Brown CS News

Category – Socially Responsible Computing

Malte Schwarzkopf Wins An NSF CAREER Award For Privacy-Compliant Web Services By Construction

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"Today's web services" says Professor Malte Schwarzkopf of Brown CS, "often store and process sensitive personal data without sufficient attention to data privacy. Privacy laws like the European Union's General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA), and the proposed United States Consumer Data Privacy Act (CDPA) and Consumer Online Privacy …

An Alum-Led Nonprofit Donates Monitors To Providence Teachers And Honors Andy van Dam

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by Kevin Stacey (Senior Writer, Physical Sciences) Thanks to a nonprofit founded by a Brown graduate and alums affiliated with the University’s computer science department, more than 400 public school teachers in Providence will soon get a second computer monitor to help with remote instruction during the COVID-19 pandemic. The donation …

A New Brown CS Program: Researching Socially-Responsible AI With Students From HUGs

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At Brown CS and around the globe, interest in AI and related topics is soaring. CSCI 1470 Deep Learning, only a few years old, today has an enrollment of over 350 students, the department's second largest. But as computer scientists hope to expand the field to historically underrepresented groups (HUGs), students from …

Brown CS PhD Students Help Underrepresented Candidates Apply To CS PhD Programs

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Applying to a doctoral program can be challenging for anyone, and for applicants from historically underrepresented groups (HUGs) who may not have adequate access to research experiences or mentors, it can be especially daunting. It’s thought to be a considerable contributor to the lack of diversity in computer science departments …

Brown CS Alum Brian Christian's Third Book Addresses Machine Learning And Human Values

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In his newly-released third book, The Alignment Problem, Brown CS alum Brian Christian returns to the intersection of computer science with human ethics and thought. Already winning praise from experts such as Cathy O'Neil, author of Weapons of Math Destruction, it focuses on the consequences of allowing machine learning systems an increasing power to …

Seny Kamara Provides Data Security Testimony To Congress

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Last week, Professor Seny Kamara of Brown CS testified at a Congressional hearing ("Banking on Your Data: The Role of Big Data in Financial Services"), explaining that cryptography solutions to improve consumer financial health can be implemented without endangering privacy. Invited by the U.S. House Financial Services Committee Task Force on Financial Technology, Seny was …

Brown CS Makes Responsible Computer Science An Integral Part Of Its Undergraduate Program

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Computer science that benefits humanity, science that’s grounded in an awareness of its societal impact, has long been a Brown CS hallmark. Today, more than forty years after the founding of the department, global concern about the ethical and societal issues surrounding computing is greater than ever. This semester brings …