July 2018 – AI Matters

ACM Code of Ethics and USACM’s New Name

ACM Code of Ethics
Please note the message from ACM Headquarters and check the link below: “On Tuesday, July 17, ACM plans to announce the updated Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct. We would like your support in helping to reach as broad an audience of computing professionals as possible with this news. When the updated Code goes live at 10 a.m. EDT on July 17, it will be hosted at https://www.acm.org/code-of-ethics.
We encourage you to share the updated Code with your friends and colleagues at that time. If you use social media, please take part in the conversation around computing ethics using the hashtags #ACMCodeOfEthics and #IReadTheCode. And if you are not doing so already, please follow the @TheOfficialACM and @ACM_Ethics Twitter handles to share and engage with posts about the Code. ACM also plans to host a Reddit AMA and Twitter chats on computing ethics in the weeks following this announcement. We will reach out to you again regarding these events when their details have been solidified.
Thank you in advance for helping to support and increase awareness of the ACM Code of Ethics and for promoting ethical conduct among computing professionals around the world.”

News From the ACM US Technology Policy Committee
The USACM has a new name. Please note the change and remember that SIGAI will continue to have a close relationship with the ACM US Technology Policy Committee. Here is a reminder of the purpose and goals: “The ACM US Technology Policy Committee is a leading independent and nonpartisan voice in addressing US public policy issues related to computing and information technology. The Committee regularly educates and informs Congress, the Administration, and the courts about significant developments in the computing field and how those developments affect public policy in the United States. The Committee provides guidance and expertise in varied areas, including algorithmic accountability, artificial intelligence, big data and analytics, privacy, security, accessibility, digital governance, intellectual property, voting systems, and tech law. As the internet is global, the ACM US Technology Policy Committee works with the other ACM policy entities on publications and projects related to cross-border issues, such as cybersecurity, encryption, cloud computing, the Internet of Things, and internet governance.”

The ACM US Technology Policy Committee’s New Leadership
ACM has named Prof. Jim Hendler as the new Chair of the ACM U.S. Technology Policy Committee (formerly USACM) under the new ACM Technology Policy Council. In addition to being a distinguished computer science professor at RPI, Jim has long been an active USACM member and has served as both a committee chair and as an at-large representative. This is a great choice to guide USACM into the future within ACM’s new technology policy structure. Please add individually to the SIGAI Public Policy congratulations to Jim. Our congratulations and appreciation go to outgoing Chair Stuart Shapiro for his outstanding leadership of USACM.

AI’s Role in Cancer Research

Guest Post by Anna Suarez

It’s no secret the general public has mixed views about artificial intelligence, largely stemming from a misunderstanding of the topic. In the public’s mind, AI tends to be equated to the creation of nearly lifelike robots and, although sometimes it is, there is much more to the rapidly-advancing technology.

In today’s society AI is playing an everyday role in the lives of most people, ranging from ride-hailing apps like Uber and Lyft to Facebook’s facial recognition, but the technology is constantly advancing. For example, Google’s new AI assistantis revolutionizing the way people go about their daily tasks, and recent advancements made possible by AI in healthcare are changing the way cancer research is approached.

Although the term “AI” dates back to the mid-1950s, it has become so sophisticated in recent years that a cure for cancer could be around the corner. Vice President Joe Biden’s Cancer Moonshot Initiative aims to find a cure for cancer and provide patients with more treatment options using AI technology to process and sort data from cancer researchers. In an attempt to reach its mission of driving 10 years’ worth of research in only five, AI is also being used to detect certain cancers earlier than what’s possible using other currently available diagnostic procedures.

The ability to diagnose certain cancers, including brain cancer, skin cancer and mesothelioma, through the use of this technology is, arguably, one of the most important advancements in healthcare as a result of AI. This is especially groundbreaking for patients battling mesothelioma , a rare cancer that develops in the mesotheliumof the lungs, heart or abdomen. Mesothelioma has a decades-long latency period and symptoms are often mistaken for those associated with more common ailments. Unfortunately, the disease has an average prognosis of 6-12 months and leaves patients with little time to coordinate treatment. Ultimately, the earlier detection and diagnosis of cancers may lead to better prognoses and outcomes.s

Using AI, the cloud and other tools, companies like IBM and Microsoft are attempting to change the way healthcare is approached. Following its creation in 2013, IBM’s supercomputer, Watson, successfully won $1 million in a game of Jeopardy!against two of the show’s most successful contestants, and is making attempts to streamline the process of diagnosing diseases in patients more efficiently.

Although IBM Watson hasn’t made as much progress as anticipated, the technology was proven capable during a 2017 study. The research monitored the amount of time it took Watson to create a treatment plan versus the amount of time it took doctors. The results showed that Watson was able to create a plan of treatment for a brain cancer patient in 10 minutes, while the process took between 160 hours for doctors.

However, the study wasn’t a complete win for Watson. Comparatively, Watson’s suggested plan of action was short sighted due to an inefficiency to consider multiple treatment options. While doctors were able to consider several possibilities at once, Watson could not.

Healthcare NExT, Microsoft’s internal initiative announced in 2017, is also focusing on using technology to find solutions to questions in the healthcare industry, including a cure for cancer.

In a Microsoft blog post about Healthcare NExT, Peter Lee, Corporate Vice President of Microsoft AI + Research says, Microsoft is “expanding [its] commitment to building a healthier future with new initiatives and solutions, making it easier for health industry partners and organizations to use intelligent technology to improve the lives of people around the world.”

Technology has changed dramatically within the past decade. Newly-developed diagnostic methods and an advanced approach to healthcare that we could have only dreamed of in the past are changing the way we see the world today. Although machines are still learning and there is a lot of room to improve, the work that’s been done in such a short period of time is nothing short of incredible.

Are we closer to a cure for cancer than even we know?

Resources:

https://www.forbes.com/sites/zarastone/2017/11/07/everything-you-need-to-know-about-sophia-the-worlds-first-robot-citizen/#74e645b846fa

https://www.theverge.com/2018/5/8/17332070/google-assistant-makes-phone-call-demo-duplex-io-2018

https://www.maacenter.org/mesothelioma/

https://spectrum.ieee.org/the-human-os/biomedical/diagnostics/ibm-watson-makes-treatment-plan-for-brain-cancer-patient-in-10-minutes-doctors-take-160-hours

https://blogs.microsoft.com/blog/2017/02/16/microsoft-partners-combine-cloud-ai-research-industry-expertise-focus-transforming-health-care/

White House OSTP Petition

USACM and the Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC) have teamed up to petition the White House’s Office of Science and Technology Policy to construct and publicize a formal process by which the public might have input into the work of the recently-named Select Committee on Artificial Intelligence. Several associations and currently about 75 individual professionals, many ACM members, have signed on to the letter. You may have received an email message abut this recently from SIGAI.

The petition states that “The undersigned technical experts, legal scholars, and affiliated organizations formally request that the Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) undertake a Request for Information (RFI) and solicit public comments so as to encourage meaningful public participation in the development of the nation s policy for Artificial Intelligence. This request follows from the recent establishment of a Select Committee on Artificial Intelligence and a similar OSTP RFI that occurred in 2016.”

Any technical expert with a relevant background, irrespective of ACM affiliation, who is interested in signing the letter should e-mail Jeramie Scott <jscott@epic.org> and Adam Eisgrau <eisgrau@hq.acm.org> as soon as possible. A goal is to have 100 individual signers on the letter, and the organizers hope to send the petition to the White House shortly after the July 4th holiday. If you would like to be added to the letter, send your information providing your name, title, and what school, company, or other affiliation (for ID purposes only) that you would like listed.