Can artificial intelligence (AI) be manipulated to do the opposite of what it was designed to do? That’s the goal of adversarial learning , a discipline that explores both the vulnerabilities of AI models and how to defend against them. From bypassing a spam filter to evading facial recognition, examples abound. But what are these attacks targeting […] … learn more→

Title of course: “STEM & Social Impact: Climate Change” What prompted the idea for the course? Harvey Mudd College’s mission is to educate STEM students – short for science, technology, engineering and math – so they have a “clear understanding of the impact of their work on society.” But the “impact” part of our mission has […] … learn more→

The digital sector represents 4.4% of France’s carbon footprint: this is the figure revealed in the latest opinion from the Agency for Ecological Transition (ADEME), published on January 9. It thus revises upwards the 2018 estimate of 2.5%, which did not take into account data centers located outside the country and which fuel the digital uses of […] … learn more→

One of the unfortunate legacies that my generation, gen X, has passed on to the millennials and gen Z, is the idea that therapy has no side effects. However, just like many other medical treatments, there can be negative effects. For example, in some cases psychotherapy can be linked with a worsening of psychiatric symptoms, increased anxiety and false memories. My team’s recent paper investigated the […] … learn more→

Consent education has been mandatory in Australian schools since 2023. Amid growing public understanding we need to reduce sexual violence and teach young people about healthy relationships, consent is now part of the national curriculum until Year 10. But is this education working? Our research with teens suggest some young people are not coming away with an adequate understanding of consent […] … learn more→

Whether you are a student or a parent, at school or university, a child or an adult, you have probably already experienced this frustrating situation: hours of intense revision followed by an inexplicable blackout on the day of the exam. This (discouraging) experience is not inevitable. Your brain is not failing, it may just be […] … learn more→

It is rare to see a newly published book that doesn’t come with a ringing endorsement from at least one or two familiar names. Well known authors will laud a new title as “brilliant”, “moving” or “thought-provoking” and testify that they were “unable to put it down” – or something to that effect. These “blurbs” […] … learn more→

Lately I’ve been hearing from pissed off PhD students – both people enrolled at my university and others. The cost of living is high, higher education in Australia is in crisis and people, understandably, want Out. Heaps of later stage students are landing nearly finished manuscripts on their supervisors’ desks. Sadly, their supervisors don’t seem […] … learn more→

CES 2025 highlighted AI-powered virtual companions, marking a major shift in human-machine interactions. These digital entities, capable of fluid conversations and simulating emotional relationships, are redefining the boundaries between the real and the virtual. These innovations offer promising prospects, particularly in the fight against loneliness and social isolation. However, the rise of these technologies raises […] … learn more→

Since the launch of ChatGPT in November 2022, the use of artificial intelligence (AI) chatbots has become rampant among students in higher education. While some might be ambivalent about the impact of generative AI on higher education, many instructors in the humanities scramble to adapt their classes to the new reality and have declared a crisis of their teaching model. Professors and students alike […] … learn more→