Sharena Rice, PhD
Research Scientist. Neurotechnology. Plays well with words.
Mapping + remapping how
minds + machines
make sense of reality
Sharena's Story
Throughout my life, I have run visual simulations and thought experiments in my imagination: a natural gift that allows me to solve problems in the real world. As a child, I volunteered, tinkered with electronic circuitry, trained my dog, and wrote a 45-page documentary on my observations of human behavior. I invested gift card money in science kits.
Fast-forward to the present. I am solving problems in neurotechnology + startups. My current roles:
1) Research Scientist with Sanmai Technologies PBC. After the founders, I am the first hire. We are developing a new medical device that uses focused ultrasound neuromodulation for brain health. This is an investigational device and not currently available for commercial use.
2) Contributing Editor with Neurotech Reports. These articles are written for a corporate audience and available to Neurotech Reports subscribers.
3) Grant Advisor with the Foresight Institute, which seeks to support projects in AI safety.
4) Artist with Holo Art, an international consortium of artists.
My goal is to take as much suffering as possible in this lifetime and invert it by expanding what humans, machines, and narratives can do together.
I like to consider myself first a philosopher, then a scientist, then a technologist. By focusing on the whys, then the whats, then the hows, specifications have a strong foundational underpinning.
Some examples of my works:
Neuroscience research:
- Debugged hardware, software, running behavioral experiments, performing surgeries. Observed and interpreted the how the brain processes spaces.
- Studied neural plasticity, how different molecules are involved in neural signal transmission.
Meditations:
- I have lived in the community of the Zen Buddhist Temple, Ann Arbor, for 22 months. Observed, adjusted interactions between body and mind, relations between beings.
Strategy in artificial intelligence and machine learning startups I have led or advised, based on what humans do:
- Automotive computer vision software that learned to predict pedestrian behavior and sends warnings to the driver - as Chief Scientific Officer at Intvo, back when it was working in this space.
- Wearables that learn based on voice data - as Scientific Advisor at Valence Vibrations.
The best is yet to come.
What is Cybernetics?
Cybernetics is a thread that runs through everything I do.
Cybernetics is an interdisciplinary field about circular feedback loops: systems of systems.
Cybernetics is in both natural and artificial intelligence systems.
I have a high volume of requests.
The best way to connect with me is on LinkedIn, with a good reason.
Mailing List - Substack
