Find Academic Supervisors

Hantian ZhangView profile

Senior Lecturer

• Social Media Analysis
• Digital Media Studies
• Audience Engagement
• +3 more

Hantian Zhang is a Senior Lecturer in Media and Course Leader for BA(Hons) Media and Communications at Sheffield Hallam University. He teaches across multiple programs including MA Global Communication and Media and MA Digital Media Management. His research focuses on cultural and technical aspects of social media, with a particular emphasis on influencers, platforms, audience engagement, and algorithmic networks. Zhang holds a PhD in Digital Media and Communication and an MSc in Design and Digital Media (Distinction) from the University of Edinburgh. His professional background includes roles as a Graphic and Digital Designer, and academic positions at the University of Edinburgh. Research highlights include studies on YouTube vlogs, cross-platform content distribution (e.g., Bilibili), and algorithmic influences on media consumption. His work has been published in First Monday , HCI conferences, and presented at global forums like the European Conference on Social Media. Zhang serves as a peer reviewer for journals like Convergence and conferences such as HICSS. He supervises PhD candidates exploring topics like Arab female cartoonists and platform cultural production.

Casey NelsonView profile

Professor

• Illustration
• Graphic Design
• Character Design
• +1 more

Casey Nelson is Professor and Chair of Illustration at Savannah College of Art and Design. He holds an M.F.A. in Illustration from SCAD and a B.F.A. in Illustration from Brigham Young University. Nelson has extensive professional experience as a senior artist at Disney Interactive, where he contributed to projects including Toy Story 3, Disney Infinity, and My Little Pony. His creative practice spans children's book illustration, video game development, and character design. Nelson's interdisciplinary research interests bridge illustration, narrative development, and character design. He maintains an active freelance practice and previously taught at Brigham Young University.

Daniel HuttenlocherView profile

Professor

• Artificial Intelligence + Machine Learning
• AI and Society
• Graphics and Vision
• +3 more

Daniel Huttenlocher is the Dean of the MIT Stephen A. Schwarzman College of Computing and holds the Henry Ellis Warren (1894) Professorship in Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence + Decision-making (AI+D). He leads the interdisciplinary College of Computing while maintaining academic ties to the Electrical Engineering & Computer Science Department. His research focuses on AI ethics, societal impact of technology, machine learning applications, and vision systems. Key research areas include AI governance frameworks, adaptive public health strategies, and large-scale computer vision algorithms. He has pioneered work on decentralized collaboration systems, social media dynamics, and generative AI's societal implications. Huttenlocher’s recent publications address challenges in epidemic testing optimization and the evolving role of AI in knowledge ecosystems like Wikipedia. His leadership roles include steering MIT’s computing initiatives and fostering industry partnerships, such as the MIT Generative AI Impact Consortium. Despite no explicitly listed awards, his contributions to AI ethics and technical systems reflect significant academic influence. Advising and grant activities remain unspecified in available records. His work bridges technical innovation with societal challenges, emphasizing the ethical deployment of AI across healthcare, education, and digital economies.

• Scientific Visualization
• Data Visualization
• Data Science
• +5 more

Min Chen is a Professor of Scientific Visualization at the University of Oxford, affiliated with the Department of Engineering Science and Pembroke College. He holds fellowships from the British Computer Society, European Computer Graphics Association, and Learned Society of Wales. His career spans over three decades, with previous roles at Swansea University (1984–2011) and current leadership in visualization research. His research focuses on visualization theory, video visualization, visual analytics, and interdisciplinary applications in fields like epidemiology and cybersecurity. He has authored over 200 publications and led projects such as RAMPVIS during the COVID-19 pandemic. Key roles include editor-in-chief of Computer Graphics Forum and associate editor of IEEE Transactions on Visualization and Computer Graphics. Education: BSc and PhD in relevant fields (details not explicitly stated in texts). Awards include the VGTC Visualization Lifetime Achievement Award (2024). His work emphasizes the theoretical underpinnings of visualization and practical tools for data intelligence.

Xiaofeng ZhuView profile

Professor

• Genetic Epidemiology
• Statistical Genetics
• Genetic Association Analysis
• +5 more

Xiaofeng Zhu, PhD is a Professor in the Department of Population and Quantitative Health Sciences at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine. He also serves as faculty at the Cleveland Institute for Computational Biology. His research focuses on developing statistical methods and computational tools for analyzing genetic and genomic data, particularly in the context of association analysis, admixture mapping, and rare variant identification. He leads the Continental Origins and Genetic Epidemiology Network (COGENT) consortium and has identified multiple genetic loci associated with blood pressure, sleep disorders, and Alzheimer's disease. Education: Ph.D. in Biostatistics, Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Case Western Reserve University (1998) M.S. in Statistics, University of Cincinnati (1994) M.S. and B.Sc. in Mathematics, Peking University (1989, 1986) Research Interests: Dr. Zhu's work emphasizes statistical genetics, including the development of methods to control population stratification, admixture mapping in admixed populations, and cross-phenotype association analyses. His lab integrates deep learning and bioinformatics to study complex traits such as cardiovascular disease, obesity, and sleep disorders. Recent efforts include analyzing whole-genome sequencing data to uncover rare variants influencing phenotypic variation. Publications Trends: His recent work spans Mendelian randomization methods (e.g., MRBEE), gene-sleep interaction studies, and multi-ancestry genomic analyses. Key themes include causal inference, pleiotropy analysis, and leveraging diverse genetic datasets to improve polygenic risk scores. Awards & Memberships: Fellow of the Royal Statistical Society Member, American Society of Human Genetics Member, International Genetic Epidemiology Society Advising & Grants: He has mentored 3 Master’s students, 9/10 PhD graduates, and 11/12 postdoctoral researchers. Notable mentees hold positions at Harvard, Mayo Clinic, and NIH. Active grants include studies on sleep health metrics, lipid loci discovery, and cardiovascular disease genetics. Labs & Teams: Leads COGENT consortium and collaborates with the NHLBI Trans-Omics for Precision Medicine (TOPMed) program. His lab develops software tools for ancestry inference, rare variant analysis, and epigenetic association studies.

• Image and Video Processing
• Multimedia Analysis
• Computer Vision
• +5 more

Prof. Tan Yap Peng is a Professor and Chair of the School of Electrical & Electronic Engineering at Nanyang Technological University (NTU), Singapore. He holds the President's Chair in Electrical and Electronic Engineering and serves as Associate Vice President (Lifelong Learning – Postgraduate Programmes by Coursework). His research focuses on multimedia analysis, computer vision, machine learning, and data analytics. He earned his B.S. from National Taiwan University and M.A./Ph.D. from Princeton University. He has led major initiatives including the INFINITUS Infocomm Research Centre and contributed to IEEE technical committees. His over 200 publications span image/video processing, neural network robustness, and cross-modal systems. Awards include IEEE Fellow status. Education: B.S. Electrical Engineering (NTU), M.A./Ph.D. (Princeton) Research interests emphasize interactive digital media, content-based analysis, and AI-driven solutions for visual and signal processing. His work addresses challenges in adversarial attacks, video generation, and low-light image enhancement. He has held editorial roles at IEEE Transactions and EURASIP journals. Conference leadership includes chairs for ICME and ICIP. His contributions bridge academia and industry through collaborative research networks.

Christopher MaverickView profile

Teaching Professor

• Race in Popular Culture
• Gender and Sexuality Studies
• American Popular Culture (20th/21st Century)
• +3 more

Christopher Maverick is a Teaching Professor in the Department of English at the University of Pittsburgh, affiliated with programs like Digital Narrative and Interactive Design. His research focuses on intersections of race, class, gender, and sexuality in 20th/21st-century American popular culture, including TV, film, professional wrestling, and comic books. He holds a Ph.D. in English from Duquesne University and degrees from Carnegie Mellon University. Dr. Maverick has received prestigious awards including the 2018 Lent Award (PCA), 2021 Gilbert Seldes Prize Honorable Mention (CSS), and 2023 Kathy Merlock Jackson Award (PCA). He chairs the PCA’s Erotica and Pornography in Popular Culture division and hosts academic podcasts like The VoxPopcast and Oh Gosh, Oh Golly, Oh Wow . Before academia, he spent two decades as a UX designer and information architect. He created the webcomic Cosmic Hellcats (2008–2018), ran an internet cult focused on selfies (2006), and competed as a professional wrestler (2003–2010). Labs/Teams: Digital Media Lab, STEM Coding Lab, School of Computing and Information Publications: Focused on superhero comics, cultural identity, and ethical historical portrayals

Wenbin LiView profile

Senior Lecturer

• Robotics
• Computer Vision
• Machine Learning
• +4 more

Dr. Wenbin Li is a Senior Lecturer (Associate Professor) in Robotics at the University of Bath's Department of Computer Science. He leads the Pering Laboratory (Perceptual Intelligence Laboratory), affiliated with the AI & Machine Learning and Visual Computing groups. Previously, he held postdoctoral positions at Imperial College London (2016-2018) and UCL (2014-2016), and earned his PhD from the University of Bath in 2013, with earlier degrees from Imperial College London (MSc, 2009) and Xidian University (B.Eng, 2008). His research focuses on unified autonomous systems, including multi-sensory localization/mapping, dynamic motion capture, and uncontrolled scene understanding with applications in manufacturing and professional capture. Key areas include Robotics, Computer Vision, Graphics, and Machine Learning. He actively supervises doctoral students in these fields and has funded PhD openings. Dr. Li has been involved in major initiatives such as the My World - Strength in Places Fund (2021–2027), SLAM with Reinforcement Learning (2022–2023), and the CAMERA MC2 Award (2019–2023). His work aligns with UN Sustainable Development Goals, particularly in advancing technology for societal benefit. Recent publications emphasize aerial robotics, autonomous systems, and computer vision applications, including UAV package delivery reviews, Bayesian optimization for balloon station-keeping, and generative models for intrinsic image decomposition.

• Children’s Art
• Outsider Art
• Fake Poetry and Fine Art
• +5 more

Phil Edwards is a Lecturer in the School of Art at RMIT University, specializing in interdisciplinary art practices that explore hybridity, cultural critique, and contemporary artistic expression. His research spans children’s art, outsider art, and the intersection of fine art with everyday aesthetics. He holds a Master’s degree examining innate aesthetic tendencies in everyday object assemblages and a PhD analyzing the role of audio CDs in fine art culture. Research Interests: Edwards focuses on six core themes: children’s art/outsider art’s relationship to formal painting, fake poetry integration in visual art, alchemy as metaphor, music brut, temporality in hybrid art forms, and abstract landscape painting. His creative works often blend digital media (e.g., Instagram-based projects) with traditional techniques. Teaching & Supervision: Edwards supervises Masters and PhD students in research topics like border identity visualizations (Maria Penne’s DFA project). He actively mentors projects such as An Exploration of Zen-inspired Poetic Nature Painting and Museum of Emotion . Exhibitions & Projects: His works include installations like Museum of Platitudes AND Aphorisms and digital projects such as Continual Instagram Painting . He frequently exhibits in venues like the c3 Art Gallery and George Paton Gallery, emphasizing public engagement and conceptual depth.

Mingli ChenView profile

Associate Professor

• Econometrics
• Machine Learning
• Time Series Econometrics
• +4 more

Mingli Chen is an Associate Professor of Economics at the University of Warwick’s Department of Economics. She holds affiliations including Turing Fellow at the Alan Turing Institute, External Fellow at the Centre for Panel Data Analysis (University of York), and Warwick-China Coordinator. Her research focuses on econometrics, machine learning, time series analysis, financial econometrics, and empirical industrial organization. She has served as an Associate Editor for the Journal of Econometrics since 2024 and organized workshops on data science and network analysis. Education: Ph.D. in Economics from Boston University (2015), B.A. in Information and Computing Science from Shanghai University (2009). She has held visiting positions at Stanford University, UC Berkeley, and the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston. Research Interests include high-dimensional econometrics, panel data models, social networks, quantile regression, and the integration of AI with econometrics. Key publications cover topics like quantile graphical models for systemic risk, latent panel quantile regression in asset pricing, and sparse β-models for network analysis. Awards include the International Partnerships Fund (2023), Turing PDRA Award (2020), and Co-Winner of the LABOUR Prize (2017). She advises Ph.D. students at Warwick and Cambridge, with placements at leading institutions like the University of Tokyo. Grants include leadership in UK-China partnerships and the Turing Institute. Teaching focuses on advanced econometrics at the Ph.D. level, including causal inference and machine learning. She co-organizes workshops and serves on conference committees, emphasizing data science and policy applications.

• Serious Games
• Game Design
• Virtual Reality
• +3 more

Helmut Hlavacs is a Professor at the Faculty of Computer Science, leading the Research Group on Education, Didactics, and Entertainment Computing. His expertise spans serious games, game design, virtual reality, and health informatics. He has contributed to over 218 publications since 2005, focusing on topics like hedonic experiences in gaming, VR applications in therapy, and AI-driven behavior trees. His work intersects technology, education, and healthcare, with notable projects such as Conquer Catharsis (VR anxiety treatment) and PhyLab (VR physics experiments). Hlavacs has secured research funding for initiatives like Programmieren lernen durch Computerspielentwicklung and Dig-Equality FF , emphasizing digital equity and education. In 2019, he won the Best Poster Award at IFIP for his work on health data from serious games. Research Interests: Serious Games for health and education Virtual Reality applications in therapy and learning Game design methodologies and AI-driven NPC behavior Psychological impacts of gaming and digital consumption Procedural content generation for games Key Projects: Programmieren lernen durch Computerspielentwicklung (2008): Game-based learning for programming skills Dig-Equality FF (2020-2021): Digital competence promotion for equity TP1 PRECIOUS (2013-2016): VR conferencing and stress management Grants and Advising: Hlavacs has advised on projects involving AI in military command systems, VR therapy for anxiety disorders, and participatory design of social media literacy tools. He collaborates internationally on topics like gamification for behavior change and multicultural health interventions. Labs/Teams: His research group focuses on Serious Storytelling and Entertainment Computing , developing tools like the Prototypical game framework and InvisibleSound for blind musicians. Current work includes FiGHT (a web-based tool for eating disorder communication) and OutSmart! (a serious game for social media literacy).

Pedro M. CruzView profile

Associate Professor

• Data Visualization
• Information Design
• Bio-inspired Approaches
• +4 more

Pedro M. Cruz is an Associate Professor in the Art + Design Department at Northeastern University, where he co-directs the Co-Lab for Data Impact and serves as a core faculty member of the Center for Design. His work bridges information design, data visualization, and computational art, featuring nature-inspired metaphors to convey complex data through visual narratives. Education includes a PhD in Information Science and Technology from the University of Coimbra (Portugal), with visiting research at MIT’s Senseable City Lab and the Singapore-MIT Alliance for Research and Technology. His research focuses on bio-inspired visualization, generative design, and the intersection of art and science. Awards include the 2018 Gold Award at the Information is Beautiful Awards, the 2017 CAMD Excellence in Teaching Award, and recognition as one of the top 10 global information designers (2013). His work has been showcased at MoMA, the London Design Biennale, and featured in WIRED, National Geographic, and Fast Company. Key projects include 'Visualizing Empires Decline' (2009), an animated visualization of maritime empire dissolution, and collaborations on exhibits at the Museum of Science and the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston. His teaching spans courses like Information Design Studio and Visualization Technologies.

Carolyn BoweView profile

Lecturer

• Environmental Communication
• Data Visualization
• Cartographic Narratives
• +4 more

Carolyn Bowe is a Lecturer and Course Leader for the Foundation degree and BA(hons) Graphic Media Communication at University Centre Calderdale College, affiliated with the University of York's School of Arts and Creative Technologies. Her interdisciplinary research explores ecological connections through cartography, interactive media, and design, focusing on sustainability and human-environment relationships. She holds a PhD from the University of York, where her thesis proposed visual strategies to enhance environmental stewardship. Education background includes studies at Newcastle College of Art and Bradford School of Art, emphasizing graphic design and emerging technologies. Her practice combines traditional and digital methods, including AR/AV installations, to communicate ecological themes. Notable exhibitions include a 2023 solo installation at Dean Clough's Crossley Gallery and collaborations with organizations like National Geographic and West Yorkshire Police. Bowe actively engages in community initiatives, founding the Local Wildlife Area at Littlemoor Park and serving as its Secretary. She has also served as an External Examiner for the BA (Hons) Graphic Design program at the University of Sunderland.

Brian YoungView profile

Associate Professor

• Scholarly Communication
• Library Collections
• Data Literacy
• +7 more

Brian Young is the Head and Associate Professor of Scholar Support and Data Services at the University of Mississippi's J. D. Williams Library. He serves as the School of Engineering liaison and plays a key role in collection development, research support, and information literacy instruction. His responsibilities include leading data services, teaching first-year writing courses, and providing virtual reference support. His research focuses on scholarly communication , library collections , and the tensions between access and sustainability in academic libraries. Key areas include data literacy education , open educational resources (OER) , user behavior analysis , and innovative instructional methods such as gamification. He has developed numerous research guides across engineering, sciences, and humanities disciplines. Brian’s recent publications reflect a strong trend in user-centered library services , assessment methodologies , and pedagogical innovation . His work explores how students and faculty interact with library resources, evaluates new collection models like PDA/DDA, and experiments with creative outreach such as Dungeons & Dragons-themed library instruction modules. He actively contributes to library science through peer-reviewed research but no formal scientific awards are listed in the available materials. In his advisory and service roles, Brian supports faculty through OER assessment, provides research consultations, and leads instructional initiatives. He teaches information literacy in first-year writing and engineering programs, and supports graduate students across disciplines. Though not explicitly stated, his leadership in Scholar Support and Data Services implies oversight of related programs and staff. He does not appear to advise formal thesis or dissertation students, based on available data. Brian is involved in the Methods & Analysis Lab and supports data services across campus. His work integrates with the Research and Instruction Services department, where he contributes to instruction and reference. While no independent lab or research team is named, his role suggests leadership in shaping institutional data literacy and research support infrastructure.

Jennifer BirkelandView profile

Associate Professor

• Landscape Architecture
• Architecture
• Design Theory
• +6 more

Jennifer Birkeland is an Associate Professor and Director of Graduate Studies in the Landscape Architecture department at the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences , Cornell University. As a licensed landscape architect in New York and LEED-accredited professional, she co-founded the multidisciplinary design practice op-AL in Brooklyn, New York, which explores the interplay between landscape and architecture. Education : Master of Landscape Architecture, Harvard University Graduate School of Design; Bachelor of Science in Landscape Architecture, California Polytechnic State University, Pomona. Research Focus : Her work investigates themes like opticality , synthetic natures , and figure-ground relationships , challenging conventional subject-object dynamics in design. She explores micro-infrastructures , kinetic culture , and perceptual reversibility in projects spanning urban design to domestic landscapes. Publications highlight innovations in virtual classrooms , urban hydrogen energy systems , and high-density food production . Scientific Awards : American Academy in Rome Prize (2018), Mark Hampton Award in Design (2018), Center for Teaching Innovation Grant at Cornell (2019), CSI Research Fellow at Landscape Architecture Foundation (2021). Teaching : Courses include LA 5020 Theory and Composition II Studio , LA 5060 Graphic Communication II , and LA 6940 Landscape Elements .