Winter 2025
Tech Policy Wonk: What is Research Security?
Technology policy refers to the set of guidelines, principles, and legislation that governments develop to regulate technology (whether new or old, such as AI, but also old ones, such as the chemicals in hairspray).
This Directed Research Group (DRG) will focus on tracing technology policy: Where does it come from and what are its influences? Our key goal will be to design visualizations that help to make sense of policy. In the lingo of Washington DC, we are 'policy wonks'.
Our focus this year will be how US federal policy regulates technology, research and intellectual property that bear some relationship to national security (such as AI, quantum computing, CRISPR and Nuclear), or what has recently been called Research Security. What led to the creation of these policies and what has come from them?
This DRG will have a handful of required assigned readings to help us understand 'what is policy', but it is primarily about design, and public communication. We will research and then create accessible visualizations that help everyday people (and other wonks) to understand the arcane worlds of policy.
In your application, please describe your past experience doing research and design, and let us know if you have experience with policy, law, and other forms of technology governance. Students need not have experience with policy; we will learn about it together, and we will provide many handholds and starting points for the research.
Enrollment information:
- Meeting time: Fridays, 12:30pm-2:20pm
- Credits: 2 (or, talk with the Professor)
- Who should apply: We are looking for 4-5 undergraduate and graduate students with an interest in researching and learning more about research security policy.
- To apply: Fill out this application form (We will begin reviews Dec.20)
- Anticipated notification date: December 23 (and then rolling acceptances)
- Questions: Reach out to Professor David Ribes (dribes@uw.edu) and Kyra Arnett (knarnett@uw.edu)