Postdoc Accomplishments

News / Postdoc Accomplishments

Announcing the 2026 cohort of Postdoctoral Affiliates

The Michigan Institute for Data & AI in Society (MIDAS) is proud to announce its 2026 cohort of Postdoctoral Affiliates, 10 outstanding researchers from diverse departments across the University of Michigan. This program is a key initiative in MIDAS’s mission to promote the development and application of AI and data science methodologies for scientific research ...

Postdoc Accomplishments

AI tool reveals climate shifts may have fueled bursts of bird evolution

University of Michigan researchers used AI to uncover evidence that major climate shifts coincided with rapid bursts of bird evolution over the past 45 million years. Lead author Jacob Berv developed the novel statistical framework that enabled the team to analyze whole-skeleton data from thousands of bird species, revealing how climate change shaped the evolution ...

News / Postdoc Accomplishments

Commun-AI-ty Workshop Brings Researchers and Educators Together to Reimagine AI Science Communication

What if AI literacy weren’t developed in research labs alone, but co-designed with the communities it is intended to serve? That question brought together 54 participants from five countries for Commun-AI-ty: Building Science Communication Skills for Explaining AI in Science, a 3.5-day workshop held at the University of Michigan from June 23–26, 2026. Made possible ...

News / Postdoc Accomplishments

Large-Scale Evolution Simulations on PSC’s Neocortex Tackle Questions about Hypermutator Evolution

Matthew Andres Moreno, a Schmidt AI in Science Fellow, led groundbreaking research using the Pittsburgh Supercomputing Center’s Neocortex supercomputer to investigate why rapidly mutating organisms (“hypermutators”) rarely dominate in nature. By scaling evolutionary simulations from thousands to 1.5 billion virtual organisms, Moreno’s work uncovered how population size and the availability of beneficial mutations shape evolutionary ...

News / Postdoc Accomplishments

Data Visualization in R Workshop Helps Researchers Transform Data Into Publication-Ready Graphics

MIDAS African Faculty Fellow Dr. Verrah Otiende recently led a hands-on Data Visualization in R workshop for graduate students and postdocs, introducing participants to the R programming language and the ggplot2 visualization tool. The workshop brought together researchers with varying levels of coding experience to explore how raw research data can be transformed into clean, ...

News / Postdoc Accomplishments

U-M Uncertainty Quantification Incubator Brings Researchers Together to Advance Trustworthy AI

The Michigan Institute for Data and AI in Society (MIDAS) hosted the University of Michigan Uncertainty Quantification (UQ) Incubator from May 31 to June 3, 2026, bringing together researchers from a range of disciplines, including uncertainty quantification (UQ), artificial intelligence, science and engineering, to explore how AI systems can become more reliable, interpretable and trustworthy. ...

Postdoc Accomplishments / Research Impacts

AI and Open Data Redesign Urban Transit: A Blueprint for Equity and Efficiency

Author: Yonas Minalu Emagnu, Schmidt Science African Faculty Fellow How do you design a public transport system for a city growing faster than its infrastructure? In two interconnected studies using Addis Ababa, Ethiopia as a case study, Dr. Yonas Minalu Emagnu, in collaboration with Tayo Fabusuyi, has developed a scalable, data-driven framework that answers this ...

News / Postdoc Accomplishments

AI meets electrocatalysis: Lessons from three decades and a roadmap ahead

News / Postdoc Accomplishments

Announcing the 2026 cohort of postdoctoral fellows

Michigan Institute for Data & AI in Society announces 2026 fellows Written by: Justin Varney The Michigan Institute for Data & AI in Society (MIDAS) is welcoming a new cohort of postdoctoral researchers and international faculty for 2026, further strengthening its global community that advances artificial intelligence and data science across disciplines. Eleven new postdoctoral ...