With grief bots, this researcher studies risks of digitally cloning the dead

app: Short for application, or a computer program designed for a specific task. 

artificial intelligence: A type of knowledge-based decision-making exhibited by machines or computers. The term also refers to the field of study in which scientists try to create machines or computer software capable of intelligent behavior. 

audio: Having to do with sound. 

bot: (short for web robot) A computer program designed to appear that its actions come from some human. The goal is to have it interact with people or perform automated tasks such as finding and sharing online information through social-media accounts. 

clone: An exact copy (or what seems to be an exact copy) of some physical object. (v.) To make an exact copy of some physical object. 

colleague: Someone who works with another; a co-worker or team member. 

data: Facts and/or statistics collected together for analysis but not necessarily organized in a way that gives them meaning. For digital information (the type stored by computers), those data typically are numbers stored in a binary code, portrayed as strings of zeros and ones. 

digital: (in computer science and engineering)  An adjective indicating that something has been developed numerically on a computer or on some other electronic device, based on a binary system (where all numbers are displayed using a series of only zeros and ones). 

doctoral: Having to do with a doctorate, a type of advanced degree also known as a Ph.D. 

ethical: (n. ethic) An adjective to describe a code of conduct for how people interact with others and their environment. To be ethical, people should treat others fairly, avoid cheating or dishonesty in any form and avoid taking or using more than their fair share of resources (which means, to avoid greed). Ethical behavior also would not put others at risk without alerting people to the dangers beforehand and having them choose to accept the potential risks. Experts who work in this field are known as ethicists. 

hypothetical: An adjective that described some hypothesis, or proposed explanation for a phenomenon. In science, a hypothesis is an idea that must be rigorously tested before it is accepted or rejected. 

immersive: (in computing) An adjective for the experience of becoming a part of some computer-generated — and therefore imaginary — environment. This experience is usually produced by wearing a headset that provides three-dimensional displays (or nearly 3D imaging) that change as the user moves. In many cases, the user can choose the avatar (the way they look in the environment) and can seemingly walk through the environment. Often they can also reach out and interact with the environment as if it were real and you were truly a part of it. 

intelligence: The ability to collect and apply knowledge and skills. 

literally: An adjective indicating that the phrase it modifies is precisely true. For instance, to say: “It’s so cold that I’m literally dying,” means that this person actually expects to soon be dead, the result of getting too cold. 

media: A term for the ways information is delivered and shared within a society. It encompasses not only the traditional media — newspapers, magazines, radio and television — but also digital outlets, such as Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and WhatsApp. The newer, digital media are sometimes referred to as social media. The singular form of this term is medium. 

niche: A small or narrow pocket that sets something apart, or perhaps offers a region of protection. (In ecology) The term for the role that an organism plays in its community. 

philosophy: (adj. philosophical) A field of research where people investigate the nature of basic truths, knowledge and codes of social behavior. A philosopher might, for instance, search for “the meaning of life,” “what is truth” or “how people should select between two good or equally bad options that are offered to them.” People who perform research in this field are known as philosophers. 

risk: The chance or mathematical likelihood that some bad thing might happen. For instance, exposure to radiation poses a risk of cancer. Or the hazard — or peril — itself. (For instance: Among cancer risks that the people faced were radiation and drinking water tainted with arsenic.) 

scenario: A possible (or likely) sequence of events and how they might play out. 

system: A network of parts that together work to achieve some function. For instance, the blood, vessels and heart are primary components of the human body’s circulatory system. Similarly, trains, platforms, tracks, roadway signals and overpasses are among the potential components of a nation’s railway system. System can even be applied to the processes or ideas that are part of some method or ordered set of procedures for getting a task done. 

technology: The application of scientific knowledge for practical purposes, especially in industry — or the devices, processes and systems that result from those efforts. 

texting: The sending of a text message from a mobile (cell) phone. 

United Kingdom: Land encompassing the four “countries” of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. More than 80 percent of the United Kingdom’s inhabitants live in England. Many people — including U.K. residents — argue whether the United Kingdom is a country or instead a confederation of four separate countries. The United Nations and most foreign governments treat the United Kingdom as a single nation.