Lisa Torrey - Associate Professor of Computer Science

I teach in the department of Mathematics, Computer Science, and Statistics at St. Lawrence University, where my courses are about programming, algorithms, artificial intelligence, machine learning, and computational theory.

Most of my research has involved agents that learn to perform tasks in virtual worlds using reinforcement learning, with a focus on human-inspired techniques like transfer from other tasks and assistance from other agents, though lately I have been shifting towards the study of human learning in computer science classrooms.

I frequently mentor undergraduate student projects, often in AI and machine learning. Recent projects include:

• Rodrick Mpofu - Honors SYE, Spring 2025
  Explainable Image Classification in Deep Neural Networks
• Lily Kendall - Honors SYE, Spring 2025
  Sensitivity Analysis for Image Generation
• Cooper Anderson - SYE, Spring 2025
  Audio Source Separation with Deep Learning
• Ellie Nichols - SYE, Spring 2025
  Analyzing Avalanche Forecast Patterns and Trends in Sun Valley Idaho
• Mileena Blazonis - SYE, Fall 2024
  Chemical Inventory Management System for the Chemistry Stockroom
• Cooper Anderson - SLU fellowship, Summer 2024
  Using Deep Learning to Categorize Sound Effects
• Laura Bolduc - SYE, Fall 2023
  Using Deep Learning to Predict Wind Direction
• Matthew Abell - Honors SYE, Spring 2023
  Minimax and Monte Carlo Tree Search AI in Gomoku
• Hans Nsengimana - Honors SYE, Spring 2023
  Development of Problem Solving Artifacts for Halma
• Grace Cicchinelli - Honors SYE, Spring 2023
  Playing Cribbage Using Artificial Intelligence
• Taonga Soko - SLU fellowship, Summer 2023
  Analyzing the Strengths and Weaknesses of ChatGPT
• Grace Cicchinelli - SLU fellowship, Summer 2022
  Denoising Protein Images with Deep Learning
• Laura Bolduc - SLU fellowship, Summer 2022
  Identifying Animal Species in Game Camera Images with Deep Learning
• Peyton Hamilton - LAS scholarship, Spring 2022
  Simulating the Spread of Infectious Disease
• Cameron Kessler - SURE fellowship, Summer 2021
  Using Machine Learning to Detect Tumors in MRI Brain Scan Images
• Sam Reyes - LAS scholarship, Spring 2021
  Using Machine Learning to Predict Who Will Vote
• Corinna Pilcher - Honors SYE, Spring 2021
  Using Convolutional Neural Networks in Wildlife Studies
• Peixuan Cai - SYE, Fall 2020
  Exploring Object Detection in Atari Games