What can history teach us about today’s AI revolution? In this month’s episode of the Harvard Data Science Review Podcast, we are joined by Stephanie Dick, a historian of science and technology, to explore how past ideas about knowledge and intelligence shape today’s AI systems.

Drawing on examples from early AI, including facial recognition and police databanks, Dick shows that technical decisions are never purely technical—they reflect assumptions about knowledge, people, and power. Tracing AI through three historical “acts,” she challenges the idea that contemporary AI systems represent a clean break from the past.

Dick also questions the pursuit of artificial general intelligence, emphasizing instead that intelligence is plural, embodied, and fundamentally relational.

This conversation offers a fresh perspective for anyone building, studying, or thinking about AI today.

Our guest:

• Stephanie Dick is an historian, speaker, and writer who works at the intersections of mathematics, computing, and artificial Intelligence. She is also an assistant professor in the School of Communication at Simon Fraser University and the co-editor of HDSR’s Mining the Past column.

In this month’s episode of the Harvard Data Science Review Podcast, we explore a timeless yet increasingly urgent question: What does it mean to flourish as a human being in an age of artificial intelligence?

We are joined by experts Noreen Herzfeld and Tyler VanderWeele, who together bring empirical, philosophical, and theological perspectives to a wide-ranging conversation on human well-being, relationships, and the role of technology in each.

The guests examine whether AI can support human flourishing—or whether it may erode the very capacities that make flourishing possible. They discuss the limits of AI in addressing deeper human longings for meaning and transcendence, the risks of replacing human connection with artificial interaction, and the ethical responsibilities of developers in shaping these tools.

This episode invites listeners to reflect on what it truly means to live well in a technological age. Join in and add your voice to the conversation.

The episode also highlights Dr. VanderWeele’s recent Psychology Today article, “Can We Remain Human in the Age of AI” and Dr. Herzfeld’s recent writings.

Our guests:

• Noreen Herzfeld is the director of the Benedictine Spirituality and the Environment program at Saint John’s School of Theology and Seminary.
• Tyler VanderWeele is the John L. Loeb and Frances Lehman Loeb Professor of Epidemiology and the director of the Human Flourishing Program and the co-director of the Initiative on Health, Spirituality, and Religion at Harvard University.

This month on the Harvard Data Science Review Podcast, we explore the data behind modern dating. With millions of swipes happening daily, dating apps promise compatibility through algorithms—but do they really optimize for lasting connection?

Host Liberty Vittert-Capito and guest co-host and HDSR column editor Miguel Paredes sit down with Linx Dating founder Amy Andersen and Three Day Rule CEO Adam Cohen-Aslatei to examine the tension between human intuition and algorithmic matching. Drawing on decades of experience and tens of thousands of successful matches, they discuss what people say they want versus what they actually need..

From swipe data to AI-powered date coaching, this episode asks a provocative question: Can technology guide us to love, or is chemistry still beyond the reach of code?

Listen in for a data-driven perspective on romance in the digital age.

Our guests:

• Amy Andersen is the founder of Linx Dating, a private offline dating and social network located in the heart of Silicon Valley.
• Adam Cohen-Aslatei is the CEO of Three Day Rule, a personalized, high-end matchmaking service.