Welcome to Xposition, our DataX newsletter, where we share the people, projects, and ideas shaping all things data at UCLA. The issue features articles on research, faculty, pedagogy, and partnerships, highlighting the cross-campus collaboration integral to helping the DataX community encounter data differently. |
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| 7 Questions With: Shazeda Ahmed |
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China, AI Safety Ideologies, and the Politics of AI |
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UCLA DataX Postdoctoral Scholar, Shazeda Ahmed represents a new generation of interdisciplinary scholars working at the intersection of AI research, cybersafety, policy, and society, interrogating and analyzing how power, politics, and history influence the technologies we build.
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Data in Society at UCLA: Keeping What Matters in the Light |
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Artificial intelligence and emergent technologies are reshaping how information is produced, circulated and used, challenging institutions of higher learning to respond quickly and critically. These issues are both the impetus and focus for a new curriculum, Data in Society (DIS), that reflects UCLA’s commitment to inclusive learning and works toward preparing students for careers that contribute to the public good.
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OARC: Where UCLA Advanced Research Gets Its Backbone |
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Behind many of UCLA’s most complex and ambitious research projects is a powerful and often unseen resource: the Office of Advanced Research Computing (OARC). OARC provides the shared computing infrastructure, software engineering, and computational expertise that enable scholars to translate large-scale data into discovery.
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The newly launched UCLA DataX Center for AI Technology is co-directed by two scholars in the Computer Science Department, Assistant Professor Baharan Mirzasoleiman (left), and Associate Professor Kai-Wei Chang (right), who are advancing the foundations and real-world applications of artificial intelligence. Together, they bring complementary expertise in machine learning systems, multimodal models, and responsible AI to lead the Center.
Their collaboration reflects the Center’s mission to advance the foundations of AI technology, and enabling trustworthy, real-world AI applications by bringing together researchers across disciplines.
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DataX Inaugural Art Exhibition Features UCLA Alum |
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DataX hosted its first art exhibit in November, along with a reception and conversation between local media artist Hye Min Cho (M.F.A. ’19) and UCLA Professor of Design Media Arts and Disability Studies, Lauren Lee McCarthy, about Cho’s digital installation, 石 (Rock), 财 (Wealth), 壶 (Kettle), 笔 (Writing brush), 松 (Pine), which references the tradition of East Asian still life paintings. Cho uses machine-learning technologies to make renditions of the familiar that reveal unfamiliar qualities that arise as a product of the algorithm’s process. The artist’s works are reflections of the machine-mediated beings humans are starting to become.
“I am deeply grateful to DataX for creating a space where art and data can truly converge,” says Cho. “Presenting my work to such a diverse audience of students, researchers, and artists allowed me to gain new perspectives and reflect meaningfully on my practice. It was a distinct honor to be in conversation with my mentor, Professor Lauren Lee McCarthy.”
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3rd Annual DataX + IDRE Symposium: Research in the Age of AI |
Distinguished researchers across UCLA will discuss the development, use, and impact of AI in research, highlighting interdisciplinary advances and strengthening connections among scholars working in AI.
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May 7, 2026
Time
8:30 am–4:30 pm PDT
Refreshments, lunch, and
afternoon reception
Where
UCLA University Club
Registration has closed for this event.
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In February, Professor Safiya U. Noble received an honorary doctorate from Leiden University, a top-tier European research university known for interdisciplinary scholarship across the humanities and social sciences. Honored for her research in digital justice, media accountability, and the social impact of technology, Dr. Noble said, “It's time that we invest resources into the organizations of societies that benefit all, not just a few. We must put technology and the billions of dollars of investment in it, in balance with the many other human needs for housing, education, clean food, water, and air, and for networks of care and joy.”
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Stacks Xchange: Field Notes on AI Across Disciplines, is a multi-part DataX series that brings graduate students together to share tools, methods, and emerging approaches to working with AI.
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