Attention High School Grads: Now You Can Major in A.I.--and Become a Very Hot Job Candidate

It's a college major that sounds straight out of science fiction: Starting this fall, at least two U.S. schools are offering degrees focused on artificial intelligence. Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh announced on May 10 that the school will launch a bachelor of science program in artificial intelligence this fall. "Specialists in artificial intelligence have never been more important, in shorter supply or in greater demand by employers," said Andrew Moore, dean of the School of Computer Science, in a statement. Students in the computer-science school can enter the degree program in their second year. The course of study will include the same computer science and math courses as other students in the school, but will "focus more on how complex inputs -- such as vision, language and huge databases -- are used to make decisions or enhance human capabilities," the statement says.