Senior Exit Project

Senior Exit Project

• Computer Science: Machine Learning and Automation
• What are the effects of advancements in automation and machine learning on employment?

Shadowing

• Mentor: David Gray of Western Design Center
• Shadowing: University of Arizona seniors in their Senior Engineering Design Project

research thesis

As machine learning capability escalates, automation has the capability to replace a significant amount of labor in the global economy, causing a potentially subversive economic disruption if not properly established through policymaking that accommodates the economic and social changes that arise from widespread automation of labor.

Research Paper

• The computer as a general purpose technology has brought on fears of rapid change, with an estimated capability to automate a large number of jobs
• Capabilities of machine learning and advancements in computing technology have the capacity to be useful in a variety of different spheres of everyday life

RESEARCH PAPER

• General purpose technologies and large technological shifts of the past are often held to be economically disruptive

Findings

• General purpose technologies of the past (e.g. steam power, electricity, and internal combustion engines) immensely reduced labor costs and increased efficiency
• Extreme labor displacement has been caused by general purpose technologies in the past, though labor was essentially shuffled between mediums

Findings

• “In 2011, the Republic of Korea reached the highest robot density in the world. Per 10,000 employees 347 industrial robots were in operation. The reason is the continued large volume of robot installations in the recent years. The robot density in Japan increased to 339, that of Germany to 261” (“World Robotics 2012”)

Findings

• “According to our estimate, 47 percent of total US employment is in the high risk category, meaning that associated occupations are potentially automatable over some unspecified number of years, perhaps a decade” (“The future of employment: how susceptible are jobs to computerisation”)

Conclusions

• It is unlikely that the automation of a large number of jobs will be detrimental in the long run
• There is a general shift to low-skill, low-pay jobs, with manufacturing having been displaced as the largest employer
• These advances in technology do not nullify a need for humans, but amplify their individual capabilities

shadowing

Mentorship

• David Gray of Western Design Center
• UA seniors Kendall Carpenter, Luis Hernandez, Bethany Langdon, Melissa Lee, Reine Mager, and Erik Traulsen
• Group sponsored by WDC for Senior Engineering Design Program at University of Arizona College of Engineering
• Group directed by Ivar Sanders

Western Design Center's Goal

• Create a Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) for configuration in a variety of products post-manufacturing
• Explore the uses/parameters of a board
• Create a portable device that will aid individuals in assisted living through improved health monitoring

My Experience

• Witnessed the essential steps of the product development process
• Experienced the group work to rapidly prototype an idea for a product to be completed before a given deadline
• Work was delegated based on technical capability, though the computer science and electrical engineering majors had the largest workload

Takeaways

• Computer science has versatile applications thanks to the versatility of the computer as a GPT

Problem Solving

• Discover that the problem exists
• Recognize how the problem can be lessened
• Explore feasible means with which the problem can be solved

Product Development

• Problems in any project are inevitable and should be expected, what is important is how the problem is handled
• Communication is essential to successful and efficient progress
• Realistic goals prevent work overload

final takeaways

From Shadowing

• I still would greatly enjoy pursuing a career in computer science
• I enjoy the product development process and using convergent and divergent thinking to creatively solve problems
• There is a high demand for individuals in computer science, technical knowledge of electronics and computer science has a wide range of applications

Personally

• One of the most interesting parts of this project was analysis of economic systems, analyzing employment trends and their cause
• Computer science remains relevant to the pursuance of my interests in machine learning and automation

questions

thank you