QR Code

AI in the Real World

Data, Power, & Society - Day 13

Case Design & Continuing Full Case I

CMSE 492 (aka CMSE 101) • Fall 2026
Prof. Danny Caballero




Today's Six Digits: 271059

Today: Work Time, Plus One New Thing

Most of today is more of what you started Monday: research and drafting for Full Case I.

  • Keep narrowing domain → case → sources.
  • Keep filling in Section 0 as you go.
  • Week 5 Update is due Sunday, Oct 4.

New today: we introduce the Case Design project, the assignment that runs alongside your Case Studies for the rest of the semester.

The Case Design Project

From Analyzing to Proposing

Your Case Studies analyze something that already happened. Case Design proposes something that should happen.

  • Same DTPA framework but we reverse the direction.
  • One document that grows over the whole semester: Scaffold 1 → Scaffold 2 → Final Case Design.
  • Each version gets instructor feedback, and the next version must respond to it in writing.
  • Teams of 3–5, formed this week. Can be your Case Studies group.

Your Case Studies are your best preparation. Many strong Case Designs start from a case your group already analyzed.

Choose a Pathway

Pathway Goal You must deliver
I. Proactive AI Solution Design an AI application that addresses a societal problem. How it works through Data, Tools, Practices, Actions; its bias, ethical boundaries, and impact
II. Targeted AI Restriction Propose a limit, safeguard, or policy constraint on a system with documented or predictable harm. The risky system; evidence-based rationale; DTPA analysis of why it's needed and how it would work

A domain is not a topic — for either pathway.

Narrow until you can name who would use the system (I) or which system, enforced by whom (II).

What a Good Topic Looks Like

Pathway I

  • Too Broad: "Use AI to improve city services."
  • Reasonable Start: A model that helps a mid-sized Michigan city predict which homes have lead service lines, designed so residents can see and challenge their home's prediction. (Builds from the Flint Water Crisis.)

Pathway II

  • Too Broad: "Regulate AI in insurance."
  • Reasonable Start: A requirement that any Medicare prior-authorization denial flagged by an algorithm be reviewed by a clinician in the same specialty before the patient is notified, with rates published quarterly. (Builds on nH Predict.)

The test: could someone who disagrees with you argue against your proposal specifically? If the only objection is "AI is good/bad," it's still too general.

The Document: Three Growing Parts

Part Due Focus Length
Scaffold 1 Fri, Oct 9 Problem, stakeholders, preliminary DTPA scoping 750 words
Scaffold 2 Fri, Nov 6 Full DTPA analysis, evidence base, design direction, response to Scaffold 1 feedback 1,500 words + response doc
Final Case Design Fri, Dec 4 Complete draft proposal, response to Scaffold 2 feedback 3,000 words + response doc

Then: Class Showcase (Dec 7–11) and a Final deliverable (Tue, Dec 15).

You revise earlier sections in place as feedback comes in — this is one report, not three.

The template for Scaffold 1 is already on D2L.

What's Due This/Next Week

  • ✅ Form your Case Design team (3–4 people) — can be your Case Study group.
  • ✅ Pick a pathway (I or II) and a working topic — by Fri, Oct 2.
  • ✅ Start Section 0 of the Case Design template: links, notes, half-formed ideas.

📄 Full template, milestones, and rubric-style checklists: Case Design & Template

Fri, Oct 9 is the next real deadline: Scaffold 1, and Full Case I Week 6 material continues due the same week.

Back to Full Case I

Full Case I: Where You Should Be

By now your group should have:

  • A specific case — named tool, named organization, documented deployment — not just a domain.
  • At least a few sources about the case, not just the domain.
  • A first pass at what you know and don't know across Data, Tools, Practices, Actions.

If you're still holding a domain instead of a case, that's the most important thing to fix today.

Use the Rest of Class

  • Keep researching and narrowing your case.
  • Fill in Section 0 of your Case Study tab.
  • Start drafting answers to the Week 5 Update questions (case statement, sources so far, DTPA readiness, disagreements, plan for Week 6).
  • If your Case Design team is different from your Case Study group, use a few minutes to sync on both.

Reminders

Exit Tickets, D2L, and the Course Website

  • Complete today's Exit Ticket by 11:59pm (on D2L)
  • This week: form your Case Design team and pick a pathway/topic — by Fri, Oct 2
  • Sun, Oct 4: Week 5 Full Case I Update (Part A) due
  • Sun, Oct 4: Individual Effort & Metacognitive Report due
  • Sun, Oct 4: Week 5 domain review → Forum Post due
  • Fri, Oct 9: Case Design Scaffold 1 due