Across the disciplines
Infant malnutrition is a threat the world over, affecting all genders, races, and social statuses. Even those who survive are still at high risk for reduced physical and cognitive development, capacity to resist disease, and ability to carry out physical work, and study and progress in school.
但是，由电子游戏软件跨学科电子游戏正规平台人员领导的一个项目可能有助于在全球对抗婴儿营养不良的斗争中发挥作用.
工程助理教授Bryan Ranger和康奈尔护理学院的电子游戏正规平台生Jini Kim和Marisa Albert. (Caitlin Cunningham)
Supported by a grant from the BC Schiller Institute for Integrated Science and Society, Assistant Professor of Engineering Bryan Ranger, Assistant Professor of Computer Science Donglai Wei, 和康奈尔护理学院副教授Jinhee Park正在进行一项试点电子游戏正规平台，在这项电子游戏正规平台中，一线医护人员利用便携式超声扫描仪收集营养不良婴儿的肌肉和脂肪分布图像.
该项目的目标是开发人工智能来解释这些数据，因为它与营养状况有关，并最终协助临床决策. 不列颠哥伦比亚省的教职员工正在与来自波士顿布里格姆妇女医院和埃塞俄比亚吉玛大学的调查人员合作.
Last fall, Ranger received an Award for Inclusion Research from Google, which supports academic research in computing and technology that addresses the needs of historically marginalized groups globally; the award will fund broader ongoing work on AI-enabled portable ultrasound for health care workers in Ethiopia.
A major obstacle in dealing with malnutrition cases—especially in poor, low-resourced areas—is the lack of data that can provide a fuller evaluation of a patient’s condition, note the researchers.
“Nutritional screening tools cannot be reproduced adequately, nor do they show agreement with one another, or validity in identifying malnutrition,” explained Ranger. “Although one can use scales and tape measures to obtain anthropometric indicators such as weight, height, and body mass index (BMI), these do not effectively provide a comprehensive assessment of healthy growth and development. More advanced methods are expensive and only available in specialized facilities.”
Low-cost ultrasound technology and devices are available on the market, but require expertise to use, 他说:“在资源匮乏的地区，你不能把它们交给医疗保健专业人员，就指望能解决问题.” A scanner attached to a tablet and enhanced by AI, however, can help workers—with some initial instruction—in interpreting the data collected from patients.
Connell School of Nursing Associate Professor Jinhee Park (Lee Pellegrini)
“I believe Bryan’s work will address critical issues by creating a low-cost, 便携式评估工具，提供一个准确和全面的儿童生长和营养状况,” said Park. “If successful, 这一工具将帮助一线卫生保健提供者识别和治疗婴儿和儿童的营养不良, particularly in low-income communities.”
Last summer, Ranger, Connell School graduate students Marisa Albert and Jini Kim, and junior engineering major Hayoung Cho spent time at Jimma University, observing and training local health care workers to use the portable scanners as part of the pilot study. Jimma之所以被选为该项目，是因为它有一个完善的营养电子游戏正规平台项目，是非洲少数几个拥有专门设备来获取营养数据的地点之一, said Ranger.
“This is where the ‘inclusion’ aspect of the Google grant is relevant,” he said. “We want to be inclusive about the data we’re collecting. Developing a tool in Boston and then deploying it somewhere completely different doesn’t make sense. Our research collaborators at Jimma bring a valuable perspective and needed expertise to the project.”
The merits of interdisciplinary collaboration are apparent in this joint venture. Ranger, 通过哈佛-麻省理工学院健康科学与技术项目获得医学工程和医学物理学博士学位，作为国家科学基金会电子游戏正规平台生电子游戏正规平台员, 通过与比尔和梅林达·盖茨基金会合作，为不列颠哥伦比亚省带来了全球卫生方面的强大背景. 但他认为来自其他领域的见解将有助于实现便携式超声扫描仪的新用途.
在与康奈尔学院院长凯瑟琳·格雷戈里·兰杰的谈话中，他在cson有一个礼貌的约会，这让他联系了帕克, 新生儿护理专家，其电子游戏正规平台重点是有喂养问题的婴幼儿及其家庭的健康和发育结果. He also got in touch with Wei, 谁电子游戏正规平台生物科学和计算机视觉之间的相互作用，并在为生物医学图像分析建立计算模型方面有经验.
“Coming to BC, and helping build a new department, has been a great experience,” said Ranger, one of the first faculty hires in BC’s Human-Centered Engineering program. “In addition to the interdisciplinary aspects of the program, I was drawn to the emphasis on a human-centered approach to solving global health challenges. 我真的很珍惜与那些看到知识和技能结合的可能性的人一起工作的机会, even if they come from seemingly disparate areas.”
朴槿惠表示，能够成为团队的一员，分享她作为护士的智慧，“同时开发出一种有可能解决我们面临的许多挑战的工具，这是一种荣幸”. 跨学科合作使我们能够利用不同专业的专门知识来应对卫生保健方面的挑战. As part of the largest group of health care providers in the country, 护士比其他任何医疗保健专业人员使用更多的医疗设备，并且可以在开发和设计医疗产品方面提供独特的见解.”
Assistant Professor of Computer Science Donglai Wei (Lee Pellegrini)
Wei, whose research lies in the domain of “AI for science,” has published works with biologists, clinicians, mechanical engineers, and civil engineers. “跨学科合作最吸引我的是通过人工智能技术对现实世界产生影响，并有机会为人工智能领域解决新问题.”
Albert and Kim appreciated the chance to be involved in the development of cutting-edge research, 并在一个与他们工作过的环境截然不同的环境中获得第一手的医疗保健情况.
“我们不仅有机会为那里的工作人员提供超声波技术的教育课程, but we also had the chance to spend time in the hospital setting,” said Albert. “没有足够的语言来表达存在多少医疗保健需求，看到事情并知道在我们的工作范围之外还有很多事情需要做，这是一个挑战。.”
Kim said, “该项目是如何利用技术为患者提供更公平和预防性护理的典范, potentially fostering long-term impacts in health care. 我们不仅确定了对未来电子游戏正规平台的影响，而且还认识到我们可以在整个电子游戏正规平台过程中解决的潜在差距. 这有助于完善最佳介入技术，以在收集不同身体成分时获得最佳结果测量.”
Cho said her most vivid memories of the visit to Jimma include accompanying a nurse to observe patients; the sight of young mothers, families, and slim children in small, crowded rooms; and walls that displayed the number of children who had died each day (“I watched as the weekly and monthly count increased”).
“These experiences fueled my hunger to devote my purpose to continuing research on advancing affordable, standardized early detection and diagnostic tools,” she said.