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Thursday, October 29, 2015

Improving Risk-Cost-Benefit Analysis

The effects of new technologies and discoveries - from nuclear power to medical treatments - often must be inferred long before they are experienced, forcing policymakers to rely on risk, cost and benefit analyses when deciding whether to use them.Baruch Fischhoff critically examines these analytical methods, considering how they should be used and how they can be abused.
Tuesday, October 27, 2015

Mental Maps: Route-Learning Changes Brain Tissue

Fifteen years ago, a study showed that London cab drivers had enlarged brains. CMU's Tim Keller and Marcel Just have determined that detailed navigation information causes hippocampal changes. This finding establishes a critical link between structural and functional brain changes during learning.
Tuesday, October 27, 2015

Recap: I Never Learned To Spell “Successful”

Alumnus Javier Soltero, the corporate vice president of Outlook Program Management at Microsoft, returned to campus for a talk titled "I Never Learned To Spell 'Successful.''Watch the lecture, view photos and more.
30 Years of Philosophy at CMU
Monday, October 26, 2015

30 Years of Philosophy at CMU

The year was 1985, and three philosophers were asked to establish a Department of Philosophy at Carnegie Mellon University. As current Department Head David Danks recalled, then-CMU President Richard M. Cyert told Clark Glymour, Teddy Seidenfeld and Wilfried Sieg: Whatever the department becomes, make sure you are the best in the world at what you doFast-forward to 2015, and it's safe to say, "Mission accomplished." Save
Memorial for Hilary Masters
Friday, October 23, 2015

Memorial for Hilary Masters

Hilary Masters, an acclaimed writer and beloved professor at Carnegie Mellon University, passed away over the summer at age 87.To honor Masters' life and work, the English Department held a memorial service in October. Watch a video, view photos, learn about a special scholarship fund and more.
Celebrating World Statistics Day With Pizza and Puns
Tuesday, October 20, 2015

Celebrating World Statistics Day With Pizza and Puns

Tuesday, October 20 was World Statistics Day, and the Department of Statistics celebrated with a pizza party for faculty, staff and students. Guests were encouraged to share statistics-themed desserts, with prizes for the tastiest treats and the most clever statistics puns.
Innovating Foreign Language Education
Tuesday, October 20, 2015

Innovating Foreign Language Education

Whether it is for travel, career opportunities or personal growth, speaking a foreign language and understanding other cultures have become incredibly valuable skills. Often though, the time and commitment necessary to fully learn a second or third language can be a challenge.
NSA Director To Discuss Cybersecurity at CMU
Tuesday, October 20, 2015

NSA Director To Discuss Cybersecurity at CMU

Admiral Mike Rogers, commander of U.S. Cyber Command and director of the National Security Agency (NSA), will discuss cybersecurity issues at Carnegie Mellon University.
Executive Producer of “The 100” Skypes Into Philosophy Class
Thursday, October 15, 2015

Executive Producer of “The 100” Skypes Into Philosophy Class

When Rothenberg found out that CMU was offering a class on the philosophical questions the show raises, he immediately said he wanted to participate.
Six Degrees of Francis Bacon Launches
Wednesday, October 14, 2015

Six Degrees of Francis Bacon Launches

CMU and Georgetown University have created "Six Degrees of Francis Bacon," a groundbreaking digital humanities project that recreates the British early modern social network to trace the personal relationships among figures like Bacon, Shakespeare, Isaac Newton and many others. The website lets academics, students and anyone else interested in this period view and add to the network. The site currently identifies more than 13,000 individuals and highlights approximately 200,000 relationships.
Deliberative Democracy in Cuba
Monday, October 12, 2015

Deliberative Democracy in Cuba

After more than half a century, the United States and Cuba are on a path toward normalizing diplomatic relations. Two CMU professors from the Departments of Modern Languages and Philosophy are helping Cuban citizens prepare for what might eventually happen while a CMU alumnus of Cuban descent learns with his own eyes what might have been.
Are You Ready For Some Football?
Friday, October 09, 2015

Are You Ready For Some Football?

In his new book, Adam Lazarus (DC'06) goes behind the scenes of the legendary Super Bowl champion Washington Redskins teams during former coach Joe Gibbs' era in the 1980s and early 1990s. Lazarus' "Hail to the Redskins" looks into Gibb's career from a fresh perspective.
Difficulty Processing Speech May Be an Effect of Dyslexia, Not a Cause
Thursday, October 08, 2015

Difficulty Processing Speech May Be an Effect of Dyslexia, Not a Cause

The cognitive skills used to learn how to ride a bike may be the key to a more accurate understanding of developmental dyslexia. And, they may lead to improved interventions.CMU scientists investigated how procedural learning - how we acquire skills and habits such as riding a bike - impacts how individuals with dyslexia learn speech sound categories. They found that learning complex auditory categories through procedural learning is impaired in dyslexia.
MSCF Program Earns #1 Ranking - Again
Tuesday, October 06, 2015

MSCF Program Earns #1 Ranking - Again

For the third time, CMU's Master of Science in Computational Finance (MSCF) Program was awarded the top position in the QuantNet rankings of financial engineering programs.MSCF is a joint program between the Tepper School of Business, the Mathematical Sciences Department, the Department of Statistics and the Heinz College.
Italian Instructor Celebrates 40 Years of Service
Tuesday, October 06, 2015

Italian Instructor Celebrates 40 Years of Service

Giovanni Puppo was honored at CMU's Andy Awards for 40 years of service. He was one of just three individuals to reach this remarkable milestone in 2015.
This Guy: Alumnus Tommy Oliver
Friday, October 02, 2015

This Guy: Alumnus Tommy Oliver

Oliver, a double economics and digital media major, is now a major Hollywood producer. His latest movie is "The Perfect Guy" and is about how one woman's interest in a charming man evolves into fear.
Training by Repetition Actually Prevents Learning for Those With Autism
Friday, October 02, 2015

Training by Repetition Actually Prevents Learning for Those With Autism

Individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) sometimes acquire a new behavior or skill only in a specific context, but they have difficulty transferring that learned skill or information to a new context. A new study published in Nature Neuroscience shows that training individuals with ASD to acquire new information by repeating the information actually harms their ability to apply that learned knowledge to other situations. This finding challenges the popular educational approaches designed for ASD individuals that focus on repetition and drills.
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