NRT-AI: AWARE-AI: AWAREness for Sensing Humans Responsibly with AI

基于感知的人工智能（AI）系统使用从人类收集的信息进行预测，并在许多应用中对人类做出响应。随着这些系统变得越来越普遍，巨大的研究挑战正在出现。这些人工智能系统必须做出负责任和灵活的反应，尊重多样性和隐私，并实现可信度，以避免在更大的社会规模上产生意想不到的后果。为了应对这些挑战，需要弥合与人工智能相关的研究生教育课程中的差距，以创建一个不断增长的、可持续的、全面的人工智能科学家和工程师队伍，他们了解软件、硬件、人机交互和这项技术的人类认知方面，以及伦理方面的考虑。为了确保人工智能技术设计良好，以提高所有公民的生产力，福利和安全，建立一支包容性的研究队伍也至关重要。这项授予罗切斯特理工学院的国家科学基金会研究培训（NRT）将为多元化的学生团体提供独特的培训，其成员将成为开发负责任的人类感知人工智能技术的未来研究领导者。该项目预计将培训75名硕士和博士。学生，包括25名受资助的受训人员，来自计算和信息科学，工程，数学，心理学和成像科学。用人工智能感知人类的意识（AWARE-AI）NRT项目将提高美国在人工智能领域的竞争力，并通过为聋人和重听人、女性、非洲裔美国人、拉丁美洲人/美国人和美国原住民学生提供资助的培训机会，帮助发展多元化的劳动力。AWARE-AI NRT项目包括融合研究和教育经验的结合，以支持学员实现以下几个学习成果：（a）人类感知人工智能系统的跨学科广度，（B）相关科学和技术技能的深度，（c）先进研究实践的深度，以及（d）整体多样性和包容性能力。创新的教育特点包括访问，以促进学员和少数群体服务机构之间的早期联系，关于先进研究实践的圆桌会议，数据集开发，实验室轮换，国家实验室和行业实习，种子资助的项目，以及多样性和包容性讲习班。学员将在与使用启发领域相关的四个研究方向上推进人类感知AI的科学知识：（1）算法和软件，用于灵活处理多模态重输入，以增强交互系统，（2）人机协作和高效的人工智能技术，以提高制造环境中的人类信任，安全性和舒适性，（3）为听力损失的老年人设计可用和可访问的基于AI的系统的方法，以及（4）将认知研究扩展到服务不足的人群，以发现广泛催化人类感知AI的发现。外部项目评估、开源培训材料和研究结果的传播，以及用于研究和教学的人类感知人工智能数据集的新数据库，将刺激趋同研究，并支持在其他机构复制有效的项目要素。NSF研究培训（NRT）计划旨在鼓励为STEM研究生教育培训开发和实施大胆的，新的潜在变革模式。该计划致力于通过创新的、基于证据的、与不断变化的劳动力和研究需求相一致的综合培训模式，在高优先级的跨学科或融合研究领域对STEM研究生进行有效培训。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

Sensing-based artificial intelligence (AI) systems use information gathered from humans to make predictions and respond to humans in numerous applications. As these systems become more widespread, enormous research challenges are emerging. These AI systems must react responsibly and flexibly, respect diversity and privacy, and achieve trustworthiness to avoid unintended consequences at a larger societal scale. To address these challenges, gaps in graduate education programs related to AI will need to be bridged to create a growing and sustainable pipeline of well-rounded AI scientists and engineers who understand software, hardware, human-computer interaction, and human cognitive aspects of this technology, as well as ethical considerations. To ensure AI technology is well-designed to improve all citizens' productivity, welfare, and safety, it is also vital to build an inclusive research workforce. This National Science Foundation Research Traineeship (NRT) award to the Rochester Institute of Technology will provide unique training to a diverse student body, whose members will be future research leaders in developing responsible, human-aware AI technologies. The project anticipates training 75 master’s and Ph.D. students, including 25 funded trainees, from computing and information sciences, engineering, mathematics, psychology, and imaging science. The Awareness for Sensing Humans Responsibly with AI (AWARE-AI) NRT project will enhance U.S. competitiveness in AI and help develop a diverse workforce by providing funded traineeships to Deaf and Hard of Hearing, female, African American, Latino/a American, and Native American students.The AWARE-AI NRT project includes the combination of convergent research and educational experiences to support trainees in achieving several learning outcomes: (a) cross-disciplinary breadth in human-sensing AI systems, (b) depth in relevant science and technology skills, (c) depth in advanced research practices, and (d) holistic diversity and inclusion competency. Innovative educational features include visits to facilitate early connections between trainees and minority-serving institutions, roundtables on advanced research practices, dataset development, lab rotations, national lab and industry internships, seed-funded projects, and diversity and inclusion workshops. Trainees will advance scientific knowledge in human-sensing AI across four research tracks linked to use-inspired areas: (1) algorithms and software for the flexible processing of multimodal-heavy input to enhance interaction systems, (2) human-robot collaboration and efficient AI technology to improve human trust, safety, and comfort in manufacturing contexts, (3) design methods for usable and accessible AI-based systems for understudied older adults with hearing loss, and (4) extension of cognition research to underserved populations for discoveries that broadly catalyze human-aware AI. External program evaluation, dissemination of open-source training materials and findings, and a new database of human-sensing AI datasets for research and teaching will stimulate convergent research and support replication of effective program elements at other institutions. The NSF Research Traineeship (NRT) Program is designed to encourage the development and implementation of bold, new potentially transformative models for STEM graduate education training. The program is dedicated to effective training of STEM graduate students in high priority interdisciplinary or convergent research areas through comprehensive traineeship models that are innovative, evidence-based, and aligned with changing workforce and research needs.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.