Date: Feb 26, 2014 Author: Don Seiffert Source: bizjournals (
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by: Don Seiffert
Charles River Analytics, a privately-held company that specializes in computer intelligence for defense and business purposes, had gotten a $500,000 contract from the Office of Naval Research to create a model of how human intuition works.
The Cambridge, Mass.-based company said that the project is part of a larger research effort to "enhance intuitive decision-making through implicit learning basic research" valued at $3.75 million over four years.
The company plans to focus on training sonar operators, small unit leaders, unmanned systems operators, information analysts, and others to make decisions quickly without years of training and on-the-job experience.
"We will enable Warfighters to develop and then trust their gut instincts, giving them a decisive edge on the battlefield. Intuition is the next great frontier for training," said James Niehaus, a scientist at Charles River.
Charles River, which was founded in 1983 and has about 135 employees, has developed techniques for creating computational models of complex phenomenon. The goal of an Army contract last year was to create tools for the improvement of first-aid skills and training using its various symbols that represent emergency medical procedures. Last month the company was hired by NASA to develop a way to detect volcanic eruptions, storms and algae blooms from satellite imagery.
For the Navy program, Charles River plans to use its probabilistic programming environment, Figaro, to analyze data on how participants perform intuitive tasks. The company's partners on the effort include DSCI Mesh Solutions LLC, Northwestern University, Defense Group Inc., the University of California at Los Angeles, and MIT.
