IBM executives and local business leaders took the opportunity to meet with the chancellor before and after a presentation explaining IBM’s Watson computer Wednesday.
Jim De Piante, an IBM researcher who helped build Watson, explained the benefits of the computer that deciphers human speech and correctly answers questions posed. In addition, IBM sent one of its top brass, Senior Vice President and Group Executive of Sales, Marketing and Strategy Ginni Rometty, to campus to have lunch with Chancellor Randy Woodson.
IBM recruits from N.C. State more than any other school in the country, Rometty said in a speech before De Piante demonstrated Watson. When Rometty asked the audience in Nelson Hall who had parents or family that work at IBM, more than half of the students in attendance raised their hands.
“Watson is the greatest way to demonstrate data analytics and how it can be used in a business and University setting. Everyone can understand this presentation because Watson was featured on Jeopardy,” Tina Wilson, IBM program manager for corporate citizenship and corporate affairs, said.
Watson weighs in at 18,000 pounds, and therefore IBM opted to not bring it to campus. In fact, it never travels. It sits in a research center in Yorktown Heights, New York, De Piante said.
As with any other technological advance, the goal is to make the computer smaller. The computers that sent man to the moon had as much memory as a handheld calculator, and cell phones hit the market in the shape of cinderblocks.
De Piante said that with all the power Watson has, it is no match for the human brain, which weighs three pounds and fits in a shoebox.
IBM recruits from NCSU more than any other school in the world, Rometty said in a speech before De Piante demonstrated Watson. When Rometty asked the audience in Nelson Hall who had parents or family that work at IBM, more than half of the students in attendance raised their hands.
“The IBM – N.C. State relationship goes way back. Not only in data analytics, but also cloud computing. There are a lot of things we are looking forward to,” Wilson said.
IBM and the University are currently working collaborating on “five or six” projects, Wilson said. As the largest commercial research firm, employing more than 3,000 people in the research department alone, capitalizing on synergies between IBM and universities continue to prove profitable for the company.
Watson has begun to prove itself useful in business. Wilson said IBM is in a partnership with a healthcare company. Watson will help doctors diagnose lung, breast and colon cancer. It will not give doctors directions on how to treat the diseases, but instead will give them pertinent information.
Wilson did not say which healthcare company IBM is working with. De Piante said he was not at liberty to discuss the partnership.
Nathan Fox, a freshman planning to study environmental engineering, was in Nelson to see Watson. His class was cancelled to accommodate the presentation, but he decided to come anyway.
Upon hearing the news that IBM hires NCSU students so frequently, Fox said he was excited for the possible employment opportunities that could be available to him.
“Although my major is not quite set, I believe a job at IBM would be a rewarding experience – especially if I decide to study computer engineering,” Fox said.
Fox welcomed the break from his usual lecture.
“It’s better than class,” Fox said.
