UW-Madison Asst. Prof. Emily Bick develops tools and strategies to support data-driven precision agriculture management techniques. She has created a machine-learning algorithm to detect and identify insect infestations in crops, including boring insects that are difficult to identify without destroying crops. This non-destructive technology, dubbed the “Insect Eavesdropper”, uses audio signals captured by inexpensive microphones to identify infestations and enables a more targeted application of pesticides.

Watch the WARF interview on YouTube

Emily and student Dev Mehrotra also won the 2023 Antlion Pit Competition at the Entomological Society of American national meeting in Washington DC for the Insect Eavesdropper (see photo, above). Congratulations!

 

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