Artificial Intelligence - The Very Idea
|
Course Descripton
Course Staff
This fall 2024 offering of the introductory Gen Ed AI course is taught by Professor Vasant Honavar.
Course Schedule
Lectures: Mon, Wed 4:00pm - 5:15pm, Engineering Design and Innovation, Room 225
Office Hours:
Instructor: Dr. Vasant Honavar: Tue, Thu 4:00pm - 5:00pm. E335 Westgate Building
.
Learning Assistant: Apoorv Thite Mon, Wed 3:00pm - 4:00pm.;
Course Prerequisites
No prior technical knowledge is necessary. Besides basic analytical abilities and written and oral communication skills, only curiosity and willingness to explore are needed to take this course.
The assignments will require reflection, critical thinking, and effective communication.
Artificial Intelligence (AI) technologies that are increasingly powerful and ubiquitous are transforming all aspects of our lives – from how we work to how we make sense of the world around us to how we extract knowledge from data to how we diagnose and treat diseases to how we learn to how we interact with others to how we create works of art. To successfully thrive in a world being transformed by AI and to engage meaningfully in helping shape highly consequential societal policies and regulations around AI, every citizen needs a basic understanding AI, its benefits as well as its potential for harm. This course is designed to provide such an accessible understanding of AI.
Course Overview
Artificial Intelligence: The Very Idea” will cover key concepts needed to understand recent AI advances, as well as the ethical and societal implications of AI technologies. Students will acquire general AI literacy, including:
- Intellectual roots of AI
- Disparate goals of AI
- Many types of AI and their applications
- The risks and benefits of AI technologies
- The societal impacts of AI technologies
- How to tell AI science from science fiction
Upon completion of this course, students will be able to:
- Discuss the core intellectual foundations of AI
- Demonstrate an understanding of different types of AI capabilities
- Discuss applications of AI across different areas of human endeavor
- Articulate the benefits of AI
- Discuss the societal impacts of AI
- Articulate the ethical considerations around AI applications
- Distinguish AI science from science fiction
- Effectively communicate about AI with diverse audiences
Target Audience
This course is targeted primarily to beginning undergraduate students across the university, regardless of their major, interested in gaining a basic understanding of AI. The course should be of interest to students majoring in Physical Sciences, Life Sciences, Health Sciences, Social Sciences, Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Learning Sciences, Material Sciences, Environmental Sciences, Agricultural Sciences, Business, Public Policy, Liberal Arts, Humanities, and other disciplines. The instructor welcomes students with a broad range of disciplinary backgrounds and interests.
|
