Plenary Session Information

Tuesday, July 19, 2022

6:00 – 7:00 PM
Welcome Reception | Magpie & Golden Cliff Terrace (Lower Level)

7:00 – 9:00 PM
Dinner/Celebration | Conference Center Terrace (Tent)

• Welcome from the Conference Co-Chairs
• 50th Anniversary of the CRA
• Celebration of Andrew Bernat
• Open networking among attendees

Wednesday, July 20, 2022

8:30 – 10:00 AM
CRA: Looking Forward | Ballroom and Lobby

Speakers:
Ellen Zegura (Georgia Tech)
Tracy Camp (CRA)
Nancy Amato (University of Illinois)
Andrew Bernat (CRA Emeritus Executive Director)

CRA has finalized its Strategic Plan, thanks to tremendous effort and excellent input from a large number of community members. In this opening session, we’ll share CRA’s strategic themes, priority outcomes, and near-term initiatives. Our Strategic Plan, and its focus on socially responsible computing research, has defined CRA’s direction for years to come. CRA will continue to excel in key areas, such as be a source for resources that inform the field, as well as establish itself as a catalyst for computing research organizations to enhance the field. We invite you to learn where CRA is headed, both in the long-term and the short-term, as well as who will help lead us there.

10:30 AM – Noon
The Trusting of Intelligent Machines: How AI Influences Human Behavior | Ballroom and Lobby

Speaker:
Ayanna Howard (Ohio State University)

People tend to overtrust sophisticated computing devices, including robotic systems. As these systems become more fully interactive with humans during the performance of day-to-day activities, the role of bias in these human-robot interaction scenarios must be more carefully investigated.  Bias is a feature of human life that is intertwined, or used interchangeably, with many different names and labels – stereotypes, prejudice, implicit or subconsciously held beliefs. In the digital age, this bias has often been encoded in and can manifest itself through AI algorithms, which humans then take guidance from, resulting in the phenomenon of excessive trust. Trust conveys the concept that when interacting with intelligent systems, humans tend to exhibit similar behaviors as when interacting with other humans; thus, the concern is that people may under-appreciate or misunderstand the risk associated with handing over decisions to an intelligent agent.  Bias further impacts this potential risk for trust, or overtrust, in that these systems are learning by mimicking our own thinking processes, inheriting our own implicit biases. Consequently, the propensity for trust and the potential of bias may have a direct impact on the overall quality of the interaction between humans and machines, whether the interaction is in the domains of healthcare, job-placement, or other high-impact life scenarios. In this talk, we will discuss this phenomenon of integrated trust and bias through the lens of intelligent systems that interact with people in scenarios that are realizable in the near-term.

6:30 PM
Dinner/ Reboot!  | Conference Center Terrace (Tent)

The CCC Council embarked on a new activity this year to generate new ideas for us to explore as a community. In this session, we will have a set of lively, provocative conversations about three of these “blue sky” topics.

Organized by CRA’s Computing Community Consortium

Speakers:
Sujata Banerjee (VMWare)
Nadya Bliss (Arizona State University)
Bill Gropp (University of Illinois)
Dan Lopresti (Lehigh University)
Liz Bradley (University of Colorado Boulder) Moderator

Thursday, July 21, 2022

8:30 – 9:30 AM
Reports from the Computing Research Community | Ballroom and Lobby

Speakers:
Amruth Kumar (Ramapo College of New Jersey)
Rajendra Raj (Rochester Institute of Technology)
Kristen Shinohara (Rochester Institute of Technology)
Elizabeth Mynatt (Northeastern University)
Amanda Stent (Colby College)
Liz Bradley (University of Colorado)
Jaime Teevan (Microsoft)
Christine Alvarado (UC San Diego)

This session will highlight recent developments and reports from across the computing research community. Each presenter will provide a brief overview of their report and findings, and then audience members will participate in short, guided table-discussions around the themes introduced in the presentation. The goal of the session is to spur conversation at Snowbird on topics that are important to the computing research community and provide a teaser into a larger body of work that inspires audience members to learn more after the session.

The reports covered will be:

• CS202X: Computer Science Curricula (ACM, IEEE-CS, AAAI)
• Accessible Computing Education in Colleges and Universities
• Depicting Innovation in Information Technology (National Academies)
• Responsible Computing Research (National Academies)
• Climate Change (CCC) by Liz Bradley (University of Colorado)

9:30 – 10:00 AM
Awards Presentations | Ballroom and Lobby

• Distinguished Service
• A. Nico Habermann
• Service to CRA
• CRA-E Faculty Mentoring

6:30 PM
Making a Federal Case for Computing | Ballroom and Lobby

Speaker:
Peter Harsha (CRA)

CRA’s Peter Harsha will discuss how CRA is supporting the computing research community’s interests in Washington. He will attempt to make sense of this seemingly chaotic political landscape and discuss how CRA and our partners in the science advocacy community are contending with it. Harsha will also talk about opportunities for members of the computing research community to engage in the process at a variety of different levels and intensities.

---

Dear CRA Conference at Snowbird Participants,

We look forward to hosting you at the 2022 CRA Conference, to be held July 19-21th in Snowbird, Utah. Here are a few things to keep in mind, as you think about what to bring:

Meals: all meals will be held outdoors this year, due to COVID-19.

Weather Prediction/Expectations: Click here for weather conditions at the Snowbird resort.

Altitude: Elevation at the Snowbird Resort is quite high (8,100 ft). One of the best ways to help your body adjust to high altitude is to drink lots of water. Pack a personal water bottle and plan to re-hydrate often!

Covid Guidelines:

• CRA requires that all attendees at CRA events be fully vaccinated.

• We strongly encourage attendees to take a COVID test before traveling to the CRA Conference at Snowbird. If you are unable to do this, we will have on-site rapid tests available for your use.

• Masks are required during indoor conference events, unless eating or drinking. We will have masks available if needed.

• If you feel unwell during the conference, please test for COVID-19. We will have on-site rapid tests available for your use. Please notify us of any positive result.

• All meals will be outdoors. You will receive a limited edition CRA Fleece Jacket to help ensure you stay warm!

Lastly, consider packing gear for any (or all!) of the following fun activities:

Snowbird Cliff Spa: Over 30 treatment and salon services are offered at The Cliff Spa. Reservations are required. Book online or call 801.933.2225 in advance to reserve your treatment or timeslot.

Yoga: Private CRA Group Yoga Classes are available at 6 – 6:30 AM and 6:30 – 7 AM on July 19, 20 and 21. (Sign up at the CRA registration desk.) A $10.00 fee will cover the yoga class plus provide access to the spa facilities for that day.

Hiking: Guided hikes will be offered Wednesday, July 20 at 3:30 PM.

Snowbird Summer Activities: Climbing wall, ropes course, mountain coaster, alpine slide, and more. All day activity passes are available; click here to purchase passes at the best rate.

We look forward to seeing you in Utah next week (in person!). In addition to engaging conference sessions on Computing Departments, Computing Education, Computing in Industry, and Computing for Good, we’ll be celebrating CRA’s 50th anniversary (with yummy cake).

Best,

The CRA Snowbird Conference Team