Satwik Dutta MS’20 is a Eugene McDermott Graduate Fellow and a PhD student in electrical engineering at the Erik Jonsson School of Engineering and Computer Science. He is advised by Dr. John H.L. Hansen, professor of electrical engineering and holder of the Distinguished Chair in Telecommunications who directs the Center for Robust Speech Systems (CRSS) at The University of Texas at Dallas. Dutta’s research focuses on developing artificial intelligence (AI) that helps young children develop speech support. He received the Quad Fellowship, a multinational scholarship program designed to connect the brightest next-generation STEM scholars.
Dutta has participated in research projects focused on children with speech and language delays, including with investigators in the Callier Center for Communication Disorders. He has also held leadership roles in the University’s Graduate Student Assembly. Currently, he serves on the student council of the Acoustical Society of America (ASA) and on the Student Advisory Committee of the International Speech Communication Association (ISCA). He recently attended the 12th University Scholars Leadership Symposium (USLS), Humanitarian Affairs in Bangkok, Thailand.
Dutta shares his thoughts about his recent experiences.
in Victoria, Australia.
In November 2022, I woke up to a call that changed my life. The caller said, “Good morning, Satwik. I am calling from the Quad Fellowship team, and I am so excited to let you know that you were chosen as one of the 100 inaugural fellows. Congratulations!”
While I took a minute to grasp this news, all the hard work over the last few years entered my mind. I was happy to receive such an amazing opportunity, I was excited to meet some of the brightest minds in STEM and I was curious to see what opportunities would come.
Participants from the Science Policy and Advocacy for Research Competition (SPARC) including Dutta (far right) visit the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C.
CONNECTING AT THE SUMMIT
As an inaugural fellow, I traveled to Melbourne, Australia, for a weeklong summit in June 2023. The summit’s sessions covered a broad range of topics including leadership, innovation and intercultural collaboration.
One of my fondest memories was a reception held at the Government House by the governor of Victoria and the premier of Victoria in Australia. I interacted with top diplomats such as Caroline Kennedy, United States ambassador to Australia, and Ambassador Kazuyoshi Umemoto, then-president of the Japan Foundation; pioneers such as Dr. Shirley Malcom, now senior advisor and director of SEA Change foundation at the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) and renowned scientists and academic leaders such as Dr. Brian Schmidt, president of Australian National University, and Christine Bastian, executive vice president and chief people officer at Western Digital.
Dialogue across sectors is an area of critical importance to the host countries.
I thoroughly enjoyed visiting the Healesville Sanctuary where I saw a kangaroo for the first time. Deborah Cheetham Fraillon, a soprano and human rights advocate, delivered a keynote address and performance at the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra. I also attended an Australian Football League (AFL) game at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. Visiting the sanctuary helped me realize Australia’s dedication to caring for the environment. Fraillon’s keynote helped me understand the many challenges faced by Aboriginal Australians and the AFL game opened my eyes to the spirit of football in Australia.
As fellows, we created a strong bond that transcends our cultures. Following the summit, along with few other fellows, I traveled to Cairns, Australia, to explore the Great Barrier Reef, and other fellows have also hosted me in their cities.
Dutta presents at UT Dallas’ 2022 Research Day Poster Competition
UT Dallas mascot Temoc (left) and Dr. Nikki Delk (right), associate professor of biological sciences and Fellow, Cecil H. and Ida Green Professor in Systems Biology Science, support Dutta (center) after he won third place at the UT Dallas Research Day in 2022.
RESEARCH IMPACTS AND
POLICY ADVANCEMENT
The fellowship strongly influenced my academic research. I develop voice AI to analyze adult-child interactions and provide feedback on children’s language development, so I initiated a new research project for analyzing bilingual adult-child interactions. I developed an algorithm to simultaneously identify the language spoken and the speaker in an audio. This research was recently published at the Odyssey 2024: The Speaker and Language Recognition Workshop. This fellowship has also led to new pursuits. In my application, I wrote about my interest in science policy out of concern for protecting children’s privacy.
After listening to the guests in the programming sessions discuss policy engagement, I finally took the plunge into science policy. I participated and won the Science Policy & Advocacy for Research Competition (SPARC) hosted by the Universities Research Association (URA). As a winner, I pitched my policy advocacy and sought feedback from multiple policymakers and committees in the United States Congress and the White House’s Office of Science and Technology Policy.
Months of learning helped me realize the importance of this work. My recommendation was one of 15 policy memos published at the AI Legislation Policy Sprint hosted by the Federation of American Scientists (FAS). I then visited the U.S. Congress again to pitch to policymakers on the Hill.
I am grateful to Dr. Hansen for his mentorship. I am who I am today because of Dr. Hansen — since he is always positive and motivating, I have had freedom to explore, which has been essential for my growth. I am also grateful to my mentors and collaborators for their feedback. I especially want to acknowledge Beth Keithly, the faculty grant and distinguished fellowship advisor at the UT Dallas Office of Graduate Education who reviewed all of my applications.
I believe we should bring our expertise as researchers to the table, especially so our leaders across different sectors and our policymakers can make the best, most-informed decisions that affect society on a global scale. As I learned through my journey as a Quad Fellow and then through SPARC, we will never know our limits until we try.
Dr. John H.L. Hansen
Quad fellowship
Announced on September 24, 2021, by President Joe Biden of the United States of America, Prime Minister Scott Morrison of Australia, Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India and Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga of Japan in the joint Quad Leaders’ Summit statement released by the White House, the original Quad Fellowship scholarship program was designed to build ties among the next generation of scientists and technologists.
The Quadrilateral Security Dialogue, commonly known as the Quad, is a strategic security dialogue between Australia, India, Japan and the United States. The fellowship sponsors students every year from each Quad country and 10 Southeast Asian countries in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) to pursue STEM graduate degrees at leading universities in the United States.
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