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Explainable artificial intelligence: What were you thinking?

Decisions that affect our lives in both trivial and important ways are increasingly being made by algorithms. These algorithms, especially those derived using artificial intelligence (AI), are often inscrutable — at least, they are for now. If we want to hold people and organisations to account for their decisions, and if they want people to have trust in their decisions, we will need to be able to explain why a decision was made. How will we achieve explainable decision making?

By Writing|2021-12-28T16:32:42+11:00December 14th, 2021|Science & Technology|Comments Off

A Writing Career

I grew up in Legoland writ large. Big brick veneer houses on small blocks treed with conifers and covered with tan bark. It was a happy place, but Wantirna, in Melbourne’s outer east, can’t be mythologised like Green Valley. I wanted out

By Writing|2022-01-31T11:36:54+11:00December 14th, 2021|Arts, Culture & Society|Comments Off

Life balance

As part of every course we teach on leadership in public health, we aim to get our students to think about leadership of their own lives. We ask them to imagine the world in five or ten years and to think about what sort of person do they want to be? What sort of life do they want to be leading? And then what sort of leader would they like to be? And each time we ask (now over 30 times), I also do the exercise. And each time I come up with the desire to be a more generous, less egotistical person, and to lead a more balanced life

By Writing|2022-01-12T10:16:17+11:00December 14th, 2021|Arts, Culture & Society, Health|Comments Off

NCDs and the Culture Wars: Creating Healthy Policies to Prevent NCDs

...NCDs are closely related to human behaviour. We are what we eat. We are also what we drink, smoke and exercise. And these behaviours are very much part of the prevailing culture of a nation, or a community or a family. They are also highly changeable, for better or worse

By Writing|2021-12-28T15:16:05+11:00December 14th, 2021|Governance, Health|Comments Off

People, Trees, Landscapes and Climate Change

Trees make major contributions to all urban landscapes, such as streetscapes, roadsides, parks and gardens, as well as private dwellings. The significance of trees comes not only from their large size, but also from their long life spans

By Writing|2022-01-27T17:01:43+11:00December 14th, 2021|Environment & Energy|Comments Off

Victoria’s Youth Diversion Scheme and the over-representation of Indigenous Youth in detention

The vast majority of Indigenous people will never come into contact with the criminal justice system in Australia. However, Indigenous people remain over-represented in detention across all Australian jurisdictions.

By Writing|2022-03-08T13:22:13+11:00December 14th, 2021|Governance|Comments Off

Funding retirement

A few years ago, a survey asked several hundred Americans what they feared more: death, or running out of money during retirement. Three out of five respondents stated the latter. The proportion was particularly high for those aged between 44 and 49 years who had dependents: in this age group, four out of five respondents reported that the lack of retirement savings was a bigger fear for them than death

By Writing|2021-12-30T14:13:39+11:00December 14th, 2021|Arts, Culture & Society, Health|Comments Off

AI for sustainability: A changing landscape

Artificial intelligence (AI) is impacting society in varied ways as researchers and practitioners are using it to gain new insights into different problems and to open up new business opportunities. Its use has expanded from industry and manufacturing, to areas of sustainability such as land, water, biodiversity, urban transportation, waste, energy supply and housing. AI has revolutionised and will continue to shape the way experts find solutions to problems in these areas

By Writing|2021-12-28T16:07:56+11:00December 13th, 2021|Environment & Energy, Science & Technology|Comments Off

Our Place, Our Environment, Our Future

For Australians, our sense of space and place are central to our identity and culture. From the first inhabitants of Australia to the diverse range of migrants who have made their way here, this country represents a freedom and way of life that is envied the world over. Yet Australians cannot afford to be complacent. The summer of 2012–2013 has seen temperatures skyrocket and very large, destructive bushfires

By Writing|2022-01-22T16:13:37+11:00December 13th, 2021|Environment & Energy, Governance|Comments Off

The Future of Global Health

When I was a child, I was by no means alone in having Albert Schweitzer (1875–1965) as one of my great heroes. Organist, philosopher, physician and humanitarian, he inspired the world as a medical missionary in Africa. Early in life, he determined to pursue his interests in music, theology and ethics up to the age of 30

By Writing|2022-01-26T18:14:28+11:00December 13th, 2021|Health|Comments Off

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