Lauren Wilcox facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Lauren G. Wilcox
Born	New York City, US
Other names	Lauren Wilcox-Patterson
Alma mater	Columbia University
Known for	Responsible AI, Human-Computer Interaction, Health Informatics
Scientific career
Fields	Computer Science
Institutions	Georgia Tech, Google, Columbia University, Microsoft Research, IBM Research
Thesis	User Interfaces for Patient-Centered Communication of Health Status and Care Progress (2013)
Doctoral advisor	Steven K. Feiner

Lauren G. Wilcox is an American professor and researcher. She studies how computers and people can work together. She focuses on making technology helpful and fair for everyone. This includes areas like responsible artificial intelligence (AI), how humans interact with computers, and using technology for health information. She is known for helping communities join in creating new technology. She also made important contributions to health systems that use computers.

Education: Learning About Technology

Lauren Wilcox studied a lot to become a computer expert. She earned her highest degree, a Ph.D., in Computer Science from Columbia University in 2013. During her Ph.D., she worked closely with students and teachers. They were from the Department of Biomedical Informatics. This department focuses on using computers in medicine.

Before her Ph.D., she also earned two other degrees. She got a Bachelor of Science (B.S.) and a Master of Science (M.S.). Both of these degrees were in Computer Science. She earned them from Columbia University as well.

Her Career in Tech and Research

Before becoming a researcher, Lauren Wilcox worked at IBM in Austin, Texas. She was a Staff Software Engineer there. She was recognized as an "Early Tenure Inventor" for her ideas.

After getting her Ph.D., she joined the Georgia Institute of Technology School of Interactive Computing. She became a full associate professor there in April 2020.

Working at Google

In 2019, Wilcox joined Google. She is now a Senior Staff Research Scientist and Group Manager there. She works on responsible AI and human-centered technology. At Google, she helped with an important study. This study looked at using AI in patient care. It was one of the first studies of its kind.

Research at Georgia Tech

While at Georgia Tech, she also directed the Health Experience and Applications Lab. Her research there grew to include how computers can help teenagers. She looked at how technology can help teens manage long-term health conditions. She also studied how to keep their health data private.

Wilcox also did important studies on how computers can support mental well-being. She believes that human well-being should be a key part of designing technology.

Making Tech Better for Society

Lauren Wilcox was an early member of the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) Future of Computing Academy. In 2018, she wrote a blog post with others. They asked computer researchers to think about the bigger impact of their work. They wanted researchers to consider how new technology affects society.

Since then, some computer conferences now ask authors to explain their work's impact. This helps make sure new technology is developed responsibly.