Jared Freeman, Ph.D., served Aptima, Inc. as a scientist, executive, and board chair for 25 years. He was Chief Scientist and a Corporate Fellow at Aptima upon his retirement in 2022. He continued on as chairman of the Aptima Scientific Advisory Board through November of 2024.
In his executive role at Aptima, Dr. Freeman assessed the quality of the firm's scientific and technical work through reviews with customers and staff. He managed corporate S&T resources, including Aptima’s Institutional Review Board, Internal Research & Development program, and Scientific Advisory Board. Dr. Freeman was most recently a Principal Investigator for the DARPA programs Artificial Social Intelligence for Successful Teams (ASIST) and Synergistic Discovery and Design (SD2). He managed a multi-company Air Force program to create robust intelligent agents. His prior technical work spans the fields of training, modeling, measurement, human factors, and critical thinking.
Training – Dr. Freeman has served as Principal Investigator on projects to define, design, develop, and validate training systems that enhance, fluid intelligence across domains, command decision making skills across Navy platforms, small unit leadership skills among infantry, unit performance in infantry operations, optimal selection and sequencing of training content in air operations command, intelligent adaptation of feedback and after action reviews in STEM, and analytic and decision skills for information operations. He has managed projects to develop training systems that advance, decision making under uncertainty in Naval air defense, the agility of enemy AI in tactical aviation training systems, critical thinking skills among infantry, robotic systems for operating UUVs to inspect warships, analysis of defenses by military inspection teams, tactical capability of Naval airwings, and communication expertise of AF air warfare controllers.
Modeling – Dr. Freeman has served as Principal Investigator on projects to define, design, develop, and validate models that support tactical planning and decision making in mounted operations, optimal selection and sequencing of training content in air operations command, and staffing new ships. He has managed projects that model defensive cyber operations, agile enemy AI in tactical air, analytics for FINTEL and HUMINT, staff and technologies in future operations centers, collaboration in joint task forces, safety and efficiency in a pediatric oncology ward, teams for future destroyers, staff and processes in Maritime Operations Centers, robotic systems for operating UUVs to inspect warships, and readiness of personnel for future aircraft carriers.
Measurement – Dr. Freeman has served as Principal Investigator on projects to define and operationalize measures of discovery and design in synthetic biology, development of fluid intelligence across domains, command decision making skills across Navy platforms, small unit leadership skills among infantry, innovation in brainstorming and planning meetings, and unit performance in infantry operations. He has managed projects that develop measures of expert decision processes in Naval air defense, analysis and decision skills for information operations, decision making under uncertainty in Naval air defense, shared interpretation of commander's intent in infantry operations, communication expertise among AF air warfare controllers, analysis of defenses by military inspection teams, tactical capability of Naval airwings, and team state and performance across domains.
Human Factors – Dr. Freeman has served as Principal Investigator or manager of projects that address human factors issues in planning defensive cyber operations, cognitive task analysis, technology usability across domains, robotic systems for operating UUVs to inspect warships, and safety and efficiency in a pediatric oncology ward.
Critical Thinking – Dr. Freeman has served as Principal Investigator or manager of projects that explore the development of fluid intelligence and that address issues of discovery and critical thinking in synthetic biology, command decision making between Navy platforms, small unit leadership among infantry, expert decision making in Naval air defense, and mission planning for infantry missions.
Prior to joining Aptima, Dr. Freeman was a scientist at Cognitive Technologies, where he developed a highly automated approach to assessing student knowledge of tactical situations, as well as instructional technology that improved situation assessment and planning by Army officers. Dr. Freeman consulted to Bell Labs for two years, where he conducted research concerning how experts diagnose failures in complex software systems, co-developed a course based on that research, and taught it nationally.
Dr. Freeman served as Chair of the NDIA Human Systems Division from 2017-2019. He has served as an occasional editor to journals in human factors, psychology, and engineering.
Dr. Freeman has published more than 120 papers in journals, books, and conference proceedings concerning these and other S&T initiatives. He has presented or published approximately 50 times in other venues. He and colleagues hold a provisional patent for a novel technique for accelerating human learning, and a patent for a dynamic process modeling technique useful in designing and evaluating human teams.
Dr. Freeman received a Ph.D. in Cognitive Psychology from Columbia University and a M.A. in Educational Technology from Teachers College, Columbia University.
Columbia University, Graduate School of Arts & Sciences, NY – Ph.D. in Cognitive Psychology, specializing in Human Cognition and Learning, 1993. Dissertation: The Organization and Character of Programmers' Knowledge of Software Bugs.
Teachers College, Columbia University, NY – Master of Arts, Educational Technology, 1990. Masters thesis: A Computer-Based Coach for Students of Statistical Probability.
New York University, NY – Course work in knowledge engineering, 1987.
State University of New York at Purchase – B.A. with Honors, Urban Affairs, 1980.
Oberlin College, Oberlin, OH – Undergraduate study in urban affairs and classical music. 1976-78.
2023-2024: Chair of the Scientific Advisory Board of Aptima, Inc.
1999-2022: Chief Scientist, Corporate Fellow, Aptima, Inc., Arlington, VA / Woburn MA.
1993-1999: Research Scientist, Cognitive Technologies, Inc., Arlington, VA
1993: Investigator, Institute on Education & the Economy Columbia University, NY
1991-1992: Instructor, Teachers College, Columbia University, NY
1991: R&D consultant, Merck Pharmaceuticals, Rahway, NJ
1989-1991: R&D consultant, Bell Laboratories, Middletown, NJ
1982-1983: Associate, Pacific Interface, NY, NY
1981-1982: Technical writer, The Ehrenkrantz Group, NY, NY
1979-1981: Contributing editor, Urban Design International, Purchase, NY
Consulting:
Independent consultant or writer for: Sperry Systems (now Unisys) at the U.S. National Maritime Research Center, Kings Point, NY; Symplex Communications Corporation, Ann Arbor, MI; Anritsu Meter Co. of America, Franklin Lakes, NJ; Westinghouse Corporation, MI; Turner Construction, NY, NY; KCS&A Public Relations, NY, NY; The Consultancy, NY, NY; LVM Associates, NY, NY.
Technical trainer for Kornstein Veisz & Wexler, NY; Walter & Peck, Esq., Brooklyn, NY. Instructor with Westchester Co. School District, Gifted Children's Program, NY.
Jackson, C. D., Qi, D., Johansson, A., Wiese, E. E., Salter, W. J., Stelzer, E. M., De, S., Freeman, J. (In press). Distributed Debriefing for Simulation-Based Training. In Dennis A. Vincenzi, John A. Wise, Mustapha Mouloua, Peter A. Hancock (eds.) Human Factors in Simulation and Training. Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press / Taylor & Francis Group. (Available from the publisher here.)
Freeman, J., Huang, L., Wood, M., Cauffman, S.J. (2022). Evaluating Artificial Social Intelligence in an Urban Search and Rescue Task Environment. In: Gurney, N., Sukthankar, G. (eds) Computational Theory of Mind for Human-Machine Teams. AAAI-FSS 2021. Lecture Notes in Computer Science, vol 13775. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-21671-8_5
Freeman, J., Huang, L., Wood, M., Cauffman, S. (2021). Evaluating Artificial Social Intelligence in an Urban Search and Rescue Task Environment. Proceedings of the AAAI 2021 Fall Symposium, 4-6 Nov 2021. Slides.
Freeman, J., Watz, E., and Bennett, W. (2020). Assessing & Selecting AI Pilots for Tactical and Training Skill. Proceedings of the 2020 NATO Modelling & Simulation Group (NMSG) Symposium. Virtual event. 22-23 October 2020. Slides available here.
Cohen, M., Freeman, J., and Bergondy, M. (1997). What Knowledge is Shared? Training Trust in Distributed Decision Making. Proceedings of the Second Annual Symposium and Exhibition on Situational Awareness in the Tactical Air Environment. Patuxent River, MD. (June 3 & 4, 1997). Also available at DTIC here.
Cohen, Marvin S. and Freeman, Jared T. (1997). Improving critical thinking. Proceedings of the 1997 Command and Control Research and Technology Symposium, Washington, D.C.
Cohen M.S., Freeman, J.T., and Thompson, B.B. (1995), Training metacognitive skills for decision making. Proceedings of the Eighth International Symposium on Aviation Psychology. Columbus, OH.
Dubrow, S., Wood, M., & Freeman, J. (2021). Utilizing social network analysis for innovation enterprises. In E. Torres (Co-Chair) & C. Maupin (Co-Chair), Research Incubator: IGNITE-ing Multiteam Systems Research. Paper to be asynchronously presented at the 15th Annual Conference of the Interdisciplinary Network for Group Research. (Virtual conference due to COVID-19). (Slides here)
Fiore, S., Bracken, B., Demir, M., Freeman, J., Lewis, D. (2020). Transdisciplinary Team Research to Develop Theory of Mind in Human-AI Teams. HFES 2020. Panel presentation at the 64th Annual Meeting of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society. October 5-9, 2020. Slides.
Bennett, W., Freeman, J., (2017). Agents from the future. Proceedings of I/ITSEC 2017, Orlando, FL.
Freeman, J. (2017). Cyberpsychology: Panel Discussion. 2017 CASE Workshop on Cyberpsychology, 7-8 June 2017, Norfolk, VA: Norfolk State University.
Freeman, J. & Carlin, A. (2017). Measuring & Enhancing Human Performance. Lecture 7 June 2017 to Naval Postgraduate School, Monterey, CA.
Cohn, J., Stacy, W., & Freeman, J. (2016). Linking the neurobiology of risk perception to behavior: laying the founation for enhancing decision making performance. Panel abstract in the proceedings of Aerospace Medical Association 2016.
Freeman, J. (2016). Using adaptive training systems to optimize learning. Panel presentation at S&T for Blended, Adaptive Language Culture Training Symposium, October 18 –19, 2016, Arlington, VA.
Bruni, Sylvain; Carlin, Alan; Colonna-Romano, JCR; Freeman, Jared; Ortiz, Andres; Saffell, Tiffany; Stacy, Webb; Saffold, Jay; Marshall, Henry. (2013). A Mixed-initiative Approach to Improving Design, User Experience of Experimental Design. UXPA 2013 (User Experience Professionals Association), Washington, DC, July 9-12, 2013.
Hoffman, R., Fiore, S., Andrews, D., Goldberg, S., Andre, T., Freeman, J., Fletcher, J., Klein, G. (2010). Accelerated learning: prospects, issues, and applications. Panel at Human Factors and Ergonomics Society 54th Annual Meeting, San Franciso, CA, 27 Sept - 1 Oct 2010.
Shebilske, W., Levchuk, G., and Freeman, J. (2008). A team training paradigm for better combat identification. Presented at Human Factors in Combat Identification, Scottsdale, Apache Junction, AZ.
Otsby, D., Freeman, J., Weathers, F., Schmorrow, D., and Cohn, J. (2007). Using advanced neurocognitive techniques to ensure Warfighter resilience: Establishing Cognitive Resilience Profile through the use of a Virtual Reality Tool. Poster presented at the 2007 Conference of the Association of Military Surgeons of the U.S., Salt Lake City, Utah.
Coovert, M. D., Freeman, J., Hess, K., Willis, T. J., Gray, A. A., Stilson, F. R., Prewett, M., and Klein, R. (2005, October). Factors influencing collaborative critical thinking in teams. Presentation at the annual meeting of the Society for Multivariate Experimental Psychology, Lake Tahoe, NV.
Prewett, M. S., Willis, T. J., Gray, A. A., Klein, R., and Freeman, J. (2005, May). Critical Thinking Training for Collaborative Computer Simulated Tasks. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Psychological Society, Los Angeles, CA.
Serfaty, D., Freeman, J., Fouse, A. (2020). The marriage of human intelligence and artificial intelligence. MindWorks Podcast. November 2020. Available on Apple (http://ow.ly/R4Bv50D6raZ), Spotify (http://ow.ly/lSta50D6rb0), Buzzsprout (http://ow.ly/XXXC50DiGAv).
Freeman, Jared T. and Grant, David M. (1988, Winter). Designing mailing list systems for public relations. Public Relations Quarterly, pgs. 5-9.
Freeman, J. and Meltzer, R.. (1983 January/February). Researchers use graphics modeling to search for new miracle drugs. Computer Graphics News.
Freeman, Jared. (1983, September/October). Apple's Lisa: Designed with the user in mind. Computer Graphics News.
Freeman, Jared. (1983, September/October). Screen designers explore better displays for users. Computer Graphics News.
Meltzer, R. and Freeman, J. (1983, September/October). Bubbleman. Computer Graphics News.
Freeman, Jared T. (1982, January/February). On-the-job training. Historic Preservation, pgs. 44-49.
Institute for Urban Design. (1982). Education for Urban Design. Purchase, N.Y. (Contributing editor.)
Freeman, Jared T. (1981, July). Solar In The City. Metropolis.
Freeman, J., and Cohen, M. (1995). Methods for Training Cognitive Skills in Battlefield Situation Assessment. Report by Cognitive Technologies, Inc., Arlington, VA for U.S. Army Research Institute Fort Leavenworth Field Unit.
Cohen, M., Freeman, J., et al. (1997). Rapid Capturing of Battlefield Mental Models. Report by Cognitive Technologies, Inc., Arlington, VA for U.S. Army Research Institute Fort Leavenworth Field Unit.
Strange, J.J., Black, J.B., and Freeman, J.T. (1994). An Evaluation of the Effectiveness of Sound-Speler and Fonetic English in Increasing Literacy Skills. Report prepared for The American Literacy council. Reviewed in the Journal of the Simplified Spelling Society, J17, 1994-2 p34.
Freeman, et al. (2013). Institutional Impact Assessment of TECOM's Integrated Approach to Training and Education. Department of the Navy, Office of Naval Research and the USMC Training and Education Command.
Risks & Best Practices Associated with Integration of Professional Development Programs: Preliminary Analysis across Domains. (2014). Department of the Navy, Office of Naval Research and the USMC Training and Education Command.
Gallup, S., Freeman, J., Murch, R. (2008). Human Interoperability: Experimentation to Understand & Improve the Human Component of Complex Systems. Naval Postgraduate School report: NPS-IS-08-005.
Freeman, J.T., and Cohen, M.S. (1998). A Critical Decision Analysis of Aspects of Naval Anti-Air Warfare. Report published by Cognitive Technologies, Inc., Arlington, VA for the U.S. Navy Control Systems Advanced Concepts & Technology (CSACT) Laboratory.
Cohen, M.S., Freeman, J., Marvin, F.F., Bresnick, T.A., Adelman, L, and Tolcott, M.A. (1995). Training Metacognitive Skills to Enhance Situation Assessment in the Battlefield. Report by Cognitive Technologies, Inc., Arlington, VA for U.S. Army Research Institute Fort Leavenworth Field Unit.
Cohen, M.S., Freeman, J., Wolf, S., Militello, L. (1995). Training Metacognitive Skills in Naval Combat Decision Making. Report published by Cognitive Technologies, Inc., Arlington, VA for the Naval Air Warfare Center Training Systems Division.
Levchuk, G., Freeman, J., Shebilske, W. (2020). Probabilistic Decision Making System and Method of Use. U.S. Patent Office document ID: US 20110016067 A1.
Hering, D.E., Kapopoulos, C., Weston, M., and Freeman, J. (2012). Dynamic Process Modeling Assembly and Method of Use (Patent Application). U.S. Patent # 20120116987.
Freeman, J. and Black, J. (Unpublished). Software debugging as a socially situated activity.
Freeman, Jared T. (1993). The Organization and Character of Programmers' Knowledge Concerning Software Bugs. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, Columbia University, New York City. (Available through WorldCat).