I earned my PhD in Information and Computer Science from the University of California, Irvine in 1987. My dissertation was on an unsupervised learning method called Cobweb, which was an early machine learning system that relied on probabilistic reasoning, incremental (online) learning, and modeling human categorization and problem solving behaviors. I have been teaching and researching in AI at Vanderbilt since then, as well as serving the AI field in various capacities. My current research focuses on AI story telling, AI research and education in sustainability applications, and AI, ethics, and theology. I am a member of Vanderbilt’s Drinking Water Justice Lab. I have an interest in using AI to promote productive discourse, and ways that AIs can serve as positive role models for humans, even if some of that influence stems from the human tendency to anthropomorphize.
I was founding director of the Vanderbilt Institute for Digital Learning, and I was a long-time residential faculty member, including founding director of Warren (residential) College. I served as a Program Director at the National Science Foundation (NSF) from 2007-2010 with responsibilities for vetting and administering of basic research grants in AI and machine learning. I received NSF’s Director’s Award of Excellence in 2010 for innovation in merit review and leadership on computing for environmental and societal sustainability.
My wife and I enjoy road trips through small town USA, and I like camping and backpacking with student groups.
