In short, the goal of this course is to introduce students to ways of thinking about how Artificial Intelligence will and has impacted humans, and how we can design interactive intelligent systems that are usable and beneficial to humans, and respect human values. As students in this course, you will build a number of different interactive technologies powered by AI, gain practical experience with what impacts their usability for humans, understand the various places that humans exist in the data pipeline that drives machine learning, and learn to think both optimistically and critically of what AI systems can do and how they can and should be integrated into society.
Chinmay’s office hours: Friday 4.30pm -5.30pm 2504D Newell-Simon Hall
Mary Beth’s office hours: Wednesday 3-4:30pm HCII Commons, Newell-Simon Hall
Also feel free to reach out any time over email or Piazza to ask questions or set up an individual meeting time with one of us
Canvas check here for grades
Piazza please post ???’s here as well as reading reflections
6% Attendance & Active Participation
10% Reading Reflections (approximately once a week)
10% In-class Reading Panel Participation
14% Quizzes (15 quizzes in all, lowest score dropped).
60% Projects & Assignment
Assignment 0: active participation
Assignment 1-5, Final project: 10%
All quizzes happen at the beginning of class on Thursday.
Projects and assignments are due on Sundays at 11:59pm.
Reading reflections are due just before class on the day we have the scheduled discussion related to the readings. If there is no scheduled discussion, they are due the class after they are assigned (e.g. if assigned on Tuesday, they are due Thursday)
We realize that things happen, and that you might sometimes not be able to turn in your assignments. To accommodate this, you will each receive 5 free late days. Beyond those days, you receive a 5% penalty for each day late.
You are welcome to budget late days as you like, for instance 3 free days late for one assignment, 2 for another, or all 5 for one.
You cannot use late days for quizzes.
If you have a disability and have an accommodation letter from the Disability Resources office, we encourage you to discuss your accommodations and needs with us as early in the semester as possible. We will work with you to ensure that accommodations are provided as appropriate. If you suspect that you may have a disability and would benefit from accommodations but are not yet registered with the Office of Disability Resources, we encourage you to contact them at access@andrew.cmu.edu.
Take care of yourself. Do your best to maintain a healthy lifestyle this semester by eating well, exercising, avoiding drugs and alcohol, getting enough sleep and taking some time to relax. This will help you achieve your goals and cope with stress.
All of us benefit from support during times of struggle. There are many helpful resources available on campus and an important part of the college experience is learning how to ask for help. Asking for support sooner rather than later is almost always helpful.
If you or anyone you know experiences any academic stress, difficult life events, or feelings like anxiety or depression, we strongly encourage you to seek support. Counseling and Psychological Services (CaPS) is here to help: call 412-268-2922 and visit their website at http://www.cmu.edu/counseling/. Consider reaching out to a friend, faculty or family member you trust for help getting connected to the support that can help.
If you or someone you know is feeling suicidal or in danger of self-harm, call someone immediately, day or night:
CaPS: 412-268-2922
Re:solve Crisis Network: 888-796-8226
If the situation is life threatening, call the police
On campus: CMU Police: 412-268-2323
Off campus: 911
(The schedule will be continually updated as the semester evolves, check back for updates!)
Please check the Schedule page!