Dr. Laura Pacheco is an Assistant Professor at the School of Social Work at Memorial University. She holds a BSW and MSW from McGill University and a PhD in Rehabilitation Medicine from the University of Alberta. Her research focuses on reproductive justice, intellectual disability and parenting, structural violence against women with disabilities, neurodiversity in aging, and social justice within health and social service systems. She has conducted post-doctoral work on support needs for parents with intellectual disabilities and has been a clinician, advocate, and program coordinator in parenting services for over 14 years. She teaches courses emphasizing critical social work practice, anti-oppression, and disability studies. Her funded research includes studies on neurodiverse aging (2020–2023) and service pathways for parents with intellectual impairments (2018–2021). She is an executive member of the International Association on the Scientific Study of Intellectual Disability (IASSIDD) and has contributed to international workshops and conferences. Her work bridges academic research with community engagement, advocating for systemic equity and inclusive policies.
Pierre Baldi is a Distinguished Professor of Computer Science and Director of the Institute for Genomics and Bioinformatics at the University of California, Irvine (UCI). He is affiliated with the Donald Bren School of Information and Computer Sciences. His research spans artificial intelligence, machine learning, bioinformatics, and communication networks, with notable projects in protein structure prediction, gene expression modeling, and neutrino physics collaborations like DUNE. Baldi’s work bridges theoretical foundations (e.g., neural network theory) and applied domains, including medical imaging and fusion technology. Key research interests include AI-driven biomedical applications, neural network theory, and interdisciplinary projects such as the DUNE neutrino experiment. His contributions to neural network engineering were recognized with the 2023 INNS Dennis Gabor Award, highlighting his paradigm-changing impact on computational neuroscience and physics. Baldi’s academic leadership includes directing UCI’s Institute for Genomics and Bioinformatics, fostering collaborations in computational biology and AI. His recent work explores AI’s role in healthcare, climate modeling (e.g., ClimSim-Online), and fundamental physics challenges like neutrino oscillation studies.
Professor Ian Ruthven is a Professor of Information Seeking and Retrieval in the Department of Computer and Information Sciences at the University of Strathclyde. He chairs the Scottish Library and Information Council (SLIC) and the Steering Committee of the Information Seeking in Context (ISIC) conference series. His research focuses on human information interaction, including information seeking in health, migration, and cultural heritage contexts. He authored Dealing With Change Through Information Sculpting , proposing a theory explaining how people use information behaviors to adapt during life transitions. Education: PhD in Abduction, Explanation, and Relevance Feedback (University of Glasgow, 2001), MSc (University of Birmingham, 1993), BSc in Computing Science (University of Glasgow, 1992). Research Interests: Information seeking theory, interface design for information access, user studies. His work bridges human-computer interaction with socio-technical systems, emphasizing ethical and inclusive design. Publications: Over 170 peer-reviewed papers, including influential works on information resilience, digital divides, and pandemic impacts on international students. Recent work includes Grey Digital Divide: Factors Associated with Older People’s Use of the Internet for Financial Transactions (2025) and Information Avoidance: A Critical Conceptual Review (2025). Awards: Tony Kent Strix Memorial Award (2020), Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts (2010), and multiple best paper awards. His contributions span academic and policy realms, addressing societal challenges through information science. Projects: Co-investigator in the Participatory Harm Auditing Workbenches and Methodologies (PHAWM) project (2024–2028) and leader of the Scottish Network on Digital Cultural Resources Evaluation (ScotDigiCH) (2015–2016). These projects emphasize participatory design and cultural heritage evaluation. Professional Activities: Editorial roles for major conferences, visiting researcher at the University of Pretoria (2021), and advisory roles in library and information science initiatives. His work fosters collaboration between academia and cultural institutions.
Lizi Liao is an Assistant Professor at the School of Computing and Information Systems , Singapore Management University (SMU) , specializing in Artificial Intelligence and Conversational AI . Her research bridges Machine Learning , Natural Language Processing , and Multimodal Systems , focusing on proactive dialogue systems, multimodal conversational search, and task-oriented interactions. Education : PhD in Computer Science (2019) from the National University of Singapore (NUS) , advised by Professor Tat-Seng Chua . Research Interests center on principles of human conversational understanding and machine implementation, particularly in proactive conversational agents , multimodal dialogue systems , and target-driven conversation planning . Key applications include emotional support systems , intelligent shopping assistants , and learning companions . Recent Publications (2024-2025) highlight her work on LLM-based proactive dialogue , multimodal emotion recognition , and dynamic graph modeling , often integrating NLP , Multimedia , and Knowledge Graphs . Collaborative projects with her CoAgent Lab team emphasize human-AI interaction and ethical response generation . Scientific Awards : Google South Asia & Southeast Asia Research Award 2023 Lee Kong Chian Fellow Teaching includes Visual Analytics for Business Intelligence (undergraduate) and Text Analytics and Application (graduate). She also serves as Associate Editor for TOIS and TOMM , and organizes tutorials at ACL , SIGIR , and WSDM .
Gregory Carman is a Distinguished Professor in the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering and Department of Materials Science and Engineering at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) . He serves as the Director of the Center for Translational Applications of Nanoscale Multiferroic Systems (TANMS) and holds the Ben Rich-Lockheed Martin Chair in Advanced Aerospace Technologies (46-147N, Eng IV). Education: Virginia Tech, 1991 Research Interests focus on advanced materials and aerospace technologies, including: Nanoscale Multiferroic Materials Piezoelectric Materials Magnetostrictive Materials Thin Film Shape Memory Alloys Fiber Optic Sensors Scientific Awards & Recognition : 2016 IEEE Magnetics Society Distinguished Lecturer Society of Experimental Mechanics Keynote Lecture (May 2015) SPIE Smart Structures and Materials Lifetime Achievement Award (November 2014) UCLA Dean’s Recognition Award (February 2012) ASME Smart Materials, Adaptive Structures, and Intelligent Systems Keynote (2009) American Helicopter Society Howard Hughes Award (2009) ASME Best Paper Awards (2007, 2001, 1996) ASME Adaptive Structures and Material Systems Prize (2004) ASME Fellow (March 2003) Honorary Professor, Baotou University of Iron and Steel Technology (2002) Northrop-Grumman Young Faculty Award (1995) Labs & Centers : Leads the Active Materials Lab (AML) and directs TANMS, a translational research center focused on nanoscale multiferroic systems.
Shah Mahmoud Hanifi is a Professor of History at James Madison University, specializing in Middle Eastern, South Asian, and Central Asian history, with a focus on Afghanistan since 1500. He holds a B.A. from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and a Ph.D. from the University of Michigan. His research explores colonialism, nationalism, tribal history, environmental studies, and the intersection of cultural anthropology with historical inquiry. Notable works include Connecting Histories in Afghanistan (2011) and Mountstuart Elphinstone in South Asia (2019). Professor Hanifi has received grants from the Social Science Research Council, American Institute of Afghanistan Studies, and Carnegie Corporation of New York, among others. His scholarly contributions include groundbreaking studies on Afghanistan's environmental history, cartography, and the legacy of colonial knowledge production. He has organized major international conferences, such as the 2017 Mountstuart Elphinstone Conference in Mumbai, and serves on editorial boards including the International Journal of Middle East Studies . His interdisciplinary initiatives include founding JMU’s Middle Eastern Communities and Migrations minor and advocating for inclusive academic programs. Recent research emphasizes Afghanistan’s environmental challenges, including water scarcity and pollution, alongside historical analyses of migration, identity, and cultural resistance. His work bridges global and local perspectives, challenging traditional tribal-state paradigms and recentering Afghanistan within broader Asian networks of trade, culture, and power.
Gabriel A. Silva is a Professor in the Shu Chien-Gene Lay Department of Bioengineering at UC San Diego’s Jacobs School of Engineering, with a joint appointment as Assistant Professor in Ophthalmology. His research bridges neuroscience, theoretical physics, and applied mathematics to explore how the brain encodes and processes information, leveraging quantum logic and algorithms for advanced neural modeling. University: University of California, San Diego School: Jacobs School of Engineering Department: Shu Chien-Gene Lay Department of Bioengineering Academic Rank: Professor Joint Appointment: Assistant Professor in Ophthalmology Research Interests: Silva focuses on neural computation at cellular and network scales, aiming to abstract biological mechanisms into mathematical models that emulate brain-like processing. His work has implications for understanding neurological disorders, developing neural engineering nanotechnologies, and advancing AI systems through emergent complexity. Recent Article Trends: His publications span quantum-enhanced neural modeling, EEG-based disease detection, nonlinear dynamics in brain networks, and interdisciplinary applications of graph theory. Emerging themes include the integration of category theory for network analysis and AI optimization via emergence-promoting schemes. Labs & Teams: Affiliated with UC San Diego’s Institute of Engineering in Medicine, Silva leads research at the intersection of bioengineering, ophthalmology, and neural systems, fostering collaborations with neuroscience and quantum computing domains.
Dr. Emily Cuming is a Senior Lecturer in the Humanities and Social Science school at Liverpool John Moores University , specializing in British literature, culture, and social history from the 19th century to the present. Her research focuses on maritime relations, working-class girlhood, life writing, and representations of domestic spaces including council estates, slums, and bedsits. PhD, MA, BA in English & Russian from University of Manchester (2006, 2002, 2001) Editor of Key Words: A Journal of Cultural Materialism Co-leader of the Home and Domestic Cultures research network Committee member of the Research Institute for Literature and Cultural History Board member of the Centre for Port and Maritime History Her research combines literary analysis with historical and cultural studies, emphasizing material culture, port cities, and marginalized voices. Recent publications include Maritime Relations: Life, Labour and Literature at the Water’s Edge, 1830-1914 (Cambridge University Press, forthcoming 2025) and Housing, Class and Gender in Modern British Writing, 1880-2012 (CUP, 2016). She has received multiple research grants including AHRC Connected Communities funding and Liverpool John Moores University QR awards. Dr. Cuming teaches undergraduate modules on Life Stories , Representing Domestic Space , and Waterscapes , as well as MA courses on Place: Imagining Place in Modern Times . She supervises three PhD projects and welcomes new supervisees in her research areas. 2025: Enhancing Research Cultures funding for 'The Sinking of the Lancastria' 2024: Editorial board member of Journal of Victorian Culture 2023: NCCPE Engage Prize for 'Around the Toilet' project 2022: Caird Short-term Research Fellowship 2016: NCCPE Engage Prize winner
Professor David J. Thomson is a Professorial Fellow in the Optoelectronics Research Centre (ORC) at the University of Southampton, holding a prestigious Royal Society University Research Fellowship. He pioneers photonics research for computing applications and LIDAR systems, commanding over £10 million in research funding and leading a 12-member team focused on novel photonic device development and electronic integration. Thomson's research centers on silicon photonics and optical computing, with critical advancements in high-speed optical modulators, photonic integrated circuits, and LIDAR technologies. His work drives innovations in programmable photonics using phase-change materials and the co-integration of photonic and electronic systems, enabling breakthroughs in energy-efficient data communication and next-generation computing architectures. Recent publications (2024-2025) reveal a dominant focus on silicon photonics for ultra-high-speed optical interconnects, featuring programmable circuits with Sb2Se3 phase-change materials, 224 Gbaud transmitters, and MOSCAP ring modulators with sub-5nm insulators. These works collectively address bandwidth and energy challenges in data centers and high-performance computing through monolithic integration and novel material systems. Scientific Awards: Royal Society University Research Fellowship Thomson actively supervises eight PhD students across the ORC and Department of Electronics and Electrical Engineering, while managing substantial grants exceeding £10 million from the Royal Society, EPSRC, Horizon Europe, and Huawei Technologies. His projects include DOLORES (Digital Optical Computing Platform), Tunnel Epitaxy of III-V on Silicon, and PIXEurope, targeting revolutionary photonic integration for neural networks and communications. He leads a specialized research team within the ORC's state-of-the-art facilities, focusing on photonic device design, fabrication, and characterization. This group collaborates on major European initiatives like Horizon Europe's DOLORES and PIXEurope, advancing silicon photonic platforms for optical computing and LIDAR applications.
Gang (Gary) Tan is a Professor at the Pennsylvania State University's College of Engineering, specializing in computer security, formal methods, and programming languages. He co-directs the Institute for Networking and Security Research (INSR) and leads the Security of Software (SOS) Group, focusing on compiler, programming language, and formal method techniques to enhance computer security. Education: B.E. in Computer Science from Tsinghua University Ph.D. in Computer Science from Princeton University His research integrates formal verification with practical security applications, particularly emphasizing: Compiler-based security enforcement Side-channel mitigation in speculative execution Fairness analysis in machine learning systems Formal grammar approaches for software reliability Key article trends show: Security-focused formal methods (15% of publications) ML fairness verification (20% of recent work) Compiler-based security solutions (30% of output) Side-channel defense mechanisms (25% of research) Parser design and formal grammar synthesis (10% of contributions) Scientific achievements include: NSF CAREER Award Google Research Awards (2x) PLDI 2024 Best Paper James F. Will Career Development Professorship Outstanding Research Award at Penn State Ruth and Joel Spira Excellence in Teaching Award Dr. Tan actively contributes to academic communities through: DARPA ISAT study group membership Program committee roles (CGO 2024, ECOOP 2018, etc) Leadership in security research initiatives
Paul C. Adams is a Professor in the Department of Geography and the Environment at the University of Texas at Austin's College of Liberal Arts, where he has served as Director of the Urban Studies Program since 2003. His interdisciplinary work bridges geography, media studies, and communication, with a focus on digital media's sociospatial implications. Adams earned his Bachelor of Environmental Design from the University of Colorado-Boulder (1984) followed by an M.S. (1990) and Ph.D. (1993) in geography from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. His academic journey reflects a deep commitment to understanding spatial dimensions of human experience. His research explores geographical communications , place imagery in media , and digital disentanglement , with recent work examining geopolitical discourse, climate change communication, and refugee spatial experiences. As founder of the Association of American Geographers' Media Geography Specialty Group (now "Media and Communication"), he pioneered frameworks for analyzing how media shapes place perception and political subjectivity. Analysis of his 2021-2025 publications reveals three dominant trajectories: (1) Digital media's intimate politics through entanglement/disentanglement lenses, (2) Geopolitical discourse analysis applied to climate change and US-China relations, and (3) Spatial dimensions of forced migration and cultural landscape transformation. These intersect with subfields including media geography, political ecology, and digital humanities. Key honors include: Fulbright Research Fellowship to the University of Bergen (2010) Fulbright Fellowship to McGill University/University of Montreal (2001) Ander Visiting Professorship at Karlstad University (2016-2017) Adams teaches foundational courses including GRG 305 (This Human World) and URB 315 (Urban Studies Research Methods), alongside specialized seminars in media geography and political geography. His research has secured major funding including the Research Council of Norway's ViSmedia project (2015-2020), for which he held an Associate Professor II appointment at the University of Bergen. He leads the Media Geography Specialty Group and maintains active collaborations with scholars across Poland, Sweden, and Norway, driving international research on digital place-making and geopolitical discourse through collective publications and interdisciplinary projects.
Yong Chen is a Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering and Physics at Purdue University. His research spans quantum physics, nanotechnology, and materials science, focusing on advanced 2D materials, topological insulators, and quantum transport phenomena. Condensed Matter Physics Quantum Computing Nanotechnology Materials Science Photonics Spintronics Recent publications highlight his work on van der Waals heterostructures, Bose-Einstein condensates, Raman spectroscopy applications, and quantum interference effects. His studies often intersect with machine learning, energy storage, and synthetic magnetic field engineering of quantum systems. Yong Chen's email address is yongchen@purdue.edu , and further information can be accessed at his Purdue University profile .
James Alexandre Goulet is a Professor in the Department of Civil, Geological and Mining Engineering at Polytechnique Montréal. His research focuses on Machine Learning Methods for Civil Engineering applications such as structural health monitoring (SHM) and infrastructure maintenance planning. He leads the Canari project for online change point detection in SHM and contributes to open-source libraries like cuTAGI for Bayesian neural networks. Affiliations : Chair in Machine Learning for Infrastructure Monitoring at Polytechnique Montréal, IVADO Institute member, and GRS (Structural Engineering Research Group) member Expertise : Building engineering, structural safety, applied probability, learning theories Recent research trends include Bayesian state-space models, LSTM neural network integration for infrastructure forecasting, and uncertainty quantification in SHM systems. His work emphasizes probabilistic methods and analytical inference over black-box approaches. Teaching includes courses on structural reliability and probabilistic data analysis for civil engineers. He supervises graduate students in topics ranging from damage detection algorithms to stochastic deterioration modeling of infrastructures.
Gireeja Ranade is an Assistant Teaching Professor in the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences at the University of California, Berkeley. She previously served as a Researcher at Microsoft Research AI in the Adaptive Systems and Interaction Group. Her educational background includes a PhD in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science from UC Berkeley and an undergraduate degree from MIT. Research Focus Prof. Ranade's research spans control theory, information theory, and machine learning, with applications in wireless communication, algorithmic fairness, and misinformation analysis. Her work addresses fundamental challenges in system stabilization under uncertainty, real-time control optimization, and equitable resource allocation. She maintains strong collaborations across disciplines, resulting in publications at premier venues like IEEE Transactions on Automatic Control, PNAS, and The Web Conference. Her recent publications demonstrate a consistent focus on robustness in control systems, fairness in algorithmic decision-making, and analysis of information propagation in online ecosystems. The work frequently combines theoretical rigor with practical implementations in robotics, networking, and social systems. Awards and Recognition 2017 UC Berkeley Electrical Engineering Award for Outstanding Teaching 2020 UC Berkeley Award for Extraordinary Teaching in Extraordinary Times Academic Leadership Prof. Ranade leads a dynamic research group including PhD candidates, master's students, and undergraduates. She has advised over 25 students on projects ranging from neural network controllers to fairness metrics in resource allocation. She founded the CalMentors program, which connects UC Berkeley students with K-12 learners for tutoring support during the COVID-19 pandemic. Educational Innovation She co-designed and teaches UC Berkeley's introductory EECS 16A/B sequence, integrating linear algebra with applications in machine learning and circuit design. She has also developed courses on optimization (EECS127/227A) and data science (Data 102), with publicly available lecture videos demonstrating her teaching methodology.
Professor David J.A. Evans is a distinguished glacial geomorphologist at Durham University's Department of Geography. His research spans three interconnected themes at the interface of glacial geology and Quaternary science, focusing on palaeoglaciology and the reconstruction of former glaciers and ice sheets through time. With extensive field experience across the Arctic, North Atlantic, and Southern Hemisphere, he has contributed significantly to the understanding of glacial landscapes and processes globally. BA (Hons), St. David's University College, University of Wales, Lampeter, 1982 MSc, Memorial University of Newfoundland, Canada, 1984 PhD, University of Alberta, Canada, 1988 Professor Evans' research centers on glacial landsystems, glacial sedimentology, and Quaternary palaeoenvironments of glaciated basins. His work develops conceptual landsystems models for glacial process-form relationships, with field sites ranging from the Canadian High Arctic to mid-latitude mountains. He has pioneered research connecting subglacial process-form relationships to landform development models, particularly through his studies of active temperate glacier margins in Iceland. His sedimentological work has established a genetically framed classification scheme for tills and glacitectonites. Evans has contributed to major ice sheet reconstructions worldwide, including the British and Irish Ice Sheet (through the BRITICE-CHRONO project), Laurentide Ice Sheet, and Arctic Norway. His extensive publication record demonstrates consistent research activity with 15 recent articles focusing on ice sheet dynamics, glacial landform evolution, and Quaternary environmental reconstruction across multiple continents. These works reveal a strong emphasis on methodological innovation in mapping and analyzing glacial landscapes, with increasing integration of remote sensing and quantitative approaches to understand both contemporary glacier behavior and past ice sheet dynamics. Scientific Recognition: Busk Medal (Royal Geographical Society), 2017, for excellence and originality in the study of glacial landscapes and processes and empowering the next generation Professor Evans has collaborated extensively with international research teams on major projects including BRITICE-CHRONO and has contributed to engineering geology applications through technical guides for glaciated terrains. His work bridges pure academic research with practical applications in engineering geology and environmental management. He has supervised numerous field guides and edited influential publications in glacial geomorphology. His research involves extensive fieldwork in Iceland (particularly on the Vatnajökull ice cap), the British Isles, Canadian Arctic, and other glaciated regions, often using modern glacier systems as analogues for reconstructing past ice sheets. Evans has developed significant expertise in glacial landsystem mapping and interpretation, contributing to both academic understanding and practical engineering applications in glaciated terrains.
