Kentaro Toyama
Encyclopedia
Kentaro Toyama is a computer scientist and development studies
researcher, who works on the relationship of technology and international development
. He is a visiting scholar at the University of California, Berkeley School of Information.
Toyama was founding assistant director of Microsoft Research
India, a Bangalore-based computer science laboratory, where he established the Technology for Emerging Markets group which conducts interdisciplinary research in the field of "information and communication technologies for development
" (ICT4D). Together with AnnaLee Saxenian
and Raj Reddy
, he co-founded the International Conference on Information and Communication Technologies and Development, a global platform for rigorous, academic, interdisciplinary research in ICT4D.
In 2002, he taught calculus at Ashesi University
in Accra
, Ghana
.
from Yale University
, and an A.B. in Physics
from Harvard University
.
, computer vision
, human-computer interaction, geographic information systems, and multimedia
.
He is best known for his research in ICT4D, which includes technology projects such as MultiPoint
, Text-Free User Interfaces
, Warana Unwired, and Digital Green, as well as observational studies of rural telecenters
, mobile phones in developing countries, and the limits of technology for international development
.
He is an outspoken critic of the "technological utopianism
" that he sees in initiatives such as One Laptop Per Child, and argues that technology only magnifies existing human intent and capacity. A two-part essay making this point appears in a Boston Review forum.
Toyama's research in computer vision involves automated tracking of objects in video. A paper he co-authored with Andrew Blake
was awarded the Marr Prize
at the 2001 International Conference on Computer Vision
.
Development studies
Development studies is a multidisciplinary branch of social science which addresses issues of concern to developing countries. It has historically placed a particular focus on issues related to social and economic development, and its relevance may therefore extend to communities and regions...
researcher, who works on the relationship of technology and international development
International development
International development or global development is a concept that lacks a universally accepted definition, but it is most used in a holistic and multi-disciplinary context of human development — the development of greater quality of life for humans...
. He is a visiting scholar at the University of California, Berkeley School of Information.
Toyama was founding assistant director of Microsoft Research
Microsoft Research
Microsoft Research is the research division of Microsoft created in 1991 for developing various computer science ideas and integrating them into Microsoft products. It currently employs Turing Award winners C.A.R. Hoare, Butler Lampson, and Charles P...
India, a Bangalore-based computer science laboratory, where he established the Technology for Emerging Markets group which conducts interdisciplinary research in the field of "information and communication technologies for development
Information and communication technologies for development
Information and Communication Technologies for Development is a general term referring to the application of Information and Communication Technologies within the fields of socioeconomic development, international development and human rights...
" (ICT4D). Together with AnnaLee Saxenian
AnnaLee Saxenian
AnnaLee Saxenian is a professor and the current Dean of the UC Berkeley School of Information, known widely for her work on technology clusters and social networks in Silicon Valley....
and Raj Reddy
Raj Reddy
Dabbala Rajagopal "Raj" Reddy , a Turing Award winner, is one of the early pioneers in Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence and has served on the faculty of Stanford and Carnegie Mellon University for over 40 years. He was the founding Director of the Robotics Institute at CMU...
, he co-founded the International Conference on Information and Communication Technologies and Development, a global platform for rigorous, academic, interdisciplinary research in ICT4D.
In 2002, he taught calculus at Ashesi University
Ashesi University
Ashesi University is a private, secular, liberal arts college located in Berekuso, a town near Aburi, an hour’s drive from Ghana's capital, Accra. The university opened in March 2002, founded by Patrick Awuah, a graduate of Swarthmore College and Haas School of Business...
in Accra
Accra
Accra is the capital and largest city of Ghana, with an urban population of 1,658,937 according to the 2000 census. Accra is also the capital of the Greater Accra Region and of the Accra Metropolitan District, with which it is coterminous...
, Ghana
Ghana
Ghana , officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country located in West Africa. It is bordered by Côte d'Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, Togo to the east, and the Gulf of Guinea to the south...
.
Education
Toyama received a Ph.D. in Computer ScienceComputer science
Computer science or computing science is the study of the theoretical foundations of information and computation and of practical techniques for their implementation and application in computer systems...
from Yale University
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
, and an A.B. in Physics
Physics
Physics is a natural science that involves the study of matter and its motion through spacetime, along with related concepts such as energy and force. More broadly, it is the general analysis of nature, conducted in order to understand how the universe behaves.Physics is one of the oldest academic...
from Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
.
Academic Research
Toyama's research spans several disparate areas, including ICT4D, development studiesDevelopment studies
Development studies is a multidisciplinary branch of social science which addresses issues of concern to developing countries. It has historically placed a particular focus on issues related to social and economic development, and its relevance may therefore extend to communities and regions...
, computer vision
Computer vision
Computer vision is a field that includes methods for acquiring, processing, analysing, and understanding images and, in general, high-dimensional data from the real world in order to produce numerical or symbolic information, e.g., in the forms of decisions...
, human-computer interaction, geographic information systems, and multimedia
Multimedia
Multimedia is media and content that uses a combination of different content forms. The term can be used as a noun or as an adjective describing a medium as having multiple content forms. The term is used in contrast to media which use only rudimentary computer display such as text-only, or...
.
He is best known for his research in ICT4D, which includes technology projects such as MultiPoint
Windows MultiPoint
Windows MultiPoint Server is a Windows Server-based product that leverages Remote Desktop Services technology to enable multiple simultaneous independent computing stations or terminals to be connected to a single computer.-Windows MultiPoint Server 2010:...
, Text-Free User Interfaces
Text-free user interface
A text-free user interface is a user interface wholly based on graphical UI techniques and without any writing. Text-free UIs are employed in areas where written language may not be understood by the user. For example with young children, international UIs where localisation is not feasible or...
, Warana Unwired, and Digital Green, as well as observational studies of rural telecenters
Telecentre
A telecentre is a public place where people can access computers, the Internet, and other digital technologies that enable them to gather information, create, learn, and communicate with others while they develop essential digital skills...
, mobile phones in developing countries, and the limits of technology for international development
International development
International development or global development is a concept that lacks a universally accepted definition, but it is most used in a holistic and multi-disciplinary context of human development — the development of greater quality of life for humans...
.
He is an outspoken critic of the "technological utopianism
Technological utopianism
Technological utopianism refers to any ideology based on the belief that advances in science and technology will eventually bring about a utopia, or at least help to fulfill one or another utopian ideal...
" that he sees in initiatives such as One Laptop Per Child, and argues that technology only magnifies existing human intent and capacity. A two-part essay making this point appears in a Boston Review forum.
Toyama's research in computer vision involves automated tracking of objects in video. A paper he co-authored with Andrew Blake
Andrew Blake (scientist)
Andrew Blake, FREng, FRS, is a British scientist, Managing Director of Microsoft Research Cambridge, Distinguished Visiting Professor at the University of Edinburgh, and a leading researcher in computer vision.-Career:...
was awarded the Marr Prize
Marr Prize
The Marr Prize is a prestigious award in computer vision given by the committee of the International Conference on Computer Vision. Named after David Marr, the Marr Prize is considered one of the top honors for a computer vision researcher....
at the 2001 International Conference on Computer Vision
International Conference on Computer Vision
ICCV, the International Conference on Computer Vision, is a bi-annual research conference organised by the IEEE. It is considered the top level conference in computer vision, with a 'A+' rating from the Australian Ranking of ICT Conferences...
.