Carl Illustrisimo

I am an incoming PhD student very active with the Responsibility Lab, where I have researched the role automaticity plays in algorithmic bias, and written on the intersections between human and algorithmic bias under Professor Diag Davenport. Currently, we are working on creating a framework to evaluate generative models under realistic information access constraints. I have also done research with Charlotte Burrows and Jenny R. Yang, focusing on auditing AI and the regulation of automated decisions systems in critical domains like employment.

My research interests sit at the intersection of computational social science, social cognition, cultural analytics, and responsible AI. During my PhD, I aim to (1) apply and develop machine learning methods to study human behavior and sociocultural phenomena through social media (Reddit, TikTok) and other born-digital cultural artifacts, and (2) bring social-scientifically informed approaches to the study of algorithms' social effects, particularly in relation to responsible AI.

I am equally drawn to the socio-cognitive dimensions of online environments: how people perceive, appraise, and regulate emotion; how attention and memory operate under these conditions; and how individuals reason about others. Namely, social cognition and theory of mind using digital traces as a window into these processes. Together, these interests point toward a computational social science of digital life.