About the series
The Directorate for Biological Sciences (BIO) and the Division of Biological Infrastructure (DBI), along with the Directorate for Computer and Information Science and Engineering (CISE), hosted a Distinguished Lecture from Tanya Berger-Wolf, Professor of Computer Science Engineering, Electrical and Computer Engineering, and Evolution, Ecology, and Organismal Biology at the Ohio State University.
A recording of the lecture is linked below. Please note there was an interruption to the lecture due to a building evacuation (as noted in the recording) so the presentation is not seamless.
AI for Nature: From Science to Impact
Abstract
Computation has fundamentally changed the way we study nature. New data collection technology, such as GPS, high-definition cameras, UAVs, genotyping, and crowdsourcing, are generating data about wild populations that are orders of magnitude richer than any previously collected. AI can turn these data into high resolution information source about living organisms, enabling scientific inquiry, conservation, and policy decisions.
The talk will introduce a new field of science, imageomics, and present a vision and examples of AI as a trustworthy partner both in science and biodiversity conservation, discussing opportunities and challenges.
*The work presented has been in large part supported by NSF over the last 20 years, including most recently the Imageomics Institute (NSF-2118240) and the AI and Biodiversity Change Global Climate Center (NSF-2330423).
About Tanya Berger-Wolf
Dr. Tanya Berger-Wolf is a Professor of Computer Science Engineering, Electrical and Computer Engineering, and Evolution, Ecology, and Organismal Biology at the Ohio State University, where she is also the Director of the Translational Data Analytics Institute. As a computational ecologist, her research is at the unique intersection of computer science, AI, wildlife biology, and social sciences.
Berger-Wolf is a member of the US National Academies Board on Life Sciences, US National Committee for the International Union of Biological Sciences (IUBS), and the Advisory Committee for the Global Partnership on AI (GPAI) AI on Biodiversity working group, among many others.
Berger-Wolf is also a co-founder of the AI for conservation non-profit Wild Me (now part of the Conservation X Labs), home of the Wildbook project, which has been chosen by UNSECO as one of the 100 AI projects worldwide supporting the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
