RAMP - Biomedical Research and Mentoring Program

My fifth Honors Experience at the University of Cincinnati has been an enriching journey, immersed in cutting-edge biomedical research through the RaMP (Biomedical Research and Mentoring Program). Working as a Research Assistant at the Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, I have gained hands-on experience in a field that merges my passion for technology and its application to social good.

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In this role, I have been involved in analyzing over 421 participant interviews to detect students with an elevated risk for aggressive acts using the Automated Risk Assessment (ARIA) system. This task required meticulous data handling and a deep understanding of the psychological factors influencing aggressive behaviors in school environments. Collaborating with graduate students and post-doctoral fellows, I have contributed to the development of preemptive prevention strategies aimed at mitigating school violence.

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A significant part of my work involved applying Natural Language Processing (NLP) techniques to identify key risk factors in participant interviews. This was instrumental in evaluating automated machine learning methods for aggression risk detection. The practical application of NLP in this context has not only enhanced my technical skills but also provided insights into the potential of machine learning in addressing real-world problems.

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Throughout this experience, I have honed my skills in data management, signal processing, and machine learning. The collaborative nature of the project has improved my teamwork and communication abilities, preparing me for future interdisciplinary research endeavors. 

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Looking ahead, I am eager to leverage the insights gained from the RaMP experience to continue my research involvement in different fields. I am particularly excited about the possibility of a RaMP extension, where I hope to work under a professor in XR labs at Digital Futures to create a virtual landscape for training purposes, in collaboration with Cincinnati Children's Hospital.

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Overall, this experience has been transformative, igniting a passion for leveraging technology to make a positive difference and fostering a commitment to contributing to safer school environments through innovative research.