Eight incredible research projects underway at UTSA’s new San Pedro I

A guest walks up the amphitheater staircase of UTSA's new San Pedro I facility in downtown San Antonio.

FEBRUARY 2, 2023 — From exploring what’s possible with artificial intelligence to uncovering how data science can identify vulnerabilities in a smart home, there’s plenty going on at San Pedro I, the newest addition to UTSA’s campus in downtown San Antonio.

The new high-tech facility, which opened earlier this month, houses the School of Data Science, the first of its kind in Texas, and the National Security Collaboration Center (NSCC), the state’s largest hub for government, academia and industry partners in national security. The facility houses programs in computer science, artificial intelligence, data science, data analytics and statistics as well as 16 UTSA research centers, institutes and labs including the MATRIX: AI Consortium for Human Well-being and the Open Cloud Institute.

Other lab spaces make room for research and teaching in bioinformatics, cyber-informed engineering, data engineering, Internet of Things (IoT), robotics, smart transportation and more.

Here are eight unique projects underway at San Pedro I.

SAY HOLA TO YOUR NEW LANGUAGE TEACHER

Carry on a conversation in Spanish using the VR/AI Language Learning App developed in collaboration between the NSCC, Leidos Inc. and the Sixteenth Air Force at Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland. The app, whose software was developed by a UTSA computer science student, is designed to help military service members brush up on their linguistic skills during training without an instructor present. The app also helps tackle the issue of cybersickness when using virtual reality.

CAN YOU TRUST YOUR SMARTWATCH?

Researchers in the UTSA SPriTELab (Security, Privacy, Trust & Ethics in Computing) are studying how sensors on consumer electronic devices can be exploited to capture sensitive and personal information about users.

ROBOTIC TEAMWORK

Researchers are working to control thousands of robots simultaneously, known as swarm robotics, to preform complicated tasks that could benefit different areas in the community from law enforcement to drone deliveries.

DISCOVER AN ANCIENT CIVILIZATION

Visiting one of Peru’s oldest temples and walking through a museum of Andean artifacts is all possible with digital anthropology. UTSA researchers are using virtual and augmented reality to enrich our understanding of ancient societies.

HOW SECURE IS YOUR SMART HOME?

As homes become smarter, researchers in the Internet of Things (loT) and Digital Forensics lab are conducting vulnerability analyses and digital forensic analyses on smart home and commercial security devices. 

WHEN BIOLOGY AND COMPUTER SCIENCE MEET

UTSA researchers in Computational Biology are exploring how complex, massive biological data sets are being converted into discoveries and improved cancer outcomes.

BECOME A HACKER TO BEAT A HACKER

To protect computing and manufacturing devices, researchers in the UTSA Cloud Lab for Applied Engineering are first learning how to attack or hack them.

CYBERSECURITY PROBLEM SOLVERS

How do Texas non-profit organizations protect themselves and their donors from ransomware and cyber-theft? The NSCC National Security Collaboration Center in coordination with MITRE and the UTSA Department of Computer Science have created a unique academia-public-private program called Project Xander for San Antonio to address threats against non-profits, including youth and faith-based organizations. The initiative is giving UTSA students hands-on learning experience to make them more competitive job candidates for employers.

— Michelle Gaitan