TED2019
Federica Bianco: How we use astrophysics to study earthbound problems
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To study a system as complex as the entire universe, astrophysicists need to be experts at extracting simple solutions from large data sets. What else could they do with this expertise? In an interdisciplinary talk, TED Fellow and astrophysicist Federica Bianco explains how she uses astrophysical data analysis to solve urban and social problems -- as well as stellar mysteries.
Federica Bianco - Cross-disciplinary scientist
TED Fellow Federica Bianco is a cross-disciplinary scientist who can't stay still. Full bio
TED Fellow Federica Bianco is a cross-disciplinary scientist who can't stay still. Full bio
Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.
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I am an astrophysicist.
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I research stellar explosions
across the universe.
across the universe.
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But I have a flaw:
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I'm restless, and I get bored easily.
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And although as an astrophysicist,
I have the incredible opportunity
I have the incredible opportunity
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to study the entire universe,
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the thought of doing
only that, always that,
only that, always that,
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makes me feel caged and limited.
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What if my issues with
keeping attention and getting bored
keeping attention and getting bored
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were not a flaw, though?
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What if I could turn them into an asset?
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An astrophysicist cannot
touch or interact with
touch or interact with
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the things that she studies.
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No way to explode a star in a lab
to figure out why or how it blew up.
to figure out why or how it blew up.
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Just pictures and movies of the sky.
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Everything we know about the universe,
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from the big bang
that originated space and time,
that originated space and time,
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to the formation and evolution
of stars and galaxies,
of stars and galaxies,
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to the structure of our own solar system,
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we figured out studying images of the sky.
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And to study a system
as complex as the entire universe,
as complex as the entire universe,
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astrophysicists are experts
at extracting simple models and solutions
at extracting simple models and solutions
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from large and complex data sets.
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So what else can I do with this expertise?
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What if we turned the camera
around towards us?
around towards us?
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At the Urban Observatory,
that is exactly what we are doing.
that is exactly what we are doing.
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Greg Dobler, also an astrophysicist
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and my husband,
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created the first urban observatory
in New York University in 2013,
in New York University in 2013,
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and I joined in 2015.
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Here are some of the things that we do.
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We take pictures of the city at night
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and study city lights like stars.
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By studying how light changes over time
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and the color of astronomical lights,
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I gain insight about the nature
of exploding stars.
of exploding stars.
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By studying city lights the same way,
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we can measure and predict how much energy
the city needs and consumes
the city needs and consumes
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and help build a resilient grid
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that will support the needs
or growing urban environments.
or growing urban environments.
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In daytime images,
we capture plumes of pollution.
we capture plumes of pollution.
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Seventy-five percent
of greenhouse gases in New York City
of greenhouse gases in New York City
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come from a building like this one,
burning oil for heat.
burning oil for heat.
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You can measure pollution
with air quality sensors.
with air quality sensors.
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But imagine putting a sensor
on each New York City building,
on each New York City building,
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reading in data from a million monitors.
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Imagine the cost.
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With a team of NYU students,
we built a mathematical model,
we built a mathematical model,
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a neural network that can detect
and track these plumes
and track these plumes
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over the New York City skyline.
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We can classify them --
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harmless steam plumes,
white and evanescent;
white and evanescent;
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polluting smokestacks,
dark and persistent --
dark and persistent --
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and provide policy makers
with a map of neighborhood pollution.
with a map of neighborhood pollution.
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This cross-disciplinary project
created transformational solutions.
created transformational solutions.
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But the data analysis methodologies
we use in astrophysics
we use in astrophysics
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can be applied to all sorts of data,
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not just images.
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We were asked to help
a California district attorney
a California district attorney
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understand prosecutorial delays
in their jurisdiction.
in their jurisdiction.
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There are people on probation
or sitting in jail,
or sitting in jail,
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awaiting for trial sometimes for years.
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They wanted to know
what kind of cases dragged on,
what kind of cases dragged on,
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and they had a massive data set
to explore to understand it,
to explore to understand it,
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but didn't have the expertise
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or the instruments
in their office to do so.
in their office to do so.
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And that's where we came in.
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I worked with my colleague,
public policy professor Angela Hawken,
public policy professor Angela Hawken,
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and our team first created
a visual dashboard
a visual dashboard
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for DAs to see and better understand
the prosecution process.
the prosecution process.
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But also, we ourselves
analyzed their data,
analyzed their data,
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looking to see if the duration
of the process
of the process
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suffered from social inequalities
in their jurisdiction.
in their jurisdiction.
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We did so using methods
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that I would use to classify
thousands of stellar explosions,
thousands of stellar explosions,
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applied to thousands of court cases.
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And in doing so,
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we built a model that can be applied
to other jurisdictions
to other jurisdictions
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who are willing to explore their biases.
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These collaborations between
domain experts and astrophysicists
domain experts and astrophysicists
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created transformational solutions
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to help improve people's quality of life.
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But it is a two-way road.
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I bring my astrophysics background
to urban science,
to urban science,
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and I bring what I learn in urban science
back to astrophysics.
back to astrophysics.
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Light echoes:
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the reflections of stellar explosions
onto interstellar dust.
onto interstellar dust.
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In our images, these reflections appear
as white, evanescent, moving features,
as white, evanescent, moving features,
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just like plumes.
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I am adapting the same models
that detect plumes in city images
that detect plumes in city images
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to detect light echoes
in images of the sky.
in images of the sky.
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By exploring the things
that interest and excite me,
that interest and excite me,
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reaching outside of my domain,
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I did turn my restlessness into an asset.
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We, you, all have a unique perspective
that can generate new insight
that can generate new insight
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and lead to new, unexpected,
transformational solutions.
transformational solutions.
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Thank you.
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(Applause)
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ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Federica Bianco - Cross-disciplinary scientistTED Fellow Federica Bianco is a cross-disciplinary scientist who can't stay still.
Why you should listen
Astrophysicist, professor, professional boxer and TED Fellow Federica Bianco studies stellar explosions, using the same methodologies to understand urban and social problems. She uses data-science to both study the universe and tackle problems on earth, like pollution in New York City, prosecutorial justice and how city lights can create resilient electric grids and.
Bianco splits her time as a professor at the University of Delaware in the Department of Physics and Astrophysics (where she runs a lab focusing on light curves), the Biden School of Public Policy and Administration and the Urban Observatory, where she uses her astrophysics skills to study urban problems. She is also the coordinator the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope (LSST) Science Collaboration, a network of more than 1,500 scientists. The LSST, under construction in Chile, will go online in 2023 to survey the night sky and image the southern hemisphere sky at unprecedented depth and resolution. The collaboration will study everything about it, from the thousands of changes it will discover in the sky every night to billions of stars and galaxies, many that have never been seen before.
Bianco has published more than 100 peer-reviewed papers, was a Smithsonian predoctoral and James Arthur postdoctoral fellow and was the recipient of a Department of Energy "Innovative Development in Energy-Related Applied Science" grant. When she isn't doing science, you will find her in the boxing ring, where she has made a name for herself as "The MadScientist." She is known for fighting her heart out both in and out of the ring.
Federica Bianco | Speaker | TED.com