Dr. Thanh-Son Pham is an ARC DECRA Research Fellow in the Geophysics Department at The Australian National University’s Research School of Earth Sciences. His research focuses on using seismic waves to study Earth’s interior structures, from polar ice sheets to the inner core. He has pioneered methods like teleseismic P-wave coda autocorrelation and coda correlation wavefield analysis, leading to breakthroughs such as detecting J-waves in the inner core and identifying an innermost inner core layer. His work has been featured in Science , Nature Communications , and international media. He holds a PhD from ANU (2019) and has supervised research projects on Antarctic seismology and earthquake source physics. Awards include the 2024 Zatman lectureship from SEDI. Current projects include probing Antarctic ice sheets via correlation seismology and advancing machine learning tools for deep Earth studies. Education: PhD in Geophysics (ANU, 2019), Graduate Diploma in Earth System Physics (ICTP, 2015), BSc in Applied Mathematics (Hanoi University, 2013) Research interests span seismic source inversion, Antarctic ice dynamics, and inner core anisotropy. His 2024 articles address Hunga Tonga eruption mechanics and PKIKP wave analysis using deep learning. Media highlights include BBC, NYT, and ANU press releases.
Jacqui Webster is a Professor of Public Health at the University of Technology Sydney (UTS), leading the WHO Collaborating Centre on Nursing, Midwifery and Health Development. She serves as the Secretariat for the South Pacific Chief Nursing and Midwifery Officers Alliance (SPCNMOA) and continues collaborating with The George Institute for Global Health on salt reduction research. Key Grants: NHMRC Investigator Grant (Leadership 2), NHMRC IDEAS Grant, Global Alliance for Chronic Diseases grants Collaborations: Fiji National University, Deakin University, University of Sydney, UNSW, Northwestern University Her research focuses on reducing cardio-metabolic diseases through food/water security programs and salt reduction policies. Recent articles analyze potassium-enriched salt adoption barriers, global water sodium standards, ultra-processed food impacts in Fiji, and pandemic-related dietary shifts in Australia. She authored the public health-themed book Two Bugs on Bikes (Hembury Books 2025) based on her cycling journey across Europe and Africa. At UTS, she mentors early-career researchers and supports strategic operations for the WHO Collaborating Centre.
Corina Pasareanu is an ACM Fellow and IEEE ASE Fellow serving as a Principal Scientist at Carnegie Mellon University's CyLab Security and Privacy Institute and Technical Professional Leader for Data Science at NASA Ames Research Center through KBR. Her work bridges formal methods, software verification, and artificial intelligence to ensure the safety and security of complex systems, particularly autonomous systems and machine learning applications. Dr. Pasareanu received her academic training at: Ph.D. in Computer Science, Kansas State University (2001) M.S. in Computer Science, University Politehcnica of Bucharest (1995) B.S. in Computer Science, University Politehcnica of Bucharest (1994) Her research focuses on developing formal verification techniques that can provide mathematical guarantees about the behavior of complex software systems. She specializes in applying model checking, symbolic execution, and compositional verification methods to challenges in autonomy, security, and AI safety. Her recent work addresses the verification of systems incorporating machine learning components, particularly neural networks used in safety-critical applications like autonomous vehicles. She investigates how to ensure these systems behave correctly even when their perception components have uncertainties or are subject to adversarial attacks. Analysis of her recent publications shows a strong trend toward verifying AI and machine learning systems, particularly focusing on neural networks in autonomous systems. Her work increasingly addresses the challenges of Large Language Models, examining both their vulnerabilities to attacks and methods to defend against them. She also continues to advance traditional software verification techniques while adapting them to modern programming languages and paradigms. Dr. Pasareanu has received numerous prestigious awards recognizing her contributions to the field: ACM Fellow IEEE ASE Fellow ETAPS Test of Time Award (2021) ASE Most Influential Paper Award (2018) ESEC/FSE Test of Time Award (2018) ISSTA Retrospective Impact Paper Award (2018) ACM Impact Paper Award (2010) ICSE 2010 Most Influential Paper Award (2010) As an advisor, Dr. Pasareanu mentors several PhD students and postdoctoral researchers, often in collaboration with other faculty members at CMU. Her students focus on cutting-edge research at the intersection of formal methods and AI safety. Her research is supported by substantial funding from diverse sources including NSF, DARPA, NASA, AWS, and industry partnerships. She leads multiple projects focused on AI security, formal verification of neural networks, and software analysis techniques. Dr. Pasareanu also plays a significant role in the broader research community, serving as Program/General Chair for major conferences including ICSE 2025, and as an associate editor for IEEE TSE and STTT. Dr. Pasareanu leads research teams working on projects like "Trinity: Neurosymbolic Learning and Reasoning" (DARPA) and "HUGS: Human-Guided Software Testing and Analysis" (NSF). Her work often involves interdisciplinary collaboration between computer scientists, formal methods experts, and domain specialists to address complex safety challenges in autonomous systems.
Dr. Kirsten Winter is an Honorary Senior Fellow at the University of Queensland's School of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science. Her research focuses on formal verification, concurrent programming, and weak memory models. She has contributed significantly to areas such as model checking, railway interlocking systems, and behavior trees. Her work spans theoretical foundations (e.g., linearizability, concurrency semantics) and practical applications in security and embedded systems. Recent projects include the Program Analysis Cell and BASIL: Boogie Analysis for Secure Information-Flow Logics. Winter has collaborated extensively with researchers like Graeme Smith and Robert Colvin. Her most recent publications address speculative execution vulnerabilities and compositional reasoning in weak memory architectures.
Miao Li is a Senior Lecturer in Engineering at Charles Sturt University, affiliated with the School of Computing, Mathematics and Engineering. She is a member of the Imaging and Sensing Research Group and the Sustainability in Engineering Research Group (SERG) at the Gulbali Research Institute. Her academic journey includes a PhD in Civil Engineering from Griffith University and earlier degrees in geological and engineering geology from Chinese institutions. Doctor of Philosophy (Civil Engineering) Master of Science (Geological Engineering) Bachelor of Science (Engineering Geology) Dr Li's research spans computational mechanics, numerical modeling, wastewater treatment, and non-linear structural dynamics, with a strong focus on sustainable engineering solutions. Her work contributes to UN Sustainable Development Goals through innovations in geotechnical systems, energy storage, and low-carbon construction. She has published extensively in top journals, with recent work focusing on adaptive mesh refinement, rock damage modeling, and frost heave in soils. Her recent publications highlight a trend toward high-fidelity numerical simulations and experimental validation in geotechnical and structural systems, particularly under extreme or cyclic loading conditions. She applies computational fluid dynamics and finite element methods to solve complex engineering problems in energy, infrastructure, and environmental resilience. Executive Dean Teaching Award (2024) Fellow of Advance HE (2025) Dr Li is a registered thesis supervisor and actively mentors students through research projects and industry placements. She has secured research recognition through awards and grants, and her work is frequently covered in press and media, reflecting its real-world impact. She participates in major international conferences in ocean, offshore, and structural engineering, and contributes to editorial and academic organizing roles. She leads research initiatives within the Imaging and Sensing Research Group and SERG, focusing on smart sensing, sustainable materials, and computational modeling for resilient infrastructure.
Associate Professor Joe Gattas is affiliated with the University of Queensland's School of Civil Engineering , where he leads the Folded Structures research group. His work bridges origami-inspired engineering , computational building design , and advanced manufacturing , with a focus on lightweight/modular structures and timber engineering . Education: BEng (2009) and PhD (2013) from the University of Queensland and University of Oxford, respectively. Research interests emphasize digital fabrication , hybrid materials , and structural innovation . His recent publications highlight trends in timber-CFRP composites , self-shaping structures , and value chain optimization for sustainable timber use. Scientific awards include the prestigious John Monash Scholarship . He actively supervises PhD and Master’s students in projects related to timber composites , structural optimization , and low-cost housing . Joe contributes to ARC Research Hub initiatives , co-leading Manufacturing Innovation and Value Chain Innovation nodes, and develops open-source tools like TimberTracker to visualize timber supply-demand dynamics.
Dr. Mike Bambach is a Senior Lecturer at the University of Sydney's School of Civil Engineering, where he also serves as Director of the Centre for Advanced Structural Engineering and Undergraduate Program Director for Civil Engineering. His research spans composite materials, crashworthiness, and structural optimization. Structural Engineering Composite Material Analysis Road Safety & Impact Mechanics Research Interests Dr. Bambach investigates advanced structural systems using fiber-reinforced polymers (FRP), natural fiber composites for sustainable construction, and crash energy absorption in transportation systems. His work combines experimental testing with numerical modeling to improve structural performance under extreme loads. Recent Publications (2025-2018) Current research focuses on natural fiber composites for structural applications, hybrid metal-composite energy absorption systems, and innovative buckling control mechanisms. Key trends include sustainable material development and dynamic structural response analysis. Teaching & Supervision He teaches foundational civil engineering courses and supervises PhD/Master's students working on projects like AI-based quality control in steel fabrication, sustainable cementitious composites, and deep foundation reuse solutions.
Professor Athman Bouguettaya is a Professor and former Head of the School of Computer Science at The University of Sydney. He holds prestigious titles including IEEE Fellow and ACM Distinguished Scientist. His research focuses on service computing, IoT, and cloud computing, with notable contributions to energy crowdsourcing, drone delivery systems, and trust management in IoT environments. Education: PhD in Computer Science (University of Colorado, 1992) Previous roles: Head of School at RMIT University, Science Leader at CSIRO, and faculty member at Virginia Tech Research Interests: IoT Energy Crowdsourcing: Leveraging wireless energy sharing between devices Drone Delivery Systems: Optimizing aerial routes and swarm coordination Trust in Crowdsourced Services: Blockchain-based frameworks for IoT trust Awards and Honors: IEEE TCSVC Research Innovation Award (2019), ACM Distinguished Speaker (2012), and IEEE Fellow (2010). Grants and Funding: Multiple competitive grants from Australia, USA, EU, China, Qatar, and industry partnerships with HP and Sun Microsystems.
Toby Murray is a Professor in the School of Computing and Information Systems at the University of Melbourne, where he serves as Director of the Defence Science Institute and Co-Lead of the Computer Science Research Group. His work bridges formal methods, cybersecurity, and practical system security, with significant contributions to verified security and vulnerability detection. Murray's research focuses on building highly secure computing systems cost-effectively, with expertise in formal verification, information flow security, and vulnerability detection. His current research projects include Verisimilar (Verified, Secure Machine Learning), EDEFuzz (Detecting excessive data exposure in web applications), COVERN (Proving information flow security of concurrent programs), and Time Protection (Proving timing channel freedom for seL4). His work combines theoretical rigor with practical implementation, resulting in multiple open-source tools including SecC, Legion, and Underflow. Murray's recent publications demonstrate a consistent focus on verified security properties across diverse domains, from neural networks to concurrent systems. His work often bridges the gap between formal methods and practical security concerns, with increasing attention to machine learning security and policy implications of technical security measures. His publications span top venues in security, formal methods, and software engineering. Distinguished Paper Award at ICSE 2024 for EDEFuzz work on detecting excessive data exposure in web applications Extensive media commentary on cybersecurity issues including CrowdStrike outage analysis and social media regulation Regular contributions to The Conversation and Pursuit on cybersecurity policy matters Murray has advised numerous PhD students to completion, including Lianglu Pan (EDEFuzz), Zhiyuan Zhang, Mo Zhang, and Renlord Yang. He currently supervises multiple PhD students working on security verification, machine learning security, and web application security. His service includes being Program Chair for CSF'25, Associate Editor for IEEE Security & Privacy and ACM TOPS, and membership in IFIP's WG 1.7 and WG 2.3. His research group has developed multiple significant software tools including SecC (Verified Security for Concurrent C Programs), Legion (Principled Automatic Test Case Generation), and Underflow (Compositional Vulnerability Detection for C Programs), all available under open source licenses. Murray's work often involves discovering and reporting bugs in security analysis tools during his research, demonstrating the practical impact of his verification approaches.
Santiago Badia is a Professor of Computational Mathematics at Monash University's School of Mathematics since 2019. Previously, he held roles at UPC (Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya) as Professor of Computational Science and Engineering (2009–2019) and was an adjunct researcher at CIMNE (Barcelona), leading the Large Scale Scientific Computing Department. He earned his PhD in 2006 from UPC, with prior work at Politecnico di Milano (2006) and Sandia National Labs (2007–2008). His research focuses on numerical approximation of PDEs using finite element methods, with applications in fluid/solid mechanics, electromagnetics, and multiphysics problems. He leads high-performance computing projects like FEMPAR (scalable PDE solvers) and Gridap (Julia-based PDE framework). His work includes perfect weak scalability on supercomputers and solving PDEs with up to 60 billion unknowns. Research interests span computational science, numerical analysis, parallel computing, and numerical linear algebra. Projects address challenges in fusion energy, additive manufacturing, and nuclear waste repositories. He actively supervises PhD students through funded projects, emphasizing computational modeling and simulation. Collaborations include international teams in geophysical fluid dynamics and stochastic inverse problems. His software frameworks (FEMPAR, Gridap) are widely used for industrial and academic research, emphasizing scalability and usability.
Christine Rizkallah is a Senior Lecturer in the School of Computing and Information Systems at the University of Melbourne, Australia. She joined the university in December 2021 after serving as a Lecturer at the University of New South Wales (UNSW) from April 2018 to December 2021. Her research focuses on interactive theorem proving, formal verification, programming languages, and systems, with an emphasis on building practical tools for high-assurance software development. She leads a research group working on the Cogent and Dargent languages, aiming to reduce the burden of formal verification in systems programming. Education: PhD in Computer Science, Universität des Saarlandes and Max-Planck-Institut für Informatik, Germany (2015), thesis: Verification of Program Computations , supervised by Prof. Dr. Kurt Mehlhorn. MSc in Computer Science, Universität des Saarlandes, Germany (2009), thesis: Proof Representations for Higher Order Logic , supervised by Prof. Dr. Gert Smolka and Dr. Chad E. Brown. BSc in Computer Science, German University in Cairo, Egypt (2007), thesis: X2-Planner: A Hierarchical Task Network Planner for Real Time Gaming Applications , supervised by Prof. Dr. Slim Abdennadher and Dr. Thorsten Maier. Her research interests lie at the intersection of programming languages and formal methods. She develops domain-specific languages with strong type systems and verified compilers to enable trustworthy software systems. Her work spans algorithms, logic, security, and social choice theory, reflecting a strong interdisciplinary approach. She has published extensively in top venues such as POPL, ICFP, ASPLOS, JAR, and PACMPL, with a focus on certifying compilation, refinement verification, and mechanized reasoning. Her recent publications reveal a consistent focus on formal verification of systems software, particularly through the Cogent language and its ecosystem. Key themes include verified data layout refinement (Dargent), property-based testing, termination analysis, cost modeling, and integration with foreign functions. Her work combines theoretical rigor with practical implementation, often involving mechanized proofs in Isabelle/HOL and Coq. Scientific Awards and Recognition: Distinguished Artefact Award at SLE'22 (awarded to Zilin Chen for work under her supervision). First Prize, SPLASH'22 Student Research Competition (undergraduate), won by Raphael Douglas Giles. Second Prize, ACM-wide Student Research Competition (undergraduate, 2023), won by Raphael Douglas Giles. She has supervised numerous PhD, Masters, and Honours students, many of whom have continued in academia or industry research roles. She has received research funding through institutional support and collaborative grants, though specific grants are not detailed in the provided text. She is actively involved in the programming languages community, serving on program committees for POPL, ICFP, CPP, PLDI, and others, and holding leadership roles such as Program Chair for FUNARCH'25 and Diversity and Inclusion Co-Chair for PLDI'25. She teaches core courses including Declarative Programming and Models of Computation at the University of Melbourne. She leads a vibrant research team and collaborates widely across institutions including UNSW, University of Pennsylvania, and international partners. Her lab focuses on building verified systems using functional programming and formal methods, with strong ties to the DeepSpec project and the Isabelle/HOL community.
Dr. Yifan Zhou serves as a Lecturer in Structural Engineering within the Department of Civil, Environmental and Mining Engineering at The University of Western Australia's School of Engineering. Her academic appointment integrates teaching responsibilities with active research in advanced structural systems. Education PhD in Structural Engineering, University of Sydney (dissertation focused on stainless steel–concrete composite structures) Her research program centers on the performance and design of steel/composite structural systems, with growing emphasis on interdisciplinary applications. Key research thrusts include: (1) Mechanical behavior of stainless steel composite elements under extreme loads; (2) Integration of machine learning for structural health monitoring; (3) Sensor technology applications in predictive maintenance; (4) Development of data-informed design methodologies. This work directly contributes to UN Sustainable Development Goals related to sustainable infrastructure. Recent publications (2021-2025) demonstrate consistent focus on stainless steel composite structures, evolving from fundamental beam/column mechanics toward machine learning applications in marine environments. The research trajectory shows increasing interdisciplinary collaboration while maintaining core structural engineering rigor. Dr. Zhou actively supervises HDR candidates as indicated by her acceptance of PhD students through UWA's research portal. Her teaching portfolio includes coordinating CIVL3404/4404 Structural Steel and CIVL5552 Civil Structural Design Project, featuring industry-integrated pedagogies and authentic assessments. Professional engagement includes membership on Standards Australia Committee panel for AS/NZS 2327 revision, translating research into national design standards. This positions her work at the critical interface between academic research and engineering practice.
Dr. Jose Ferrer is a Senior Research Fellow at the School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences at the University of New South Wales (UNSW). With extensive field experience in Germany, Venezuela, and South Africa , his work focuses on spatial ecology, biodiversity informatics, and ecosystem conservation , particularly through developing analytical tools for conservation decision-making. Affiliation: UNSW, IUCN Global Ecosystem Typology project Research Themes: Species distribution modeling, ecosystem risk assessment, environmental data integration His research spans diverse ecosystems, with a strong emphasis on animal/plant distribution patterns and human impact mitigation . Recent publications address: Ecosystem resilience under anthropogenic stressors Red List of Ecosystems applications in Africa Mining expansion impacts in Venezuela Ecological trap detection for Andean bears Invasive species effects in arid environments Conservation strategies for critically endangered species He contributes to open science initiatives through: Code sharing via UNSW codeRs group Data repository contributions Drop-in research assistance sessions His teaching emphasizes reproducible research methods and data management skills , supporting both academic and conservation communities through technical training.
Associate Professor Graeme Smith is a faculty member at the School of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, The University of Queensland. He leads research in formal methods, focusing on the design and analysis of software systems with applications in telecommunications, railways, and defense sectors. His work includes formal object-oriented modeling, real-time embedded systems, and concurrency. He has held academic positions at institutions in Australia, Germany, and France. Currently, he leads a research cell under the Defence Science and Technology Group, addressing formal security analysis of concurrent code. Education: Bachelor (Honours) of Engineering, The University of Queensland Doctor of Philosophy, The University of Queensland Research Interests: Formal methods for functional correctness and security of concurrent programs, including refinement techniques, information flow security, and distributed systems like multi-agent systems. His work emphasizes weak memory models, hardware-software interaction, and formal verification. Articles Trends: Recent publications emphasize formal verification of concurrent systems, weak memory models, and security protocols. Key areas include compositional reasoning, vulnerability detection, and applications in ARM/POWER architectures. Grants & Funding: ARC Discovery Grants on fault-tolerant systems, distributed autonomous systems, and lock-free algorithms Defence Science and Technology Group collaboration on formal security analysis Labs/Teams: Leads a Defence-funded research cell focusing on formal security analysis of concurrent code.
Dr Rachid Hamadi is a Senior Lecturer at the School of Computer Science and Engineering (CSE) at the University of New South Wales (UNSW). He holds a Ph.D. in Computer Science and Engineering from UNSW, alongside a M.Sc. and a B.Sc. (with Honours) in Computer Science from the University of Science and Technology Houari Boumediene (USTHB), Algeria. Prior to joining UNSW, he served as a Lecturer at Federation University, Victoria University, University of New England, Central Queensland University, and USTHB. Education Ph.D. in Computer Science and Engineering (UNSW) M.Sc. in Computer Science (USTHB, Algeria) B.Sc. (with Honours) in Computer Science (USTHB, Algeria) Research Interests His research focuses on formal modeling of business processes, exception handling, analysis and verification, and service-oriented computing. His work integrates formal methods such as Petri nets to address challenges in business process management, privacy preservation in web services, and dynamic workflow systems. Publications include significant contributions to international journals and conferences. Teaching Dr Hamadi teaches Programming, Databases, Web Technologies, Software Engineering, and Capstone Projects at UNSW. Professional Memberships Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Higher Education Research and Development Society of Australasia (HERDSA)
