It won’t surprise many people that I really like books. As a new student, I was overwhelmed by the wealth of volumes in Washington State University’s Holland Library. I had never been in a library that large before, and although I wanted to read many of those books, it would take more than a lifetime.

Now, WSU Libraries is home to another massive collection: what is widely considered the world’s most voluminous diary. Robert W. Shields, a teacher and minister in Dayton, wrote more than 37 million words about his life in exhaustive, sometimes excruciating, detail. He left it to WSU, where associate editor Adriana Janovich dug into Shields’s remarkable work, opening boxes of papers and random items⁠—even uncovering some mysteries.

Shields typed out his life on single-spaced pages, leaving behind much for scholars to examine. Of course, with the Internet and computers, other researchers have an abundance of information. The rise of machine learning and AI tools has enabled them to significantly speed up their work in areas such as health care, through AI’s ability to examine the unimaginable flood of data.

For example, WSU pharmaceutical researcher Senthil Natesan and his team are able to accelerate the drug discovery process through AI’s predictive analytics. The computer assistance quickly narrows down potential candidate drugs for conditions such as asthma. Similarly, biologist Michael Skinner worked with computer scientist Larry Holder on very accurate and fast AI diagnosis of diseases in tissue samples.

Some concerns remain about using AI for health prognoses, and even as a tool for patients, warn other researchers in this issue’s feature.

Outside of computers, and even buildings, we could use plenty of trees in our cities and urban spaces. Many studies have shown the benefits of tree canopy to cool off cityscapes. A new lab in Puyallup partners with Tacoma and other Washington cities on mapping and increasing urban tree cover, where people are healthier and less susceptible to impacts of increased heat.

 

A very warm WSU welcome to new President Elizabeth “Betsy” Cantwell, and many thanks to Kirk Schulz for his leadership through challenging times. You can read about Schulz’s years in this issue, and watch for a feature of Cantwell in our Fall issue.