Utilizing artificial intelligence (AI) to its fullest potential, seven high school students developed a mobile app that tracks expenses—all within a two-week timeframe. Through an internship with U.S. Department of Education Native Hawaiian Education Act grant grantee, , at the (CDS) in the University of �鶹��ý at ����ԴDz� (COE), this second cohort of students gained a unique computer science experience that enabled them to advance their STEM skills.

During summer 2023, the student interns built a mobile application named RESHEIPT at the UH Laboratory of Applications in Informatics and Analytics. The students were each paid a $1,000 stipend for 48 hours of work at the computer lab.

Designed to gather expenses one receipt at a time, they created the app using ChatGPT under the guidance of Assistant Professor Mahdi Belcaid (Information and Computer Sciences, �鶹��ý Institute of Marine Biology, �鶹��ý Data Science Institute) and Akib Sadmanee, a research graduate assistant with Pacific Ocean Science and Technology.

Students used ChatGPT to complete tasks that would have traditionally required much more time from machine learning experts or programmers.

“The group wanted to include artificial intelligence in their computer studies, and the app delivers just that,” said CDS Assistant Specialist Lisa Galloway. “The app allows users to scan their receipts, providing them with an itemized overview of their transactions. AI comes in when users are processing and itemizing their receipts with ChatGPT.”

They also learned how to use no-code platforms, including Amazon Web Services, to construct the features of the app, such as authentication and storage.

“This product highlights the impact of AI and specifically large language models on technology,” said Belcaid. “If high school students can develop such a complex application in just 40 hours—much of which was devoted to education rather than coding—imagine the technological possibilities that await us as ChatGPT and similar technologies continue to mature over the next two to three years.”

�Ჹ�ɲ���ʻ��’s general public may not know the twolined spittlebug (TLSB), but scientists at the University of �鶹��ý at Mānoa have been intensely fighting the invasive insect since its discovery in �鶹��ý in 2016. Within a scant eight generations, TLSB has spread to infest more than 176,000 acres of rangeland on the Big Island. In highly infested areas, the result was nearly 100% die back of key range forages, including kikuyu and pangola grasses. Their loss exposed the land to invasive plants such as pāmakani, wild blackberry and fireweed. Livestock producers faced devastating economic losses.

Within a scant eight generations, TLSB has spread to infest more than 176,000 acres of rangeland on the Big Island.

To combat the problem, the (CTAHR) Extension’s twolined spittlebug team has released a new reporting and decision-support smartphone app for the management of TLSB in �鶹��ý. The tool allows users to learn about and correctly identify TLSB, giving landowners the ability to locate, map and manage outbreaks on their properties. Users can also assist experts as citizen-scientists by using the app’s reporting tool to geolocate sightings of the pest.

Tracking and documenting the spread of TLSB

“The app has four main features,” explains Mark Thorne, a CTAHR specialist. “First, an information guide that provides an overview of TLSB biology and ecology. Next, it helps users identify TLSB in the field and distinguish it from other, non-pest species. Third, users can report sightings of TLSB. Fourth, it allows users to determine the size of the TLSB population, and then, based on the potential damage threshold calculated, select from a series of integrated pest management decisions.”

The CTAHR team, which includes Specialist Mark Wright, Graduate Assistant Shannon Wilson and Assistant Extension Agent Melelani Oshiro, and Daniel Peck from Vestaron Corporation noted the reports include a geo-referenced picture and basic details about the habitat and geographical location of the pest. The reported data is then captured in a database and displayed on a web-based mapping tool.

Users have the option to enter data on TLSB population density and provide estimates on spatial extent and observed damage in their report. Data on TLSB populations is determined by following sampling protocols provided in the fourth tool.

“We spent two years drafting content and working with developers to get the app released, and we’re confident it will facilitate tracking and documenting the spread of this pest and lead to better pest management decisions for rangeland managers,” said Thorne.

To keep track of TLSB sightings, the team has created an administrative that displays a map of TLSB sighting reports by app users.

Go to the or to download the app.

Just say, “JalapeNO!”

Professor Kim Binsted has created an app to stop you from touching your face amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The works for the Fitbit Ionic. The device will vibrate anytime your hand comes near your face.

“I hope it will be a fun way for people to practice good discipline when it comes to hygiene and face touching,” Binsted said.

She is currently teaching a class on Design for Mobile Devices in the , but designed JalapeNO! as a personal project. According to Binsted, on average, office workers touch their faces 23 times per hour.

Binsted said, “What we often do is we brainstorm around a problem and think about how could mobile devices help with that problem?”

JalapeNO! for Fitbit Ionic is currently available for $0.99 at . Next up, Binsted is developing a version of JalapeNO! for the Apple Watch.

If her name sounds familiar, it may be because she is the principal investigator leading the �鶹��ý Space Exploration Analog and Simulation (HI-SEAS) project. That research program, funded by NASA, operated five long-duration planetary surface missions on the Mars-like flank of Mauna Loa to investigate crew composition and cohesion.

—By Kelli Trifonovitch

A research team from the project, which aims to create digital audio spaces and more accessible places, recently conducted another major field study of in-situ audio description at Muir Woods National Monument in California, near San Francisco.

The team, under the direction of principal investigator of the in the UH ����ԴDz� , tested the new audio description of Muir Wood’s park brochure featured in the free and open-source UniD app. The app is designed to make brochures at national parks accessible to those who have trouble seeing them. Audio description is the translation of visual media, such as photographs and maps, into acoustic media in an effort to allow the ear to hear what the eye might not be able to see.

With coordination support from the team’s research partners at Muir Woods and the , the study included participation by nine members of the Silicon Valley Council of the Blind and seven members from the San Francisco Chapter (16 total participants who are blind or visually impaired, plus friends and family, and companion animals).

Co-Principal Investigator Thomas Conway, from the , was on site to coordinate and observe the activities and to conduct the research, including field experiments with the UniD app and a focus group. The UniD app received high marks for ease of use and the quality of audio descriptions, including a consensus opinion that the audio descriptions were properly located, the correct length and added depth to the experience. This field research, including Conway’s participation in the event, was sponsored by Google and the American Council of the Blind as part of a larger grant project focused upon audio describing National Park Service sites throughout California. Last November, the team conducted a similar study of audio description at Yosemite National Park.

The UniD app is available for both and Android smart phones and contains audio description of more than 50 National Park Service brochures so far, including those for Everglades National Park, �鶹��ý Volcanoes National Park, the Statue of Liberty National Monument, Yellowstone National Park and the Washington Monument.

A mobile app that aims to encourage getting tested for HIV on a regular basis among men who have sex with men should include an HIV test location finder and help them track their sexual activities, according to research by the (OPHS) in collaboration with the University of Minnesota.

Public health researchers conducted in-depth interviews with Spanish-speaking men who are homosexual, bisexual, questioning their sexual identity or orientation, or heterosexual but have sexual encounters with other men. The researchers asked the men what features they look for in apps, and what aspects of an app would make them likely to use it.

“We know from previous research that there is a need to improve HIV prevention efforts, including testing rates, for Latino men who have sex with men in the U.S., and to help these men get tested for HIV and other sexually transmitted infections,” said lead author , an OPHS assistant professor. “Mobile apps are a great way to get information and resources out to people but, prior to our research, there weren’t any studies that asked these men what they wanted in an app, and what might motivate them to download an app and keep using it over time.”

Using Facebook ads and flyers the researchers recruited men in the Miami area whose primary language was Spanish. They interviewed 15 men and then analyzed the transcripts of the interviews, looking for common themes.

When asked what they looked for in apps in general, all of the study participants said that it was very important to keep their personal information secure and confidential. Most said they were willing to pay for apps that were useful to them. The men also said they tended to download apps that their friends had used and liked.

As for an HIV testing app, almost all of the men said they would like an app to send them reminders to get tested for HIV on certain dates and to show them the nearest location where they could get tested. Most also said they would like the app to send them information about HIV prevention, either through text messages or alerts, and that they would want a feature in the app that would help them keep track of how many sexual partners and encounters they had.

“These findings have applications for prevention, and could be used to help guide future efforts toward developing HIV testing apps for Spanish-speaking men who have sex with men,” Mitchell said.

The study is in the . Mitchell’s co-authors include Maria Beatriz Torres of Gustavus Adolphus College in Minnesota, Lucy Asmar of the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine in Florida, and Thu Danh and Keith Horvath, both at the University of Minnesota.

—By Theresa Kreif

In continuing efforts to “audio describe the world,” researchers at the took part in a project that brought 26 blind and visually impaired people to for user testing of the UniD mobile app.

Associate Professor in the in the is the principal investigator of the project.

The group tested the new audio description of Yosemite’s brochure featured in the app. The research-instrument app is designed to make brochures at national parks accessible to those who have trouble seeing them.

The effort was coordinated with the California Council of the Blind’s Fresno chapter, the national organization and .

More about the UniDescription Project

The UniD app (available for both and ) contains audio description of more than 50 National Park Service brochures so far, including those for Everglades National Park, �鶹��ý Volcanoes National Park, the Statue of Liberty National Monument, Yellowstone National Park and the Washington Monument.

The research team, led by Oppegaard and from UH ����ԴDz�’s , started the UniDescription project in the fall of 2014 as a way to improve and encourage better audio description. Audio description is the translation of visual media, such as photographs and maps, into acoustic media in an effort to allow the ear to hear what the eye might not be able to see.

• Related UH News stories:
  , December 4, 2014
  , August 10, 2017

A long-range goal of this project is to audio-describe all of the more than 400 park sites throughout the United States.

This field research was sponsored by Google and the American Council of the Blind as part of a larger grant project focused upon audio describing National Park Service sites throughout California.

In their continuing efforts to “audio describe the world,” researchers at the will collaborate with , the (ACB), and the to audio describe print brochures at 15 park sites throughout the state of California.

This latest phase of the will focus on description of the primary print brochures available in California’s national parks, distinguishing it as the first state in the country to feature such widespread accessibility for people who are visually impaired or blind. This research project’s funding, $75,000, will be shared between UH ����ԴDz� and ACB, with the National Park Service adding significant in-kind support at each of the involved sites. Google, which operates out of headquarters in Mountain View, California, was founded under a mission “to organize the world’s information and make it  and useful.” Toward that purpose, it offers various grants for .

More about the UniDescription Project

The UH ����ԴDz� research team—led by associate professor and principal investigator in the  in the College of Social Sciences, and faculty members in the —started the in the fall of 2014, as a way to improve and encourage better audio description. Audio description is the translation of visual media, such as photographs and maps, into acoustic media in an effort to allow the ear to hear what the eye might not be able to see. This UH team already has audio described brochures at 40 National Park Service sites, throughout the country—including at Yellowstone National Park, �鶹��ý Volcanoes National Park and the Washington Monument—with that description planned for release later this year. For its contribution to this phase of the project, the UH team will translate print brochures using the web tool it has created, which includes distribution through mobile apps and websites, while simultaneously studying and refining best practices in the field.

The ACB—including Executive Director Eric Bridges, President Kim Charlson and Dan Spoone, chair of the organization’s Audio Description Project—will be providing multiple quality-control services, including usability and site testing at each park.

The National Park Service, through the service of Michele Hartley, media accessibility coordinator at Harpers Ferry Center, has supported the UniDescription project from its inception. A long-range goal of this project is to audio-describe all of the 400-plus park sites throughout the United States.

—By Lisa Shirota

is on the go thanks to the information technology mobile development team at . The Honolulu CC mobile app, found on the and , will allow students to keep track of their class schedules, find their way around campus and have contact information at their fingertips to student support services. The mobile app will make its campus debut the first full week in September.

“The idea for a mobile application arose as a suggestion from the student council in November 2014,” said Craig Spurrier, developer and programmer at Kapiʻolani CC. “We started working on the application in January of 2015 and by fall of that year we released the app to Kapiʻolani Community College.”

The other members of the mobile application development team include Raphael Lowe, interface designer; Kevin Andreshak, tech operations coordinator; and Brett Botbyl, cartographer. The team worked closely with at the University of �鶹��ý System’s office to integrate student information for the app.

Since the app launched in the fall of 2015 there have been 2,100 downloads on the iOS and 908 on Android. Approximately 20 percent of Kapiʻolani CC students use the mobile app. Some of the main features that student users mentioned using includes an informational campus map, access to class availability and the ‘how do I’ section.

“In the upcoming year most of the focus will be a full System rollout with Honolulu Community College as the second campus to adopt the application,” said Lowe. “As our ability to collaborate with the developers of STAR, the online registration and advising platform for the UH System, and other UH groups expand, we’re hopeful the app will function as a new bridge for students to get vital information they need in this mobile format.”

—By Billie Lueder

, an app created in part by University of �鶹��ý at Mānoa Assistant Professor , provides location-specific data and the risks and benefits of Bermudian fish species. Pirkle worked in close collaboration with Philippe Rouja of the in Bermuda and Tidjane Tall of .

App users can search or browse fish and get detailed information about the mercury concentrations and nutrients such as selenium and omega-3 fatty acids in that particular species. The app also provides information about the sustainability of local and imported fish, as well as which lower mercury level fish can substitute for their higher relatives.

The BeneFISHiary app was recognized with a 2016 . The app is in a beta version with plans for scale-up to other communities and enhanced features including updated fish inventories.

The app was developed following a study on the consumption of fish by pregnant women in Bermuda and the effectiveness of public health messaging on mercury in fish. The study, “” was published in PLOS One. It found that public health messaging warning of the dangers of mercury exposure from consumption of certain fish appeared to be effective, but adjustments needed to be made to promote consumption of healthy and sustainable fish with lower mercury levels. The BeneFISHiary app was created to help consumers make those adjustments, as well as healthcare providers who counsel pregnant women.

The data for the app was collected in Bermuda, however, with additional funding, Pirkle sees the potential to expand the use of the app to �鶹��ý and other coastal communities with strong ties to their local environments.

BeneFISHiary is available for free at the and the .

April 8 update from UH Hilo Stories: The team took part in the championships, March 30–April 1, in San Francisco, California. Although the team was unable to win the national championship, they performed exceedingly well in their booth demo segment and in all around sportsmanship during the event. .

Four seniors from the are on their way to the held March 31 in San Francisco. Team No Sleep members Bryson Fung, Pauleen Pante, Reuben Tate and Anthony Vizzone are participating in the advanced division of the competition, under the category of World Citizenship. This division of the Imagine Cup is a global competition, with efforts specifically geared toward changing the world for the better.

Tate, a and major and the team’s mathematics coordinator, says their program is designed with the intent of improving restoration efforts.

Restoring Ecosystems Services Tool

“We have developed a program that guides users in choosing what species of plants are most beneficial for their restoration goals,” he says. “It does this by looking at properties of each plant species, called functional traits, and seeing which plants are functionally similar to one another via a statistical approach called .”

Fung, a computer science major and the lead programmer elaborates, “(The program is) called , or REST for short. Depending on your purpose, the program can help you build ecosystems that are more fire resistant, more preventative of invasive species, or having more carbon storage (giving ecosystems longer lifespans). The list goes on.”

The tool uses trait and data restoration goals to help build ecosystems tailored to the need of the client.

“Biologists will be using the program to help restore the functionality of the local environment,” says Vizzone, a computer science student and the database manager of the team.

Pante is the team leader. She believes their project could do some serious good for �鶹��ý and eventually have a global impact.

“Around the world, various plant ecosystems are in decline due to factors such as invasive plants, human activity, and plant disease,” she explains. “Restoring these ecosystems is a difficult task since more times than not, it is nearly impossible to restore the ecosystem back to its original state. As a solution, researchers can instead restore ecosystem function by introducing non-native yet non-invasive plants that are similar to their native counterparts as a means of maintaining such ecosystem function. Still, finding similar plants with similar functional traits is not trivial. That is where our program comes in.”

For the full story, see the .

—A UH Hilo Stories article by Shalyn Lewis, a student writer for the UH Hilo Marketing Office.