After the 2020 United States presidential election, there were widespread claims that the election was unfair, insecure, and in some instances, outright stolen. This outcry put election officials under intense scrutiny, particularly those in Secretary of State offices across the country. As we approach another presidential election season, it's crucial to address the most significant election safety concerns for the 2024 presidential, Senate, and House races. This month we delve into these issues with Minnesota’s Secretary of State, Steve Simon. How does election reporting function? How will AI influence this election? Is your vote really being counted? This is a special edition of the podcast as Secretary Simon joined us for an HDSR Conversation with Leaders piece. Stay tuned for all of this and more on the Harvard Data Science Review Podcast.

Our guest:

• Steve Simon, Minnesota’s 22nd Secretary of State

This month we take some time to talk in depth about what exactly generative AI is, what it can do, and what it can’t do. In this special episode, derived from a webinar titled "Future Shock: Grappling With the Generative AI Revolution," host Xiao-Li Meng collaborates with Harvard’s Graduate School of Arts and Sciences to tackle the topic of generative AI with the help of esteemed panelists and the three co-editors of HDSR’s Future Shock special issue, Francine Berman, Ralf Herbrich, and David Leslie. Stay tuned for all of this and more on the Harvard Data Science Review Podcast.

Our guests:

• Francine Berman, Edward P. Hamilton Distinguished Professor in Computer Science at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI), and Director of Public Interest Technology and the Stuart Rice Research Professor in the College of Information and Computer Sciences at University of Massachusetts Amherst.
• Ralf Herbrich, Managing Director of Hasso Plattner Institute and Professor of Artificial Intelligence and Sustainability at the Hasso Plattner Institute and University of Potsdam.
• David Leslie, Director of Ethics and Responsible Innovation Research at The Alan Turing Institute, and Professor of Ethics, Technology and Society at Queen Mary University of London.

Teaching the next generation of scholars has never been an easy task, but the recent boom of generative AI has introduced a new set of problems and opportunities for educators at all levels. This month we sit down with two experts and discuss the challenges and possibilities generative AI platforms pose for the education system. Are students becoming too reliant on technology? Will this reliance impact their critical thinking skills? How will generative AI platforms shape our students in the future? ChatGTP has raised fears of cheating on homework, but can its potential as an educational tool outweigh its risks? Stay tuned for all of this and more on the Harvard Data Science Review Podcast.

Our guests:

• Elizabeth Shulman, Adjunct Lecturer at the School of Education and Social Policy at Northwestern University, and English teacher at Evanston Township High School
• James Zou, Associate Professor of biomedical data science and Member of Stanford AI Lab at Stanford University