In our February Lunchtime Lecture, Dr. Amanda Glazer will explore how data analytics is transforming the world of sports. This talk examines the powerful role of statistics in quantifying player and team performance, projecting future outcomes, and enhancing in-game decision making.

Amanda Glazer joined The University of Texas at Austin in 2024 as an assistant professor. Prior to joining UT, she earned her PhD in statistics from UC Berkeley. Her research focuses on developing causal inference and nonparametric methods, and associated software and tools, that address real scientific problems. While she has a wide range of interests, she is particularly drawn to problems that affect society such as issues of discrimination and social justice. She also conducts research in sports analytics and previously worked as a baseball operations analyst for the San Francisco Giants for four years

With the wave of true-crime stories, it is easy to believe that the American jury system is still in charge of decision-making in our criminal justice system. In contrast, Dr. Mary Rose will discuss the ways that we have, in fact, allowed the jury system to wither, despite the importance our nation’s founders attached to this unique and democratic system. In our March Lunchtime Lecture, Dr. Rose will explore some of the challenges to shoring up our jury system.

Mary Rose received a BA in psychology from Stanford University and a PhD in social psychology from Duke University. She is a professor of sociology at The University of Texas at Austin, where she teaches courses on social science and law as well as social psychology and research methods. She is also an Affiliated Scholar at the American Bar Foundation and an Academic Fellow with the National Civil Justice Institute. She is also an investigator on the landmark study of decision-making among 50 deliberating juries from Pima County, Arizona. She has served on the editorial boards for several journals, and her research has been cited in numerous court cases, including three U.S. Supreme Court cases. In 2022, she was named the Director of UT’s Human Dimensions of Organizations program, which offers bachelor's and master's degrees in the study of people-centered issues and challenges in workplaces and other organizational contexts.

Korey Pereira is a professional sound editor for film, television, and immersive media. He was awarded a Primetime Emmy for his sound editing work on Stranger Things, and he won a Golden Reel for his work on Prey. In 2023, Pereira was elected to his second term on the Motion Picture Sound Editors' Board of Directors. His credits include films from notable directors such as Richard Linklater and Robert Rodriguez. Most recently, he has been the dialogue editor on Law & Order. In addition to his professional work, Pereira has been teaching sound for The University of Texas' RTF department since 2018. In 2023 he became the new Audio Area Head. He was named one of the 2024 Texas 10 by the Texas Exes’ Alcalde magazine. He is the founder of Soularity Sound, a post-production sound company based in Austin, Texas. When not working, Pereira enjoys traveling the world with his wife and recording new sounds along the way.