it seems, neither question is relevant.

As Major League Baseball and the players union negotiate a new collective bargaining agreement, they will strongly consider expanding the playoffs. Creating more content is an easy way to raise revenue, and last years 16-team field a cash grab after a 60-game regular season offers a template.

I thought last year was pretty cool, Black said. I know it was a different year with the pandemic, but if somehow through negotiations we could shorten the season a bit not much, 152, 154 games, whatever the number is add another team or two and play two out of three, I think that works. And maybe with that time frame, not as many days off between series. Make it like the regular season: You play consecutive games, you get on a plane, you play the next day. Those things could be worked out, so you dont drag it out a great deal.

For most of baseball history, the regular-season champions of each league advanced directly to the World Series. The 1942 Brooklyn Dodgers (104-50) had an even better winning percentage than this years Dodger team, but lost the N.L. pennant to the Cardinals.

I was with the Cubs when we were nosed out on three or four championships, but this is the hardest thing Ive ever gone through, Dodgers second baseman Billy Herman said in the next days Brooklyn Eagle. When you win 104 games and finish second, there isnt anything to say.

The format finally changed in 1969, when baseball split into four divisions and added the League Championship Series. That was the only playoff round through 1993, when the Giants won 103 games but lost the N.L. West by a game to Atlanta.

You just accepted it, said Black, who pitched for the Giants then. We were conditioned to that: You either win your division or not. But it was such a good year and we played so well, we did feel a little shorted.

While Black said he felt for the 2021 Dodgers, others from his era do not. Ken Singleton, who retired last weekend as a Yankees broadcaster, once played for six second-place teams in an eight-year span with Baltimore. In 1980, the Orioles won 100 games but lost the A.L. East to the Yankees; they would have welcomed even a one-game playoff ticket.

Who knows, we might have gone on to win the World Series but there was no wild card in those days, Singleton said. The Dodgers are in the playoffs. We werent. So I dont have much sympathy for them.

Four teams have used the wild-card game to launch a run to the World Series, with the 2014 Giants and the 2019 Nationals winning the championship. Singleton said he hoped the playoff format would stay as it is, because the postseason can stretch to November already. He does not mind that the unbalanced schedule puts an emphasis on divisional play.

When the Red Sox won the division in 2018, they went 16-3 against the Orioles, Singleton said. When the Yankees won in 2019, they went 17-2 against the Orioles. And this year, the Rays went 18-1 against them. So in a way, the Orioles hold the key to the division. If you play great against them, youre going to win.

The Orioles lost 110 games this season, tying with the Arizona Diamondbacks for the most in the majors. And how did the Giants and the Dodgers do against the Diamondbacks in the N.L. West?

The Giants beat them 17 times, and the Dodgers beat them 16 times. That one game was the difference in the division.

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MLB's Wild-Card Game Is Loved and Loathed - The New York Times

Rajasthan Royals might bring back Kartik Tyagi in place of Akash Singh, as they take on a star-studded but out-of-form Mumbai Indians at Sharjah on Tuesday. Its a win-or-bust contest for both teams, especially Mumbai Indians, for a loss will mean curtains for them. MIs net run-rate, -0.45, keeps them at the foot of the table.

Rajasthan Royals

Batting: The way their top order chased a big total against Chennai Super Kings, Royals are unlikely to disturb their batting combination. With the two openers, Yashasvi Jaiswal and Evin Lewis, in good touch, the team once again looks forward to a top-order blast.

Shivam Dubes electric hitting in the last game gives Royals the freedom to retain the same batting order, while David Miller, too, is expected to be a part to complement Dube. Skipper Sanju Samson plays more like an anchor, trying to bat through the innings and pacing his knock at the right moment.

Bowling: Left-arm seamer Akash Singh is likely to make way for right-arm quick Kartik Tyagi, who didnt play the last game against CSK. Chetan Sakariya and Mustafizur Rahman will be the other two pacers. Rahul Tewatia and Mayank Markande, the two leg-spinners, are expected to take care of the spin department. Royals have a habit of tinkering with their playing combinations and young Tyagi has shown his ability to rise up to tough situations. Him defending four runs in the final over against Punjab Kings was a case in point.

Mumbai Indians

Batting: MIs batting has been off-colour this term, a reason for their slide. But despite their captain Rohit Sharma voicing his concerns over the teams batting form, the defending champions are expected to keep faith in the tried and tested. A lot will depend on Suryakumar Yadav.

Bowling: The MI bowling has performed decently and in a virtual knockout game, they will bank on their proven performers as far as fast bowling is concerned. MI are too successful a franchise to press the panic button while going through a lean patch, but bringing back leg-spinner Rahul Chahar could be an option. Then again, Royals have four left-handers in their batting line-up and MI might play safe by retaining off-spinner Jayant Yadav.

Royals likely XI: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Evin Levis, Sanju Samson, Shivam Dube, Glenn Phillips, David Millar, Rahul Tewatia, Mayank Markande, Mustafizur Rahman, Kartik Tyagi, Chetan Sakariya

MI likely XI: Rohit Sharma, Quinton de Kock, Suryakumar Yadav, Saurabh Tiwary, Hardik Pandya, Kieron Pollard, Krunal Pandya, Nathan-Coulter Nile, Jayant Yadav, Jaspreet Bumrah, Trent Boult

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Kartik Tyagi set to be back for Rajasthan Royals, Mumbai Indians likely to be unchanged - The Indian Express

In todays day and age, markets can change direction in the blink of an eye and huge trends can show up overnight only to die down a few weeks later. Plus, customers are better informed and require more than just your good intentions to pay attention to your brand.

Therefore, businesses must adapt to the crazy fast pace of the market and find new ways to cope with the coming and going of the trends. Thats where marketing automation truly shows its value as it takes over routine tasks and frees up time for ingenuity, creativity, and strategy.

But you cant have marketing automation without the right tools. Luckily, the offer is incredibly diverse with smart automation tools that can help improve the customer experience while also shedding hours off your schedule. However, it can be a bit confusing when trying to decide which tools work the best for your needs.

For instance, did you know you can use social media monitoring tools to automate and enrich your campaigns? Heres how:

Social listening is the process of monitoring what people are saying about topics of interest to you online. With the right tools, you can learn more about your customers opinions about your brand, products, and more.

You can check brand mentions across all platforms, so you dont waste any marketing opportunities. Brand mentions mean people are talking about you, therefore, you have to make sure youll be a part of the conversation.

Plus, you can use social media monitoring tools to take a peek at your competitors strategies and campaigns. After all, inspiration can come from a wide range of sources, right?

Overall, social listening is great for your marketing because it keeps you up to date with popular topics and lets you know whats trendy on the market.

Monitoring tools bring huge loads of data that you can use in all sorts of marketing campaigns and strategies. However, it takes time to understand what each tool brings and how to make the most of it.

Luckily, some of these tools also have analytics built into the system, which means you can create default and customized reports to better understand trends and currents. With the right data, social media can paint an accurate picture of your customer, which is incredibly valuable information especially in todays day and age.

Customer support is the one service you know for sure it can improve your chances on the market when done right. When customers and interested buyers reach out, you must reply quickly and swiftly to keep their satisfaction levels high.

Luckily, nowadays you dont have to hire a call center company to cover basic interactions. Intelligent chatbots are not new technology, but small and medium-sized brands are not extremely keen on using them.

However, with minimal initial investment and the data provided by social media monitoring tools, you can set up user-friendly chatbots that can take over routine questions and even basic actions. Plus, chatbots can stay active 24/7 and they use AI algorithms to learn from the collected data how to better talk with your customers.

Quick note: There are plenty of AI tools you can use to up your marketing and social media strategy. Also, these tools are quite affordable even for small brands, so theres absolutely no need not to use them.

Automation is a great way to make sure your campaigns are moving forward while you are taking care of the creative side of marketing and social media. So get all the tools you need before starting your journey to conquer the world!

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Analytics Insight is an influential platform dedicated to insights, trends, and opinions from the world of data-driven technologies. It monitors developments, recognition, and achievements made by Artificial Intelligence, Big Data and Analytics companies across the globe.

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How to Automate Your Marketing With Social Media Monitoring Tools - Analytics Insight

This week, Facebook whistleblower Frances Haugen testified about the tens of thousands of pages of internal documents she leaked exposing how Facebook prioritized profits over the publics safety and called on lawmakers to regulate the social media network.

By bringing to light the consequences of Facebooks algorithms, Haugens testimony has forced corporations to rethink their relationship with Facebook and use of consumer data, according to digital media experts at Olin Business School at Washington University in St. Louis.

Most advertisers who invest in Facebook or other social media platforms are aware of the ways in which these technologies collect and use customer data to improve the ROI (return on investment) of advertising dollars. In fact, these capabilities are positioned as a selling point, said Michael Wall, professor of marketing practice and co-director of the Center for Analytics and Business Insights at Olin Business School.

That said, other aspects of how Facebook and others drive great returns for their advertisers have been hidden within their algorithms. The whistleblower has changed that. Advertisers are now aware, and they will now be faced with decisions related to both the ethical use of data and being values-based.

According to Wall, business leaders should be thinking hard about how their firms many of whom have become dependent on platforms such as Facebook for business growth will use customer data responsibly.

Certainly, the amount of users on these platforms is appealing in that it enables marketers the ability to reach a lot of consumers. That said, the real value is driven by the algorithms within these platforms that track everything we say and do to pinpoint which of those users should see our content, when and how many times, Wall said.

This raises ethical questions about what is appropriate to not only track, but also share with third parties some of whom use the data to advertise and track consumers beyond the original platforms. Its easy to focus on Facebook given its behemoth size, but any company using consumer data is at risk of causing harm to its consumers.

Every organization with access to rich consumer data, using Facebook as an advertising vehicle or not, must at least from time to time confront the dilemma: should some information be used to improve the profit line in the short run even though it might not be in the best interest of a consumer? said Yulia Nevskaya, assistant professor of marketing at Olin Business School.

It is a difficult situation to manage for a brand, given that the interests of a particular manager might not always align well with a long-term success of a brand. Implementing data-drivenandvalues-based culture and decision-making is key.

This is not the first time Facebook has found itself in the hot seat for its handling of user data, misinformation and other threats to American democracy. The more customers, companies and government have learned about social media, the more pushback has been generated from each stakeholder, Wall said.

Change is already underway. For example, Apples recent feature with its iOS 14.5 update notifies customers that apps are tracking their data and gives consumers the ability to block said tracking.

This was a massive blow to Facebook, among others, who rely on that tracking to drive more advertising revenue, Wall said. Apple isnt the only one. Google is also preparing to block third-party cookie tracking. These industry actions, coupled with government policies such as GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) and the California Privacy Rights Act, will make the use of customer data more difficult in years to come.

Limiting the use of consumer data or cutting ties with Facebook altogether may seem like an unfathomable choice for businesses. However, taking a stand now could pay dividends down the road.

Research over the last several years has shown that customers prefer buying from companies that are aligned with their personal values, Wall said.

In 2018, Nike was one of the first major brands to take a controversial stand with its Colin Kaepernick commercial. Since then, many more companies have taken stands on social issues that align with their brand values, such as racial injustice, voting rights, gun laws, climate change and LGBTQ rights.

As a marketer, my position is that brand equity is ultimately not driven by advertising. Furthermore, it is something we certainly cannot control. Instead, our brand is something we steward, Wall said.

This stewardship is driven by choices we make, which drive the actions we take, and together they lead to consequences in the market. Leaders must make tough choices about near-term growth and long-term growth. The wrong choices today may enable more profit today but may also lead to decreases down the road.

Social media are new, powerful and complex players and we, as a society and as individuals, have to get tooled very quickly to live with them, Nevskaya said.

Social media shapes our world, our information bubble and our choices. We now know that our Facebook feed is carefully calculated by algorithms that decide which political opinions, sources of information and products are most likely to elicit a response from us, she said.

Facebook and other social media companies possibly with the help of regulators have a responsibility to confront the ethical dilemma of their business. At the same time, consumers need access to reliable information about the ways in which social media impacts their lives.

Consumer literacy should be taken seriously and implemented in a comprehensive way, starting at an early age, Nevskaya said.

Over the last two decades, as the situation with Facebook illustrates, companies and organizations developed extremely sophisticated tools to advertise and promote their products and ideas, Nevskaya said. Gone are the days when a television ad for a major brand consisted of mostly repeating the name of the brand many times in a loud voice, which marketers believed would make the consumer remember the product and buy it.

Consumers are smart, but they need to be fully aware of the new methods, how exactly their personal information is used by organizations and to be offered very concrete tips on navigating modern marketing.

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WashU Experts: Facebook controversy raises ethical questions for corporations - The Source - Washington University in St. Louis - Washington...