Hero image for Explore Summer '21 feature story, "Data Prospecting"
Not so long ago, a scientist might say she could never have too much data. Even today, in a world drowning in data, it is better to be data-rich than data-poor.
Hero image for Explore Summer '21 feature story, "All-Seeing Algorithms"
Artificial intelligence and computer science researchers say getting machines to do the right thing has turned out to be relatively easy. We program Roombas to vacuum our homes, but don’t expect them to brew our coffee. We program robotic arms to sort parts in factories, but not to decide which colors to paint cars. We program doorbells to tell us who is at the door, but not to let them in. Most of our machines do one thing and do it well, usually in error-free fashion. They get the task right.