Welcome to Almost Here, Round the Corner of Future Technology Podcasts with Richard Jacobs.

Future Technologies always to transform our lives for better or worse are the focus of this podcast.

Almost here means these technologies are now here and starting to be used.

We're just around the corner.

From Bitcoin to artificial intelligence, 3D around the corner, from Bitcoin to artificial intelligence,

3D printing, blockchain, virtual reality, and more.

Okay, this is Richard Jacobs with the Future Tech podcast, around the corner, almost here technology.

Today I'm here with Thomas Diderick, Professor Emeritus at Oregon State University,

and Thomas has spent many years in the field of artificial intelligence, especially machine learning.

Welcome, Thomas. How are you doing?

Very well. It's a pleasure to be with you today.

Yeah, I'm really, really glad to have you here.

I'm very interested to talk about machine learning and where it's been and where it's going.

So if you want to mind, can you give us a brief overview of the kind of work that you've done in the field

and what you're working on right now?

Well, I started out in the field in the late 70s, and it was my advisor for my master's degree,

Richard Mikulski, who coined the term machine learning as the name of the field.

And so over the years, I've worked on a wide variety of things, everything from trying to use machine learning to design better drug

molecules to my most recent focus has been on how we can use machine learning to help preserve

endangered species and control the spread of fire, the spread of disease, things like this.

So I have a lot of collaborations with scientists in various areas.

Yeah, and in general, it seems like people get terms confused.

...