Every year, Bradley professors invite guest speakers to give students a taste of what their futures potentially hold.
Professors Seth Katz, Heather Ford, Brad Eskridge and David Spelman were joined by Deepak Gaddipati and Major General Gary Dylewski to speak at the first-ever TEDxBradley on Sept. 11.
Although this was not a typical guest speaker event, the orators touched on pertinent topics such as AI in art, healthcare and writing, the keys to success, eco-friendly infrastructure and the use of nuclear energy.
Dylewski spoke first on the necessity of alternative energy forms, more specifically and controversially, nuclear energy. He believes nuclear energy can solve the issues of climate, economic and national security.
Dylewski also addressed the six major concerns many people broach in his presentation: Chernobyl, 3 Mile Island, Fukushima, Hollywood, renewables as well as China and Russia.
“If you look at some of the Hollywood productions that have come out over the years… they either contribute to some false ideas about the safety of nuclear energy, or they confuse the two categories of nuclear energy and nuclear weapons,” Dylewski said.
Spelman similarly discussed an environmental concern, focusing on the contamination of water particles as they go through the water cycle and its subsequent negative effects on water sources. He also spoke about the issues of devices and techniques currently used to clean these sources.
Ford spoke on how helpful AI can be useful in art processes. Similarly, Katz presented how AI can help generate ideas and drafts for essays and other reports.
Senior management information systems major Nathan Hiitola said his favorite speaker of the night was Katz because of his humorous approach to the topic.
“His comparison of AI to other innovations such as language and the printing press underlined how revolutionary AI is but how it is still limited by being unable to replicate what makes us human,” Hiitola said.
Gaddipati broadened his mind when it came to the use of AI and created his own business, Virtusense. The company uses AI to predict fall risks and ultimately improve the quality of life for the elderly.
The talk ended with Eskridge addressing the true keys to success.
“These three things, they work in tandem with one another,” Eskridge said. “What’s the first one? It’s discipline.”
The remaining two keys, Eskridge says, are consistency and action. According to Eskridge, without these three things, there is no success.
While organizers Kris Maillacheruvu and Joshua Lewer said they’d want to host another TEDx event next year, the main issue students have is the price of the event.
Senior English secondary education major Sarah Hazenfield said that $30 is too much for students to afford.
“A reduced price for students would be appreciated and probably encourage more people to attend,” Hazenfield said. “I was lucky enough to be able to get a free ticket from one of my professors.”
Hiilota agrees with Hazenfield and says students would benefit from more affordable access to speakers in the future; however, both additionally said they would recommend others attend the potential talk next year.
