Stephen Ruhmel’s journey to Telluride began in March at Newark Airport, when he chatted with a stranger who was also visiting the South by Southwest (SXSW) Festival in Austin, Texas. That stranger was Sarah Holbrook, executive director of the Pinhead Institute. Stephen was on his way to the festival to talk about his work with artificial intelligence (AI) and speech biomarkers to detect Alzheimer’s. Holbrook attends Stefan’s chat and asks him to come to Telluride to talk via Pinhead.
Stephen agreed, and on Monday (July 25) he will talk about AI and digital health at the Wilkinson Public Library at 5:30 p.m. Stephen explained that his talk at Telluride would be more detailed than his speech in Austin.
“I will talk about digital health and how artificial intelligence and different types of technology are now being used in healthcare, whether in clinical research or business practice,” Stephen said.
Digital health includes things like Fitbit and Apple Watch, telehealth, telemedicine, mobile apps and software. Stephen decided to expand his talk to cover the breadth of digital health applications he is working with and their uses and applications within the health care industry.
For example, Stephen cites a study from the Scripps Research Institute in San Diego, California, which used Fitbits and Apple Watches to detect whether a wearer has COVID.
“It’s so incredible, they (the equipment) can do this and understand that heart rate variability and sleep patterns that are really highly suggestive of a COVID infection, probably earlier than otherwise at home.” So that’s one of the things that’s really impressive. You’re able to use something you already have on your wrist to tell a lot about your health, or this Case in point, early diagnosis,” Stephen said.
One of the biggest concerns and questions Stephen often receives from onlookers when people use AI for their health is privacy concerns. He explained that this is a valid and valid concern. At the end of the day, he said, it comes down to who has access to patient information and how they use it. Since digital health is a relatively new field, it is not regulated properly. Stephen advises people to be careful with who they provide access to their digital data.
Stephen’s goal for Monday’s talk is to help people understand what’s happening in the world of digital health. He encourages people to participate in research studies and volunteer in the field. On Monday evening, he will provide a list of studies people can sign up for, such as studies focused on heart health and atrial fibrillation, or “Afib.”
“One of the challenges with privacy is making sure you can establish that trust with the participants,” Stefan said.
Stephen’s Monday Talk is geared toward adults, and familiarity with science isn’t necessary or necessary. But, the next day something will happen for the kids. Also visiting Telluride is Stephen’s wife, Megan Ruhmel. Megan is a senior research technician at ExxonMobil and is part of Pinhead’s punk science series for kids.
“Sarah (Holbrook) was very impressed by Stephen’s talk at SXSW and put me in touch with him and his wife, Megan, who is also into STEM, to scholar at schools or punk science presentation. Since Megan has to work With the kids, we asked if she’d run a punk science activity. Then we decided Stefan’s cutting-edge clinical research would be great for an older audience, so this is the upcoming talk,” Scholars at Schools (SITS) program coordinator Elena Hauser said. on pinhead.
Megan’s program is called “Playful Polymers” and will be held Tuesday at 5:15 p.m. at the Transfer Warehouse. In the event, kids will learn about polymers through bouncy balls. Megan said she looks forward to watching the kids bond.
“They’ve heard the word ‘polymer’ before, but what does it really mean? And what does it look like?” Megan said. “Once they see real-life examples, and it’s always fascinating to see what a polymer is around them and how they can create something new.”
