Jonathan Barlow is Associate Director of the Data Science Program and an Assistant Teaching Professor. Previously, Barlow was an associate director at NSPARC, a research center at Mississippi State University. Before joining Mississippi State in 2012, he worked for 15 years in the private sector. With a background in industry and university research, Barlow has more than 25 years of experience in software development, data modeling, data-intensive applications, and data analysis. Barlow received his Ph.D. from Saint Louis University. His data science research interests involve natural language processing and the ethics of artificial intelligence.

Barlow teaches several courses within the Data Science program including:

• DSCI 2013 Data Science Literacy
• DSCI 2012 Data Wrangling Lab
• HON 2283 Who’s the Monster?
• DSCI 3013 Fundamentals of Data Acquisition
• HON 3143 Technology and the Human Future
• DSCI 4000 (DIS) Data Science Computing
• DSCI 7000 (DIS) Data Science Ethics and Governance
• DSCI 8013 Data Science Pedagogy 1
• DSCI 8023 Data Science Pedagogy 2
• DSCI 8133 Foundations of Data Science 1

He is passionate about connecting students with resources that allow for exploring the use of data to solve real-world problems in areas as diverse as sports, financial markets, the environment, sociology, and economics.

Barlow, J., & Holt, L. (2024). Attention (to Virtuosity) is all You Need: Religious Studies Pedagogy and Generative AI. Religions, Special Issue: Religion and/of the Future, 15(9). URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/15/9/1059.

Parisi, D., Barlow, J., & Warkentin, M. (2023). Editorial: Where the data meets the road in the Industry 4.0 economy. Journal of Intellectual Capital, 24(3), 601-609.

Luczak, A., Jones, J. A., Burch, R., Barlow, J., Nelsen, P., Grice, S. M., . . . & Morgan, C. (2022). Advancing tangible augmented game objects for use in a golf swing, self-service training environment: Report of Work-in-Progress with a Multidisciplinary Emphasis. In 2022 IEEE Conference on Virtual Reality and 3D User Interfaces Abstracts and Workshops (VRW) (pp. 136-140).

Luczak, A., Nelsen, P., Ball, J., Burch, R., Barlow, J., Duclos, M., Grice, S., & Taquino, M. (2022). A Survey of Technical Challenges in Computer Vision via Machine and Deep Learning for Human Pose Estimation. IISE 2022 Conference Proceedings.

Luczak, T., Burch, R., Nelsen, P., Freeman, C., Chander, H., Ball, J., Jones, J. A., Barlow, J., Saucier, D., Duclos, M., Grice, S., & Taquino, M. (2022). Athlete Engineering BaseLine Ecosystem: Innovative Technologies to Enhance Human Performance. TechConnect Conference Proceedings.

Barlow, J. (2006). Temperance Movement and Revivals. In M. McClymond (Ed.), Encyclopedia of Religious Revivals in America (Vol. 2). Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Press.

Barlow, J. (2003). John de Sacrobosco. In The New Catholic Encyclopedia (2nd ed.). Washington, D.C.: Catholic University of America.

Barlow, J. (2002). Places Index. In R. Armstrong, W. Short, & J. Hellmann (Eds.), Francis of Assisi, Early Documents (Vol. 4). New City Press.

Moorhead, R.J., Hamann, B., Everitt, C., Jones, S., McAllister, J., & Barlow, J. (1994). Oceanographic Visualization Interactive Research Tool (OVIRT). SPIE/IS&T Electronic Imaging, San Jose, CA, SPIE Vol. 2178, pp. 24-30.

Barlow, J. (2024). AI Goes to College: Learning and Living with AI in Research, Teaching, and Service. Keynote Presentation for Generative AI Day, MSU Library, October 2024.

Barlow, J. (2024). Higher Education and Artificial Intelligence. Witness, Joint Senate and House Technology Committee Hearing, Mississippi Legislature, September 12, 2024.

Barlow, J., Holt, L. (2023). Attention (to Virtuosity) is all You Need: Religious Studies Pedagogy and Generative AI. Presented at the American Academy of Religion Annual Meeting, November 2023.

Barlow, J. (2023). The Balancing Act for AI: Responsibility and Ethics. Panelist at the 2023 Mississippi Digital Government Summit, September 2023.

Barlow, J. (2023). Generative AI for Local Economic Developers. Presentation at the North Mississippi Industrial Development Association, June 2023.

Barlow, J. (2023). Generative AI: Creating More Time for Taking Care of What Matters. Presentation for the MSU National Research and Training Center on Blindness and Low Vision, July 2023.

Barlow, J. "Generative AI in Context: An Overview" Prepared for the Mississippi State University Faculty Meeting to Discuss ChatGPT at Mississippi State University (April 21, 2023)

Barlow, J. (2023). Data Science at MSU and Beyond. Conceived of the idea for and mediated the participation of the nation's first AI panelist who participated alongside human interlocutors in this event sponsored by the Office of Research and Economic Development at Mississippi State University, April 2023.

Barlow, J. “Data Science Overview” as guest lecturer to GE 1911 Introduction to Engineering course. (September 26, 2022)

Barlow, J. “Data Science Pedagogy Certificate” at Mississippi Community College President’s Council Meeting. (June 28, 2022)

Luczak, T., Nelsen, P., Ball, J. E., Burch, R., Barlow, J., Duclos, M., Grice, S. M., Taquino, M. (2022). A survey of technical challenges in computer vision via machine and deep learning for human pose estimation. IISE 2022 Conference Proceedings.

Luczak, T., Burch, R., Nelsen, P., Freeman, C., Chander, H., Ball, J., Jones, J. A., Barlow, J., Saucier, D., Duclos, M., Grice, S., Taquino, M. (2022). Athlete Engineering BaseLine Ecosystem: innovative technologies to enhance human performance. TechConnect Conference Proceedings.

Barlow, J. “Data Science at Mississippi State University” at NSF EPSCoR Workshop: Artificial Intelligence (AI) with No-Boundary Thinking (NBT) to Foster Collaborations in Research, Education and Training. (April 4, 2022)

Holt, L., Barlow, J., Johnson, C., McCool, R. (2018). Machine Reason: Algorithmic Insight for Humanists. [Conference Presentation] New Directions in the Humanities, Philadelphia, PA, United States.

Barlow, J. (2007). Francis Spira and the Puritan Theology of Apostasy. [Conference Presentation] Midwest Regional American Academy of Religion (AAR) Meeting.

Barlow, J. (2008). Thought Experiments of the New Atheism. [Conference Presentation] Midwest Regional American Academy of Religion (AAR) Meeting.

Mississippi Supreme Court Drug Intervention Court Reporting Project, 2024-Present
Project to streamline report generation for statewide court data.

Mississippi Unified Workforce System, 2014-2022
In the wake of the 2014 reauthorization of the Workforce Innovation Act, based on the vision of Mississippi’s governor and the founder of NSPARC, Dr. Mimmo Parisi, I designed an interagency public data system connecting case management data, including real time referrals, between four diverse agency information technology contexts. This digital platform supported Mississippi’s case management approach as proposed in its 2014 Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) plan and served as a model for other states in how to connect and use data across agencies in real time to increase efficiency. After designing the system, known was the WIOA Hub, I led a software team to implement the technology, conduct identity resolution across multiple agencies, successfully integrate four agency systems, and provide ongoing support for the system. In addition, I created a United States Department of Labor grant proposal that secured $1M in funding to support the development of the hub system and integration of the system with agency systems.

SNAP Recipient Integrity Information Technology Grant, 2015-2018
I assisted the Mississippi Department of Human Services in creating a grant proposal for $1.9M to fund efforts to use machine learning techniques to detect fraudulent SNAP transactions and create a data system to manage cases created to pursue suspected traffickers. The grant was funded in September of 2015.

MDES / MDOC Employment Connections 2015
Working with the Mississippi Department of Employment Security (MDES) and the Mississippi Department of Corrections (MDOC), I designed a software system that allows ex-offenders to create an initial workforce profile that could "go live" within Mississippi’s labor exchange when released.

SNAP E&T Pilot Grant Application and Project Implementation 2014-2021
Assisted the Mississippi Department of Human Services (MDHS) in creating a grant proposal to fund a SNAP Education and Training Pilot with an innovative idea to move SNAP participants towards self- sufficiency using wraparound counselors and an intensive assessment and career-readiness class that models the rigors of a typical workplace. The grant was funded at $22M.

MS Works Mobile Application 2013-2022
Designed and developed native mobile applications that interface with the MDES labor exchange. The entire Mississippi Works project, web and mobile, received a 2014 Best of the Web / Digital Government Achievement Award in the Government-to-Citizen category.

MDES Online Labor Exchange - Interface and Functionality Improvements 2012-2022
Worked within a team to support, maintain, and enhance the Mississippi Department of Employment Security online job board. I designed a new adaptable user interface that launched for employers and jobseekers in December of 2013, including innovative job matching and messaging features. The system won a "Best Practices" award from the Center for Full Employment.

Free Textbooks:

• Introduction to Probability for Data Science by Stanley Chan
• An Introduction to Statistical Learning by Gareth James, Daniela Witten, Trevor Hastie, Robert Tibsharani, and Jonathan Taylor
• An Introduction to Graph Theory by Darij Grinberg
• The Little Book of Machine Learning by François Fleuret

Free Online Courses

• MIT 18.06SC Linear Algebra with Professor Gilbert Strang

Data Catalogs

• Microsoft: Planetary Computer Data Catalog

Inspiration for Innovation and Entrepreneurship

• How to Start Google by Paul Graham

Becoming a Better Programmer

It's often very helpful to look at the work of professionals, especially those who create code in an elegant and efficient style. In addition, people who create programming languages usually create style guides to express their preference for what clean code looks like. Finally, there are some skills you'll need to hone over time as a professional. Here are some fun places to start:

• How to Write a Spelling Corrector by Peter Norvig
• Python Style Guide by Guido van Rossum
• The Missing Semester of Your CS Education from MIT