Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the 21st century: opportunities and threats

The aim of artificial intelligence (AI) spans across various domains, including healthcare, technology, education, industry, cyber security.

Possible perspectives and sub-themes

AI in Education, Learning and Development

…."The year of 1954..Prof. dr. A. Smith walks in the class caring the heavy load of papers under his arm. For the last two weeks, he was reading and assessing the content of the papers handed by his 120 students…. Going through some of the papers, Prof. dr. A. Smith felt that the content in there had been re-written from handbooks or other students papers', but he had no sure way of ascertaining from where the student had copied the content materials….

Meanwhile....in 2024, Prof. dr. A. Smith junior now walks into a class, barely carrying any papers, but having read, flagged incidents of plagiarism for disciplinary action, and graded papers for an even larger number of students. Sometimes, when he is off campus, he can dial-in or video conference into the class and can still perform his duties and responsibilities leveraging technology.

AI initially took the form of computer and computer related technologies, transitioning to web-based and online intelligent education systems, and ultimately with the use of embedded computer systems, together with other technologies, the use of humanoid robots and web-based chatbots to perform instructors' duties and functions independently or with instructors.

Hint…Projects "AI in education" may cover research on adaptive learning, assistive technology, early childhood education, data and learning analytics, scheduling, facilities management, overall school management, writing and etc.

AI in Healthcare and Human Resources

In the context of healthcare, the aim of AI is to revolutionize medical diagnosis, treatment, and patient care (Myszczynska et al., 2020). AI plays a substantial role in many domains, including medical fields, with the potential to advance healthcare through AI-driven innovations. AI has been applied to the diagnosis and treatment of neurodegenerative diseases, aligning with the aim to improve disease management through machine learning and AI technologies (Boillat et al., 2022). In the medical field, AI aims to enhance clinical decision-making, as evidenced by the readiness to embrace AI among medical doctors and students, particularly in the classification of medical images such as x-rays.

Hint… Projects "AI in healthcare" may cover research on AI-assissted robotic surgery, preliminary diagnosis, virtual nursing assistants, connected medical devices, prescription error recognition, administrative workflow, and etc.

AI in Engineering and Innovation Management

Machine Learning, or ML, focuses on developing algorithms that allow systems to learn from data and improve their performance over time without explicit programming. ML can perform tasks like predictive maintenance, optimization, and automation, freeing up the engineer's time for creative problem-solving. Data analytics involves analyzing vast amounts of data. AI-driven data analytics tools help engineers streamline tasks such as predictive modeling, risk assessment, and performance optimization. Like many other subfields of engineering, employers look for specific skills in potential AI-related job candidates, even those with extensive engineering experience.

Hint… Projects "AI in Engineering" may cover research on predictive maintenance, autonomous systems, robotics automation, career and skills in AI-driven engineering, and etc.

AI in Creative Industry and Entrepreneurship

Human creativity is deeply rooted in emotional depth, cultural context, and subjective experiences, aspects that AI does not inherently possess. AI operates through learned data and patterns, offering a computational approach to creativity. The technology is enhancing the way designers understand and cater to user needs by analyzing user interactions and behaviors.

AI's impact on graphic design is equally transformative. It's not just automating repetitive tasks; it's offering new ways to explore creativity with tools can suggest color palettes, fonts, and layouts. For example, independent filmmakers can use AI for special effects and editing, reducing the cost and complexity of production.

Hint… Projects "AI in Creative Industries" may cover research on music composition and production, films making, photography and media, visual art, creating design and illustration, automated content generation, graphic design and branding, and etc.

AI in Cyber Security and Risk Management

AI powered cybersecurity can monitor, analyze detect, and respond to cyber threats in real time. As AI algorithms analyze massive amounts of data to detect patterns that are indicative of a cyber threat, it can also scan the entire network for weaknesses to prevent common kinds of cyber attacks. AI primarily monitors and analyzes behavior patterns. Using these patterns to create a baseline, AI can detect unusual behaviors and restrict unauthorized access to systems. AI can also help to prioritize risk, instantly detect the possibility of malware and intrusions before they begin.

Hint… Projects "AI in Cyber Security" may cover research on threat hunting and threat intelligence, cyber criminality, cyber attacks, benefits from AI in cyber security, career in AI-based cyber security.

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