All too often, artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning get demonized in pop culture as being the harbinger of human armageddon. However, when we separate fact from science fiction, we find that AI is a powerful tool that can be harnessed for the greater good. For instance, in the study of infectious diseases, AI can be used to help identify transmission patterns, population susceptibility, and even drug resistance. To that point, investigators at Duke University have shown in a new study that different strains of the same bacterial pathogen can be distinguished by a machine learning analysis of their growth dynamics alone, which can then also accurately predict other traits such as resistance to antibiotics.
