By Adina Bruce, Features Editor
Each month, the YU Observer aims to highlight one club available to the YU undergraduate community. For the September issue, the YU Observer is highlighting “The Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence Club.”
Club Name: Machine Learning (ML) and Artificial Intelligence (AI) Club
Heads: Yitzy Richter, David Lifschitz
Relevant Campus(es): Wilf, Beren
What is your club’s mission statement? Why is this club important?:
Our three goals are:
- Preach AI to the masses: it’s not rocket science. Anyone can understand the basics, and that’s what we seek to prove. Next time you’re at one of our events, take a look around and see how many Math, Bio, Chem, English and first year Computer Science students are just weeks away from their first “Hello, World!” you can spot!
- Build internal interest: With many YC CS students facing the question about whether to specialize in Distributed Systems or Data Science, we aim to give a taste of the real thing.
- Improve and Advance Skills: Data Science is fun! Sharpen your skills with hands-on projects and competitions, and see what all of the craze is really about.
What was your pull to get involved in/start the club?:
There was a round robin event held our freshman year catered towards those without any real background or experience, and we were blown away by the genius and clarity of the ideas presented there. Things like “Linear Regression”, “K-Nearest Neighbors” and “Naive Bayes” sounded rather inaccessible and esoteric, but seeing how simple and beautiful the concepts really are was truly mind-blowing. We hope to pass that along, and to let you experience firsthand that ML + AI is at the intersection of fun and fascinating.
What is your favorite OSL-provided food for club events?:
Easily 16 Handles, if it ever reopens.
What are some things your club has done in the past? How is your club adapting to being back on campus?:
We are coming back full swing! Last year we had some awesome events, including The Art of AI (see here and here), AI for Dummies (a round robin event where board members showed off cool and real world uses of ML and AI), and an additional (in person!) speaker event on the Beren Campus supplied with delicious pizza from OSL! (Unfortunately, 16 Handles was closed at this point.)
What are some plans you have for this semester/future semesters?:
We have 4 in person events currently in the works, including an AI+ML Mini-Hackathon and a really cool Open Source Tech Showcase. Stay tuned for details!
What is your advice to someone looking to get involved on campus?:
Join our Whatsapp group! Join the YU ML + AI community and be the first to know about upcoming events! Email irichter@mail.yu.edu and he will be happy to add you to the chat!
Anything else to say about your club: We’re not giving up the dream of one day being able to announce that we are supplying our club events with soft serve from 16 handles. Soon by you, Amen.
Are you a YU undergraduate club head interested in seeing your club featured in a future edition? Email us at theyuobserver@gmail.com with your club name and the names of the club heads.
Photo Credit: YU Machine Learning (ML) and Artificial Intelligence (AI) Club