Rose-Anne Gush is an Assistant Professor at the IZK Institute for Contemporary Art, TU Graz. She is an art historian, theorist, and educator with a focus on political aesthetics, transnational surrealism, and critical engagements with capitalism and gender. Academic Affiliations: TU Graz (IZK), University of Leeds, University College London, University of Applied Arts Vienna Key Research Areas: Political Aesthetics, Global Art, Extractive Capitalism, Feminist Theory, Trauma and Memory Her research explores how art navigates the spatial and temporal dimensions of capitalist modernity, with projects like The Work of Art in the Age of the Planetary Mine (2025) and collaborations with Philipp Sattler on lithium extraction. Her articles in FKW , Third Text , and Performance Research interrogate intersections of body, violence, and historical memory. Scientific awards include the Juliane and Franz Roh Post-Doctoral Fellowship (2020) and a DFK Paris Research Grant (2021). Her teaching spans universities in Europe and the UK, including Slade School of Fine Art and University of Leeds.
Marina Rustow is the Khedouri A. Zilkha Professor of Jewish Civilization in the Near East and Professor of History at Princeton University. She serves as Director of the Princeton Geniza Project , focusing on medieval Middle Eastern history through documentary sources, particularly the Cairo Geniza . Her work bridges Islamic law , Jewish history , and material culture . Education : BA in Literature, Yale College PhD in History, Columbia University (advisor: Yosef Hayim Yerushalmi) Her research explores how medieval Jewish communities in Egypt and Syria navigated state power, social cohesion, and religious identity. She has pioneered the study of Fatimid state documents preserved in the Geniza, challenging assumptions about premodern Islamic archival practices. Her books include The Lost Archive (2020) and Heresy and the Politics of Community (2008). Recent projects include editing and translating Indian Ocean trade documents from the Geniza (2024 NEH grant). Her publications span Islamic legal documents , geniza fragment analysis , and medieval Jewish-Muslim interactions . Scientific Awards : MacArthur Fellowship (2015) Guggenheim Fellowship (2014) Rome Prize (2006-7) NEH and ACLS grants She advises PhD students in medieval Middle Eastern and Jewish history , emphasizing collaborative learning in Princeton’s Geniza Lab. Her work also intersects with digital humanities and manuscript studies .
Prof. Dr. Matthias Rarey is a computer scientist and Professor at the University of Hamburg's Center for Bioinformatics. He holds a Ph.D. in Computer Science from the University of Bonn (1996) and has been leading the Algorithmic Molecular Design working group since 2002. His research focuses on molecular design algorithms, cheminformatics tools, and 3D bioinformatics. Co-founder of BioSolveIT GmbH Former cheminformatics group leader at Fraunhofer SCAI Former researcher at SmithKline Beecham and Roche Bioscience Head of Helmholtz Data Science Graduate School DASHH Director of Center for Data and Computing in Natural Science (CDCS) Research interests span algorithmic molecular design, cheminformatics, structure-based drug discovery, and machine learning applications in bioactivity prediction. His group developed widely used tools like FlexX, PoseView, and SpaceLight for molecular modeling and fragment space analysis. Recent publications focus on geometric pattern matching in protein-ligand interfaces, combinatorial fragment space encoding, adverse drug reaction network analysis, and efficient shape-based virtual screening. The work emphasizes scalable algorithms for billion-sized compound libraries and integration of machine learning with traditional cheminformatics approaches. Scientific awards include: GMD Award 1996 (Best Dissertation) GMD Award 2000 (Best Project) NRW Wissenschaftspreis 2002 Corwin Hansch Award 2005 Emerging Technologies Award 2011 Norddeutscher Wissenschaftspreis 2020 Academic leadership roles: Founding director of Center for Bioinformatics Co-founder of M.Sc. Bioinformatics and B.Sc. Computing in Science programs Chair of doctoral committee at Faculty of Computer Science Member of EMBL-EBI's Molecular and Cellular Structure advisory board Former Associate Editor of Journal of Chemical Information and Modeling
Filippo Menczer is a Professor of Informatics and Computer Science and Director of the Center for Complex Networks and Systems Research at Indiana University School of Informatics and Computing. He maintains courtesy appointments in Cognitive Science and Physics, and is affiliated with the Center for Data and Search Informatics and the Biocomplexity Institute. Additionally, he holds a Fellowship at the ISI Foundation in Torino, Italy. His research spans computational analysis of digital ecosystems with emphasis on: Web Science: structural and behavioral analysis of internet-scale systems Social Media Dynamics: information diffusion, meme competition, and attention economy modeling Complex Networks: traffic pattern analysis, popularity dynamics, and social link prediction Publications from 2009-2012 reveal consistent focus on social network analytics and information diffusion mechanisms. Key trends include modeling attention-limited meme competition, bursty popularity patterns in social media, and social link prediction through metadata analysis. His work integrates network science, computational social science, and data mining to decode online behavior. His scientific recognition includes: Fellow of ISI Foundation (2013) He leads the NaN research group within the Center for Complex Networks and Systems Research, focusing on interdisciplinary approaches to complex information networks and social media analytics.
Santa Slokenberga, LL.D., serves as an Associate Professor in Medical Law and Senior Lecturer in Administrative Law at Uppsala University's Department of Law within the Faculty of Law. She maintains an active research profile focusing on the intersection of law, medicine, and technology, with particular expertise in biobanking, genetic privacy, and healthcare data governance. Her research interests span several critical areas in contemporary medical law, including the human genome and biobanking, AI applications in healthcare, privacy and personal data protection frameworks, quality of pediatric healthcare, and governance of rare diseases. Slokenberga's work demonstrates a strong focus on European regulatory frameworks and their implementation across different jurisdictions, particularly examining how GDPR interacts with medical research and biobanking practices. Analysis of her recent publications reveals a clear trajectory toward increasingly complex issues at the intersection of law, technology, and healthcare. Her scholarship consistently addresses regulatory challenges in genomic data sharing, European health data spaces, and the ethical implications of emerging technologies in medicine. Notably, she has contributed significantly to understanding how European data protection law applies to medical research contexts. Slokenberga holds leadership positions as a board member of EAHL and the Nordic Permed Law, reflecting her recognized expertise in health policy at both national and international levels. Her collaborative research projects often involve multinational teams, demonstrating her engagement with global health law challenges. Her academic supervision and teaching activities focus on preparing future legal professionals to navigate the complex landscape of medical law, administrative law, and data protection regulations as they apply to healthcare systems and biomedical research.
Anders Söderholm serves as the Vice-Chancellor (Rektor) of KTH Royal Institute of Technology, Sweden's leading technical university. His leadership spans academic, research, and strategic domains with a strong focus on positioning KTH as a key player in addressing global challenges through technology and innovation. Recent initiatives highlight his emphasis on AI ethics, quantum technology development, and sustainability research. Söderholm's research interests center on academic leadership, organizational theory, and project management, with particular focus on temporary organizations and the 'projectified society.' His work bridges theoretical frameworks with practical applications in higher education governance and research policy. He has significantly contributed to the Scandinavian school of project management research, exploring how organizations navigate complexity through temporary structures. Analysis of his recent publications reveals a clear trajectory from theoretical explorations of project management toward practical applications in higher education leadership. His scholarship demonstrates increasing engagement with the challenges of university governance in an era of rapid technological change, particularly around AI implementation and international research collaboration. The interdisciplinary nature of his work connects organizational theory with practical leadership challenges in academic settings. Söderholm actively engages in national policy discussions, having contributed to debates about university associations, research funding models, and international collaborations, particularly regarding China. His leadership extends to fostering partnerships with industry and other academic institutions, as evidenced by initiatives with Chalmers University of Technology. As Vice-Chancellor, Söderholm oversees KTH's strategic direction, which includes significant investments in research infrastructure, educational innovation, and international collaboration. His leadership approach emphasizes the university's role in societal development, technological advancement, and democratic values, while navigating the complex landscape of research funding and academic autonomy.
Richard Kempter is a Full Professor at the Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, where he leads the Theoretical Neuroscience research group within the Institute for Theoretical Biology, Department of Biology. His research focuses on the neural basis of learning and memory through computational and mathematical modeling of synapses, neurons, and neural networks. He is affiliated with several major research centers including the Bernstein Center for Computational Neuroscience, the Einstein Center for Neurosciences Berlin, and the CRC 1315 Memory Consolidation. Professor Kempter's research interests span theoretical and computational neuroscience with a particular focus on the neural mechanisms underlying learning and memory. His work employs biophysical modeling and mathematical analysis to study synaptic short- and long-term plasticity, the dynamics of single neurons, and the interaction of neurons in recurrently coupled networks. A key aspect of his research investigates how neural systems maintain a balance between learning susceptibility and stability against pathological activity patterns, with model systems including the hippocampus and early auditory system. His research group has made significant contributions to understanding hippocampal sharp wave-ripple events, phase precession in spatial navigation, auditory processing in barn owls, and memory consolidation mechanisms. The group's work combines theoretical approaches with computer simulations to unravel the computational principles of neural circuits, showing particular interest in how neural tissue remains susceptible to learning while maintaining robust stability against pathological activity patterns. Scholarship of the State of Bavaria (03/1994-12/1995) Emmy Noether Fellowship Part I (09/1999-08/2001), funded by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft Emmy Noether Fellowship Part II (01/2003-09/2008) Guest Professor , HU Berlin, Department of Biology (10/2008-03/2010) Professor Kempter has advised numerous PhD and Master's students throughout his career, with many continuing in neuroscience research. His group maintains strong connections with experimental laboratories to bridge computational models with empirical findings, particularly in hippocampal function and auditory processing. The Theoretical Neuroscience Lab participates in collaborative projects investigating memory consolidation and neural coding principles, contributing significantly to our understanding of how neural circuits implement computational principles underlying learning and memory.
E. Geoffrey Love is an Associate Professor of Business Administration at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, part of the Gies College of Business. He serves as Academic Co-Director of the Hoeft Technology and Management Program and Academic Director of the Carle Executive Education Program. With a PhD in Organizational Behavior from Harvard University (1997) and an AB in Applied Mathematics (1982), Love specializes in organizational innovation, corporate reputation, and institutional change. His research explores how firms navigate social evaluations, strategic innovation, and leadership dynamics. Education: PhD in Organizational Behavior (Harvard, 1997); AB in Applied Mathematics (Harvard, 1982) Positions: Academic Co-Director, Hoeft T&M Program (2024–present); Associate Professor (2016–present); Assistant Professor (2009–2016) Love's research interests span organizational design, leadership, and the impact of CEOs on corporate reputation. His work integrates institutional theory, strategic management, and behavioral insights. Notable studies include the dynamics of corporate reputation following downsizing, CEO succession, and the role of chief innovation officers. His recent articles highlight attention-based strategic leadership and innovation ecosystems across G-20 nations. Awards: Dean’s Impact Award (2022), Excellence in Graduate Teaching Award (2022) Love advises on multi-functional leadership and innovation strategy, emphasizing interdisciplinary education through programs like Hoeft T&M. His grants include funding for 'Attentional Control and Organizational Intelligence' (2024–2026). He teaches courses on strategic innovation, organizational behavior, and entrepreneurial management, leveraging over two decades of academic and industry insights.
Dengfeng Sun is a Professor and Associate Head of the Gambaro Graduate Program in the School of Aeronautics and Astronautics at Purdue University. His research focuses on distributed control systems, autonomy, resilient networks, and air traffic management. Sun holds a B.Eng. from Tsinghua University, an M.S. from The Ohio State University, and a Ph.D. from UC Berkeley. His work spans advanced air mobility, UAV trajectory planning, and stochastic optimization for large-scale systems. Key contributions include resilient UAV traffic control, distributed state estimation algorithms, and fault detection methods for navigation systems. Sun's research has been published in top journals like IEEE Transactions on Intelligent Transportation Systems and Transportation Research Part E. Education: B.Eng., Tsinghua University (2000) M.S., Ohio State University (2002) Ph.D., UC Berkeley (2008) He advises on cutting-edge projects integrating robotics, autonomous systems, and cloud-based traffic modeling. His lab develops solutions for urban air mobility, emergency medical UAV networks, and next-generation air traffic control systems. Notable collaborations include work with NASA and industry partners on continuous descent approach procedures and metroplex routing paradigms. Sun's work bridges theoretical control systems with practical applications in aviation and infrastructure optimization.
Mónica González Ybarra is an Assistant Professor in both the Department of Curriculum and Instruction and the Department of Latina/Latino Studies at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Her research focuses on centering Chicanx/Latinx communities' linguistic and cultural knowledge in educational spaces, particularly through community-based pedagogies and youth participatory action research. She earned her B.A. in Latina/Latino Studies and Spanish from the University of Illinois (2011), M.A. from the University of Utah (2013), and Ph.D. from the University of Colorado Boulder (2018). Dr. González Ybarra’s work emphasizes the intersection of education, race, and language, advocating for transformative educational practices that honor students' home and community knowledge. Her research explores topics such as translanguaging, resistant pedagogies, and the role of 'chisme' (gossip) as a literacy tool for marginalized girls. She has received awards including the Cultivating New Voices Fellowship (NCTE) and AERA Minority Dissertation Fellowship. Awards: Cultivating New Voices Fellow (NCTE), AERA Minority Dissertation Fellowship Research Focus: Bilingual education, sociopolitical navigation, community literacies Teaching: Prepares bilingual teachers to integrate homeplace knowledge into curricula Her recent publications analyze Latinx youth agency, linguistic expertise, and feminist pedagogies, with a focus on creating equitable educational spaces for communities of color. She collaborates with after-school programs and pre-service teachers to reimagine literacy and leadership frameworks.
Nicolas Cambier is a Visiting Professor at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, affiliated with the Faculty of Science's Artificial Intelligence department and the Network Institute. His research focuses on swarm robotics, collective behavior, and evolutionary systems. He explores topics like emergent communication, modular robotics, and prosociality in robotic swarms. Key areas include task-driven language evolution, adaptive decision-making, and environmental interaction in constrained environments. His work bridges theoretical models with practical implementations, emphasizing self-organization and cultural evolution in synthetic systems. Recent contributions address challenges in heterogeneous swarms, skill acquisition in modular robots, and decision-making without prior knowledge. He collaborates widely, with publications in IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters, Nature Communications, and top conferences like GECCO and Distributed Autonomous Robotic Systems. Research interests span robotics, artificial intelligence, and evolutionary computation, with applications to both theoretical frameworks and real-world robotic systems. His studies often involve agent-based simulations and embodied evolution approaches to understand complex collective phenomena.
Kimberly Becker is Professor in the Department of Psychology at the McCausland College of Arts and Sciences, University of South Carolina. She holds a BA from College of William & Mary, PhD from University of Arizona, Clinical Respecialization Certificate from University of Hawaii, completed clinical internship at Kennedy Krieger Institute, and postdoctoral fellowship at Johns Hopkins University. Dr. Becker directs the Becker Lab focused on extending mental health service reach and effectiveness. Her research encompasses: Treatment engagement strategies for youth/families Clinical decision support tools development Workforce training through supervision/coaching Expanding mental health workforce capacity School-based intervention implementation Dr. Becker's publications demonstrate consistent focus on mental health services research. Recent work (2023-2025) examines clinical decision-making, implementation science, school-based services during COVID-19, and cross-cultural interventions. Her articles frequently address treatment engagement barriers, workforce development, and scalable service models in diverse settings. Her research has been supported by: William T. Grant Foundation Klingenstein Foundation National Institute on Drug Abuse She trains doctoral students in evidence-based psychosocial treatments and clinical decision-making. Dr. Becker mentors students in developing research programs to improve mental health services for underserved populations. She leads the Becker Lab whose mission emphasizes equity, authentic partnerships, applied science, and paradigm-shifting approaches to children's mental health services.
Mustafa Ünel is a Professor and Program Coordinator for Mechatronics Engineering at Sabanci University's Faculty of Engineering and Natural Sciences. He directs the Control, Vision and Robotics Research Lab and serves as a Senior Researcher at SU-IMC. His research spans robotics, computer vision, and machine learning applications in industrial systems. He earned a PhD in Electrical Engineering from Brown University and has held academic positions at Gebze Institute of Technology and Yale University. Current research projects include autonomous vehicle navigation, system health prediction, and aerospace manufacturing technologies funded by TUBITAK and Ford Otosan. He has supervised over 50 graduate theses and teaches courses including Autonomous Mobile Robotics, Nonlinear Control, and Computer Vision. His industrial collaborations focus on AI applications in automotive systems and construction automation.
Tae Eun Kim is an Associate Professor in Maritime Safety Management at UiT The Arctic University of Norway, working within the Department of Technology and Security. Her research, teaching, and industrial collaboration focus on maritime safety and human factors, with particular expertise in maritime safety management, accident analysis, Maritime Autonomous Surface Ships (MASS), and human factors in maritime operations. Dr. Kim's research spans four interconnected domains: maritime safety management and leadership, maritime accident and casualty analysis, Maritime Autonomous Surface Ships (MASS), and human factors in maritime operations. She has developed assessment instruments like the Safety Leadership Self-Efficacy Scale (SLSES) and conducted STAMP-based causal analyses of maritime accidents. Her work on MASS addresses safety challenges in mixed navigational environments and examines leadership competencies for autonomous shipping operations. Her human factors research explores how technological advancements impact navigators' performance, crew dynamics, and safety outcomes, including gender parity issues in the maritime industry. Dr. Kim's publication record reveals a strong focus on the intersection of maritime safety, technology, and human performance. Her recent work increasingly addresses autonomous shipping technologies, with numerous publications on AI decision transparency, learning analytics in maritime simulator training, and multi-modal data analysis for nautical skill development. She has conducted systematic reviews on simulator training approaches and scenario design, contributing significantly to methodology development in maritime education and training. Her research demonstrates a clear trajectory toward integrating emerging technologies with traditional maritime safety practices as the industry transitions toward greater automation. Dr. Kim is actively involved in several significant research projects, including the i-MASTER EU Horizon Europe Research and Innovation Project, the REFRAME project, and the SPRICE project (Multidisciplinary approach for spray icing modelling). She is a member of both the Advanced Maritime Ship Operations research group and the Maritime Safety Science (MARSCI) Research Group, demonstrating her commitment to collaborative research in maritime safety science. Dr. Kim teaches several specialized courses at UiT, including SVF-3206 Safety Management and Accident Investigation, TEK-3014 Navigation Technology, MFA-2100 Maritime Digitalization, MFA-8010 Maritime HTO (Human-Technology-Organisation) and Innovation, and MFA-2018 Maritime Administration and Leadership. Her teaching portfolio reflects the interdisciplinary nature of her expertise, bridging engineering, safety science, and organizational behavior in maritime contexts.
Debanjan Mitra is the Voya Financial Fellow and Professor of Marketing at the University of Connecticut School of Business. His research focuses on consumer perception processes, innovation, and the development of metrics for organizations, products, and customers to evaluate their short-term and long-term impact. He employs analytical and econometric methods to study these effects across organizations, product categories, and brands. His educational background includes a Ph.D. in Business Administration (Marketing) from New York University (2004), a Post Graduate Diploma in Management (P.G.D.M.) from the Indian Institute of Management (1990), and a Bachelor of Technology (B.Tech.) from the Indian Institute of Technology (1988). Prior to his doctoral studies, he gained industry experience in marketing positions at Coca Cola and Diageo. Professor Mitra's research interests are multifaceted, covering Innovation, Consumer Perception, Quality Management, New Product Development, Marketing Analytics, Marketing Strategy, and Regulatory Marketing. His work in marketing analytics has provided insights into customer behavior and brand performance, while his research on regulatory marketing explores how firms navigate marketing regulations, particularly in financial markets. He has also made significant contributions to understanding quality from a customer perspective and its role in merger analysis. His publications appear in premier journals such as the Journal of Marketing, Journal of Marketing Research, Marketing Science, and Management Science. The trajectory of his recent work (from 2012 to 2021) shows a consistent focus on the interplay between marketing metrics, regulatory constraints, and innovation, with increasing emphasis on data-driven approaches to marketing strategy. Professor Mitra's scholarly contributions have been recognized with numerous awards: Marketing Science Institute Scholar American Marketing Association’s Varadarajan Award for Early Career Contributions to Marketing Strategy Research Harold H. Maynard Best Paper Award Excellence in Global Marketing Research Award Marketing Science Institute’s Robert D. Buzzell Award INFORMS’ John D. C. Little Award Finalist INFORMS’ Frank M. Bass Award Finalist Academy of Marketing Science’s Emerging Distinguished Scholar He has served as an Associate Editor for the Journal of Marketing and his research has received media coverage in The Wall Street Journal, The Financial Times, Business Week, Forbes, and CNN. Professor Mitra has consulted for many Fortune 500 firms and high-tech start-ups, applying his academic insights to real-world business challenges. In the classroom, he teaches graduate courses including 'Customer Insights', 'Brand Management', and 'Marketing Analytics', as well as PhD courses on 'Marketing Strategy Research' and 'Multivariate Analysis'. His industry experience and academic rigor provide a unique perspective for his students. At the University of Connecticut, Professor Mitra is a core faculty member in the Marketing department within the School of Business, where he continues to advance research in marketing strategy and analytics while mentoring the next generation of marketing scholars and practitioners.
