IDSC 3001 Topics 13 and 14

Lateral Inhibition

Retinal Ganglia are organized to see contrast - gives extra attention to edges

Four Problems for the Human Brain

1. How to process the massive amount of sensory input data the brain receives every moment

2. How to categorize and structure information for fast and accurate retrieval

3. How to act fast!

4. The struggle to find meaning (even if it's not there)

Bias

evolution's solution to the problems of the brain

- Over 180 different types of Cognitive ____ have been identified

Survival Deviation

focusing on things that survived, when you should be focused on the exact opposite.

- Ex: Allies planning to reinforce spots on planes with many bullet holes. They should have been reinforcing everything else, because planes hit there did not return

Heuristics

the way humans use bias, tendencies, and shortcuts to make decisions. Understanding these shortcuts can aid indesign.

- _________ Design can apply to physical product design, store layout, point of sale/kiosk devices, website design, etc.

Gestalt Principles (Visual Optimization)

humans are looking for patterns, logic, form, and structure. Meeting these needs can create more effective designs.

- Good Figure

- Similarity

- Closure

- Proximity

- Continuation

- Symmetry

Good Figure (Gestalt Principle)

humans tend to simplify. Items grouped together are perceived as a single object.

Similarity (Gestalt Principle)

similar objects (shape, size, color) are grouped together.

Closure (Gestalt Principle)

humans will connect elements with a gap, even if they don't touch.

Proximity (Gestalt Principle)

elements will be grouped together based on how close they are to other elements.

Continuation (Gestalt Principle)

intersecting objects are perceived as a single object.

Symmetry (Gestalt Principle)

groupings of objects are perceived to be shapes formed around their center.

Choice Architecture (Heuristics)

- Availability

- Social Proof

- Endowed Progress Effect

- Anchoring

- Scarcity

- Framing

- Priming

Availability (Choice Architecture)

we use whatever information is easily accessible to create judgements.

Social Proof (Choice Architecture)

recommendations and ratings work

Endowed Progress Effect (Choice Architecture)

- Ex: a loyalty card that starts with two free stamps in a buy ten get one free program.

Anchoring (Choice Architecture)

25% off might induce us to buy aproduct, even when the similar product next to it isthe same price

Scarcity (Choice Architecture)

- Ex: "only two tickets remain at this price"

Framing (Choice Architecture)

price, color, and other attributes may affect our perception of quality, value, etc.

Priming (Choice Architecture)

- Ex: If you see the word hand in front of fis_, your brain will fill in the word "fist." If you saw swim, your brain would fill in "fish."

Skinner Box

In the 1930's, B.F. Skinner created the Operant Conditioning Chamber, also known as the _______ ___. He found that random rewards were more effective than consistent rewards.

- This led to the discovery that it's the anticipation of a reward, not the reward itself that triggers the brain (e.g.,releases Dopamine).

- An example of gamification

Loot Boxes

rewards with random values. Use incentives, randomness, scarcity (limited time), and collections (need for completion)

- An example of gamification

- Combined with other Human Bias such as Loss Aversion, Gambler's Fallacy, Sunk Cost Fallacy, and Illusion of Control can create powerful motivation - similar to gambling addition

Gamification

certain Human Biases magnify the effect of random rewards:

- Loss Aversion

- Gambler's Fallacy

- Sunk Cost Fallacy

- Illusion of Control

Loss Aversion

losses are as much as twice as powerful, psychologically, as gains.

Gambler's Fallacy

belief that an event is more or less likely, given aprevious series of events.

Sunk Cost Fallacy

believing that prior investments justify further expenditures.

Illusion of Control

tendency for people to overestimate their ability to influence outcomes.

Statistical Bias

Sampling error, Improper techniques, etc.

Conflicts of Interest

Funding bias, regulatory issues, favoritism, etc.

Contextual Bias

Media bias, Academic bias, etc.

Prejudices

Racism, sexism, classism, etc.

Technology's Bias Dichotomy

- Technology can be used to reduce Human Bias (proper use of data, statistics, and machine learning can avoid many types of Human Bias)

- Technology can propagate and inadvertently scale Bias (baked bias in data, models, algorithms can magnify and scale issues such as favoritism, racism, sexism, andother prejudices)

Prompt-Injextion

compromising generated AI by entering prompts that cause it to behave in unintended ways.

Data Poisoning

deliberately feeding incorrect data to an AI so that it generates incorrect results

Examples of Algorithmic Bias

- Online recruitment tools (i.e. Amazon gender ____ against women)

- Word associations (i.e. associating females with art and not science)

- Online ads (online searches showing arrest record ads and higher interest credit cards to non-white groups)

- Facial recognition tech (i.e. failing to recognize darker-skinned people due to skewed training data)

Areas Where Bias Can Occur

- Data collection

- Data organization

- Data enrichment

- Hypothesis

- Data selection

- Model selection

- Algorithm selection

- Conclusions

Debiasing

preventing and eliminating bias using experimental design tools

- Subject matter experts with context understanding of data

- Trained Data Scientist with a deep understanding of bias - Properly Designed Randomized Experimentation

- Using Placebo

- Testing with unique live data (A/B testing, Multivariate testing)

- Peer reviews

- Confirmed with multiple, independent research projects

Tools to Eliminate Bias

good experiment design:

- Scientific Control

- Experimental Design/Research Design

- Positive Controls - compared to well-established test

- Negative Controls - e.g., Placebo

- Randomization

- Statistical Replication

- Blind

- Double Blind

Ethics of Behavioral Design

- Supporting consumers' goals

- Empathy in design

- Transparency

- Alignment with social good

- Moral autonomy

- Individual human agency

E-Waste

Discarded, often obsolete technology. A global ecological issue

- Raises concerns about: air/water/soil pollution, information security, human exploitation

- Consumers have a role in the increase of _-_____.But manufacturers have given people fewer ways to keep older electronics functioning effectively.

- Computer, tablets, mobile phones contain lead and a cocktail of chemicals including antimony, arsenic, boron, phosphor, nitric acid, hydrofluoric acid, and hydrogen fluoride to name a few.

- Main issues: high volumes, toxicity, poor design and complexity, labor issues, financial incentives, lack of regulation

Green IT

Using computing resources in ways that help reduce energy and operating costs and reduce environmental impact. The manufacture, use and disposal of technology hardware in a way that minimizes damage to the environment.

- Ex: Energy Star Program - standards for computers & servers

- Right to Repair - Proposed legislation & Apple Reversal

Basel Action Network (BAN) e-Stewards Program

certifies firms for proper disposal via a third-party audit

- Firms certified as ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 compliant attest to quality management and environmental processes.

International Association of Electronics Recyclers (IAER)

offers audited electronics recycler certification

- Firms certified as ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 compliant attest to quality management and environmental processes.

Microprocessor

part of the computer that executes the instructions of a computer program.

Random Access Memory (RAM)

The fast, chip-based volatile storage in a computing device.

Flash Memory

Nonvolatile, chip-based storage

Optical Fiber Line

High-speed glass or plastic-lined networking cable used in telecommunications.

Volatile Memory

Storage that is wiped clean when power is cut off from a device.

Nonvolatile Memory

Storage that retains data even when powered down.

Internet of Things (IoT)

a vision where low-cost sensors, processors, and communication are embedded into a wide array of products and our environment, allowing a vast network to collect data, analyze input, and automatically coordinate collective action.

Multi-Core Processor

Contain 2 or more calculating processor cores on the same piece of silicon.

- Outperform a single speedy chip, while running cooler and drawing less power.

- Now mainstream, and today nearly all smartphones, PCs, and laptops sold have _________ _____.

- Can run older software written for single-brain chips by using only one core at a time.

Moore's Law

chip performance per dollar doubles every 18 months.• It isn't really a law—it is an observation that led to a prediction of future events based on past outcomes.

- Applies to chips: Processors, Chip-based storage

"Fab"

semiconductor fabrication facilities

Solid State Electronics

Semiconductor-based devices.

Solid State Drive (SSD)

a chip-based, nonvolatile storage device

Semiconductor

A substance such as silicon dioxide used inside most computer chips that is capable of enabling and inhibiting the flow of electricity.

Price Elasticity

Rate at which the demand for a product or service fluctuates with price change.

- Goods and services that are highly _____ _______ (e.g., most consumer electronics) see demand spike as prices drop, whereas goods and services that are less _____ _______ are less responsive to price change (think heart surgery).x

Microcontroller

special-purpose computing devices that don't have an operating system and can't do as much as general purpose computers or smartphones.

- Most contain a processor, memory and input/output(I/O) peripherals on a single chip.

- Some refer to these new devices as the IoT

Bits

computers express data as either a 1 or a 0.

Byte

8 bits, 1 character

Kilobyte

Roughly 1000 bytes, or 1000 characters

Megabyte

1 million bytes

Gigabyte

1 billion bytes

Terabyte

1 trillion bytes

Petabyte

1 quadrillion bytes

Exabyte

1 quintillion bytes

Bandwidth

telecommunication capacity

- Often measured in bits per second (bps)

Silicon Wafer

thin, circular slice of material used to create semiconductor device

Red Teaming

a term, taken from the military, where a trained team, unaffiliated with development staff, play the role of adversaries and try to deliberately compromise systems. Reports are then shared with IS staff so that systems can be hardened, or secured against attack and misuse.

IT Infrastructure Library (ITIL)

covers best practices for delivering IT services.

Control Objectives for Information and Related Technologies (COBIT)

A continually-evolving best-practices framework for IT governance that includes guidance on implementation, monitoring, and improving IT systems and organizations.

Emulator

A software-based interpreter that allows programs designed to run on one standard to be run on devices using a different standard. Using an ________ will be slower than executing code on the native, new standard, since this translation adds a step to accomplish before instructions can be run.

Compiler

A program that turns the code that a software developer writes into the instruction sets that a processor understands.

Latency

Delay.

- Low-_______ tasks have less delay, so they are faster

Recommended Strategies for Individuals to Address Bias

- Importance of self reflection

- Understand your bias, prejudice, & stereotypes

- Consider your bias and correct them

- Reduce your bias - diverse education, travel, interaction