Radhika Nagpal

What do a computer scientist, a playwright, and a biologist have in common? Collective intelligence, as Radhika Nagpal RI '13 discovered during her fellowship at the Radcliffe Institute. She worked with experimental biologists to develop a better understanding of collective intelligence in social insects through the application of computer science. The professor of computer science at Harvard's School of Engineering and Applied Sciences and a faculty member of the Harvard Wyss Institute of Biologically Inspired Engineering also found a surprising commonality with a playwright and other Radcliffe fellows.

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Science fiction visions of the future show us AI built to replicate our way of thinking -- but what if we modeled it instead on the other kinds of intelligence found in nature? Robotics engineer Radhika Nagpal studies the collective intelligence displayed by insects and fish schools, seeking to understand their rules of engagement. In a visionary talk, she presents her work creating artificial collective power and previews a future where swarms of robots work together to build flood barriers, pollinate crops, monitor coral reefs and form constellations of satellites.

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