About
I present the "Suicidal Mind", a theory synthesis modeling exercise aiming to simulate a distressed mind. I will briefly cover the topics of the first talk: the challenges of, and different approaches to suicide research, relevant theories of suicide, and an overview of our model. I will then focus on various forms of model validation, including parameter sweeps, scenario recreation, GAM surface fitting, and multivariate time-series clustering.
Speaker
Gabe McDonnell-Maayan
Gabe McDonnell-Maayan is a PhD candidate in Boston University's Faculty of Computing and Data Sciences whose work bridges computational innovation and pressing societal challenges. His research applies tools from complexity science—such as system dynamics modeling, agent-based modeling, and machine learning—to understand and influence the behavior of complex social systems. Gabe’s primary focus is advancing suicide prevention through computational modeling, enabling policymakers and practitioners to test interventions in silico before implementing them in the real world. Beyond suicide prevention, he has contributed to projects addressing sex trafficking, political polarization, pandemic response, and food security. Prior to his doctoral studies, Gabe worked as a software engineer at the MITRE Corporation and earned his Bachelor of Science in Computer Science from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.