Matthew Potolsky is Professor of English at the University of Utah, specializing in nineteenth-century literature and literary theory. His career spans from 1998 Lecturer at Harvard University to current University Professorship. He earned a BA in Comparative Literature and Philosophy (1990), followed by MA and PhD in Comparative Literature (1992, 1997) from UC Irvine. Chair of English Department (2013-2016) University Professor (2014-2016) Research focuses on Decadence , Mimesis , Finance-Aesthetics intersections , and Government Secrecy . His work traces connections between financialization and decadent aesthetics, revealing how economic cycles influence artistic production. Key themes include: Decadent anti-realist literary movements Finance capital's cultural impact Decadent counterpublic formations Victorian aesthetic education debates Sublime aesthetics in national security Cosmopolitanism in literary communities Recent publications analyze: Decadent style as financialization rhetoric Reintroduction of verisimilitude theory Decadent responses to financial crises Mimetic labor in artistic production Decadent cosmopolitan counterpublics Historical parallels between financialization and literary decadence
Prof. Dr. Claudine Moulin is a Full Professor of Historical Linguistics at the Department of German Studies, University of Trier. She co-directs the Trier Center for Digital Humanities and serves as Vertrauensdozentin der Deutschen Forschungsgemeinschaft. With academic roots in Brussels and Bamberg, she completed her PhD in 1990 and Habilitation in 1999 at the University of Bamberg. Her research spans medieval and early modern languages, manuscript studies, digital humanities, and Luxembourgish linguistics. As a leading scholar in historical linguistics, Moulin's work explores urban language history, phraseology, and cultural knowledge transmission through manuscripts. She has directed major digital humanities projects like LexicoLux and Cartul@rium, while pioneering digital codicology methods for medieval texts. Her research combines traditional philology with computational approaches. Her academic accolades include the Akademiepreis Rheinland-Pfalz (2010), Landesverdienstorden (2014), and the Verdienstkreuz am Bande (2025). She has held visiting professorships at Sorbonne, EHESS Paris, and EPHE, and received fellowships from the Humboldt Foundation and European Science Foundation. Notable Academic Roles: Co-founder and Chair of DHd (Digital Humanities in German-speaking countries) Founding member of Trier Center for Language and Communication Member of German Historical Institute Paris scientific board Advisory positions at Austrian Center for Digital Humanities and Herzog August Bibliothek Her editorial leadership includes chief editorship of Sprachwissenschaft journal and co-editorship of Germanistische Bibliothek monograph series. She has mentored over 40 graduate students in topics ranging from medieval marginalia to urban language studies.
Dr. Oana Cocarascu is a Senior Lecturer in Artificial Intelligence at the Department of Informatics, Faculty of Natural, Mathematical & Engineering Sciences, King's College London. She holds a PhD and MEng in Computing (Artificial Intelligence) from Imperial College London and conducts applied research focusing on how artificial intelligence can be deployed to support real-world applications, with machine learning and natural language processing as core components of her work. Her research interests span argument mining, explainable AI, machine learning, natural language processing, and symbolic reasoning. She is particularly focused on developing AI systems that can provide transparent, accountable, and ethical decision-making processes. Her work addresses critical challenges in bias mitigation, fairness metrics, fact verification systems, and argumentation-based explanations for complex AI decisions. Analysis of her recent publications (2023-2025) reveals a strong focus on fairness in AI systems, with particular attention to individual fairness metrics and nuanced evaluation frameworks. She has made significant contributions to fact verification systems, especially in multimodal contexts involving charts and tabular data. Her work increasingly integrates argumentation theory with natural language processing to create explainable AI systems that can justify their decisions through structured reasoning. Dr. Cocarascu leads an EPSRC-funded project titled 'A framework for evaluating and explaining the robustness of NLP models' (2024-2027) and is actively involved in the Natural Language Processing Group at KCL. Her research fingerprint shows strong activity in argumentation (100%), decision-making (74%), artificial intelligence (50%), explainable AI (39%), and bias mitigation (35%). She has contributed to numerous high-impact publications in top venues including ACL, EMNLP, AAAI, and the Journal of Artificial Intelligence Research, with a particular focus on making AI systems more transparent, accountable, and aligned with human values. Her work intersects with UN Sustainable Development Goals, particularly those related to reducing inequality and building resilient infrastructure.
Ning Zhang is an Assistant Professor in the Biology Department at James Madison University (JMU), joining in 2024. Her research focuses on enhancing crop resilience through molecular and biochemical studies of plant defense mechanisms against bacterial pathogens, alongside developing genome editing technologies for trait improvement. She holds a PhD in Horticulture and Crop Science from The Ohio State University (2016), an MS in Silviculture from Zhejiang Agriculture and Forestry University (2011), and a BS in Landscape Architecture from Shandong Agricultural University (2008). Research Interests: Dr. Zhang's lab investigates plant immunity pathways, CRISPR/Cas9 genome editing applications, and engineering crops for disease resistance. Her work integrates molecular biology, genetics, and biochemistry to tackle challenges posed by climate change and biotic/abiotic stresses. Recent Trends in Publications: Her articles concentrate on MAPK signaling pathways, NLR protein interactions, PP2C phosphatase regulation, and bacterial effector mechanisms in tomato and other crops. Key themes include immune system activation, pathogen recognition diversity, and transgenic plant development. Lab Information: The Zhang Lab at JMU is part of the Department of Biology, focusing on plant biotechnology solutions for agricultural sustainability. They collaborate on projects involving CRISPR-based gene editing and stress tolerance research.
Yin Bao is an Assistant Professor in Plant and Soil Sciences and Mechanical Engineering at the University of Delaware since 2023, previously holding the same position at Auburn University's Department of Biosystems Engineering (2019-2023). He holds a BE in Mechanical Engineering from China Agricultural University (2012) and a PhD in Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering from Iowa State University (2018), followed by postdoctoral research there until 2019. His research focuses on automation technology for agriculture and forestry, leveraging robotics, machine learning, and sensing systems to develop tools for precision farming and plant phenotyping. Key areas include unmanned systems (UGVs/UAVs), spectral imaging, and AI-driven predictive models for crop and livestock management. Recent work emphasizes automated inventory systems for forest nurseries, UAV-based vegetation assessment, and machine learning applications in crop yield prediction. His publications span robotic guidance systems, root segmentation in X-ray CT scans, and equine gait analysis using deep learning. Notable projects include the Robotic Assay for Drought (RoAD) system and the 'smart canopy' sorghum initiative. Collaborative efforts involve integrating multifrequency microwave sensing and electronic nose technologies for crop quality analysis.
Prof. Richard L. Peters is a Professor and Head of the Chair of Tree Growth and Wood Physiology at the Technische Universität München (TUM) since 2024. His research focuses on tree physiology, wood formation, and climate-forest interactions. He holds a doctorate summa cum laude from the University of Basel (2018) and has conducted postdoctoral research at the Swiss Federal Institute for Forest Science (WSL) and Ghent University. His work integrates forest ecology, dendrochronology, and ecophysiology to address climate change impacts on forests. Education: B.Sc./M.Sc. in Biology at Utrecht University, Ph.D. from University of Basel (2018). Key career steps include a Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF) fellowship at Ghent University and coordination of the Swiss Canopy Crane II project (2021). Research Interests: Tree water-use strategies, drought tolerance mechanisms, carbon allocation dynamics, and the physiological basis of tree growth. He leads interdisciplinary projects to monitor forest responses to environmental stress using tools like the TreeNet network. Awards: Early Postdoc Mobility Fellowship (SNSF, 2019), Doctorate summa cum laude (2018). Contributions: Authored >180 publications, co-developed the datacleanr R package for ecological data processing, and pioneered methods linking tree-ring data with climate models. His work emphasizes the need for better observational data to improve vegetation models.
Michele Zorzi is a Professor of Telecommunications at the School of Engineering, University of Padova, Italy, where he has held a faculty position since 2003. He leads the SIGNET (Signal processing and Networking) Research Group, focusing on cutting-edge wireless networking challenges including mmWave communications and underwater networks. His extensive publication record exceeds 600 papers in top-tier journals and conferences, reflecting significant contributions to the field through both theoretical and experimental work. He received his Laurea Degree (1990) and Ph.D. (1994) in Electrical Engineering from the University of Padova. Prior academic appointments include Politecnico di Milano (1993-1996), University of California San Diego (1995-1998), and University of Ferrara (1998-2003), where he progressed from Associate Professor to full Professor. His educational trajectory demonstrates deep roots in Italian academia with international exposure. Professor Zorzi's research spans wireless communications and networking, with current emphases on mmWave networking for vehicular systems, underwater acoustic/optical communications, non-terrestrial networks, and AI-driven networking solutions. His group conducts experimental validations including at-sea trials for underwater systems and testbeds for vehicular networks. Key projects include PRATA for predictive QoS in autonomous driving and IoT-based environmental monitoring of the Venice Lagoon, demonstrating practical applications of theoretical work. Analysis of his 2022-2025 publications reveals strong trends in applying artificial intelligence to networking challenges across diverse environments. There is significant emphasis on vehicular networks (predictive QoS, teleoperated driving), underwater systems (acoustic/optical communications, AUV swarms), and satellite networks (Starlink integration, NTN security). Experimental validation in real-world scenarios like the Venice Lagoon monitoring project and underwater sea trials characterizes his applied research approach. His scientific accolades include: IEEE Fellow (2007) IEEE Communications Society Best Tutorial Paper Award (2008, 2019) Stephen O. Rice Best Paper Award (2018) Multiple best paper awards at IEEE conferences (2005-2020) As principal investigator for numerous European and US research projects plus 20+ industry-funded initiatives, Professor Zorzi has mentored over 35 PhD students and post-docs. Graduates now hold prominent positions at institutions including Stanford, UCSD, CTTC, and Huawei. His SIGNET group maintains active international collaborations and contributes to open-source networking tools via GitHub, demonstrating commitment to community engagement. The SIGNET Research Group, housed within the Department of Information Engineering, operates specialized experimental facilities for mmWave and underwater communications. Current initiatives include AI-based predictive QoS frameworks for vehicular networks, underwater optical communication systems using ultraviolet light, and large-scale IoT deployments for environmental monitoring. The group's GitHub presence indicates strong open-science practices, while recent sea trials confirm hands-on experimental capabilities beyond theoretical work.
Sushmita Roy is a Professor at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, affiliated with the Department of Computer Sciences and the College of Letters and Science. Her research focuses on developing computational methods in statistical machine learning to understand gene regulatory networks in living cells, particularly under environmental, developmental, disease, and evolutionary contexts. She explores bulk and single-cell genomic data integration to study processes like cell fate specification, host-microbe interactions, and diseases such as cancer and neurodevelopmental disorders. Her work emphasizes three key areas: inference of genome-scale transcriptional networks, evolutionary analysis of regulatory networks, and 3D genome organization dynamics. Roy’s lab collaborates across disciplines, leveraging genomic data from plant and mammalian systems. She has contributed to methodologies for analyzing chromatin accessibility, single-cell profiling, and network-based models of pathogen systems. Her affiliations include Wisconsin Institutes for Discovery, and she is a leader in computational biology and systems genomics research.
Junjian Qi serves as the Hohbach Endowed Associate Professor in the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at South Dakota State University's College of Engineering, holding this position since 2023. His academic journey includes prior appointments as Assistant Professor at Stevens Institute of Technology (2020-2023) and University of Central Florida (2017-2020), along with research roles at Argonne National Laboratory and University of Tennessee. His educational background includes: Ph.D. in electrical engineering from Tsinghua University, Beijing, China (2013) B.E. in electrical engineering from Shandong University, Jinan, China (2008) Dr. Qi's research centers on electric power systems resilience, with particular expertise in cascading failure mechanisms, microgrid control architectures, cyber-physical security vulnerabilities, and synchrophasor applications. His work integrates advanced data analytics and machine learning techniques to enhance grid stability against extreme weather events and cyber threats. Current investigations focus on developing distributed control strategies for inverter-dominated grids and modeling system interdependencies during failure propagation. Analysis of his 15 most recent publications (2021-2024) reveals a strong methodological shift toward data-driven approaches for power system challenges. Key trends include machine learning applications for cascading failure prediction, novel distributed control frameworks for AC/DC microgrids, and cybersecurity enhancements for inverter-based resources. His work consistently bridges theoretical models with real-world utility data, particularly evident in multiple Best Paper Award-winning publications analyzing actual outage sequences. Dr. Qi's scientific recognition includes: NSF CAREER Award (2020) Three consecutive Best Paper Awards at IEEE PES General Meetings (2022-2024) World's Top 2% Scientist designation in energy (2020-2023) IEEE PES Outstanding Working Group Award (2023) Multiple journal Best Paper Awards (IEEE Transactions on Power Systems, Journal of Modern Power Systems) He currently leads significant research initiatives including an NSF CAREER project ($500k) on cascading failure analysis and an NSF collaborative grant ($219k) for grid stability, alongside previous DOE funding ($1.8M) for cybersecurity of distributed energy resources. His service includes editorial roles for IEEE Transactions on Power Systems and IEEE Power Engineering Letters, plus leadership in IEEE PES technical committees focused on voltage control and smart grid security.
Assoc Prof Ng Teng Yong is an Associate Professor at the School of Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering (NTU), specializing in numerical modeling and simulation. With a background as Research Manager at A*STAR Institute of High Performance Computing, his work spans materials science, nanotechnology, and aerospace engineering. Current focus on graphene-based desalination membranes Expertise in molecular dynamics simulations Investigates nanoscale fluid mechanics and structural dynamics Recent publications highlight advancements in energy-efficient electrodialysis, smart robotics, and nonlinear vibration analysis. His interdisciplinary approach integrates computational methods with experimental validation in additive manufacturing and soft material mechanics.
Jennifer L. Clarke is a Professor in the Department of Statistics at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln and Director of the Quantitative Life Science Initiative. She holds leadership roles in enabling big data integration across the University of Nebraska system through collaborative research programs. Her affiliations include the Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources (IANR) and the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources. Dr. Clarke's research focuses on statistical methodology for high-dimensional data, computational biology, bioinformatics, and bacterial genomics. Her work bridges statistical innovation with applications in oncology, microbiome analysis, and agricultural phenomics. Key areas include predictive modeling, machine learning, and genomic/metagenomic data integration. Her recent publications span cancer biomarker discovery, plant phenotyping methodologies, and microbial community analysis, reflecting her interdisciplinary approach. Articles emphasize translational applications like therapeutic target identification and precision agriculture. Dr. Clarke leads initiatives fostering collaboration between statisticians and domain scientists, including the Quantitative Life Science Initiative and contributions to the Agricultural Genome-to-Phenome Initiative (AG2PI). Her work advances data-driven solutions for healthcare and food security challenges. Notable projects include developing statistical tools for microbiome studies, analyzing root architecture via 3D imaging, and investigating cranberry-derived compounds' cancer-inhibitory mechanisms. Her methodological contributions include hybrid clustering techniques and predictive model validation frameworks.
Hugo de Boer is a Professor at the Copernicus Institute of Sustainable Development , Faculty of Geosciences, Utrecht University. He serves as scientific lead for the Delta Climate Center in Vlissingen and coordinates MSc programs in Water Science and Management and Water Management for Climate Adaptation . His research explores climate-ecosystem interactions, focusing on plant ecophysiology, ecosystem dynamics, and nature-inclusive climate adaptation in deltas. Research Themes: Future Deltas, Pathways to Sustainability, Integrative Bioinformatics Projects: LEMONTREE, CloudRoots, 'From losers to winners' (ancient plant lineages under elevated CO2) Teaching Expertise: System thinking for sustainability, quantitative statistics, plant ecophysiology Research Trends emphasize interdisciplinary approaches to climate change impacts on ecosystems, with publications spanning plant-cloud processes, CO2 acclimation, and eco-evolutionary optimality models. His work bridges biogeochemistry, land-atmosphere interactions, and sustainable development frameworks. Projects & Collaborations include experimental studies on ancient plant lineages (Equisetum) and integrative field campaigns in Amazon and temperate forests. He contributes to modeling climate-vegetation feedbacks, pesticide emission scenarios, and social-ecological system transitions.
Dr. Simon A. Morrison is a Senior Lecturer in the Division of Communication, Screen & Performance within the Faculty of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences at the University of Chester. He serves as Programme Leader for the Music Journalism degree, which he helped design, build and deliver from its first cohort in 2014. With 25 years of experience as a writer, broadcaster, and academic, Morrison brings extensive industry knowledge to his teaching and research, having worked as a music journalist reporting from locations worldwide including Beijing, Brazil, Moscow, and Marrakech. Dr. Morrison holds a PhD from the University of Leeds (completed 2018), an MA from the University of Manchester (1995-1997), and a BA Hons from the University of Manchester (1989-1992). Prior to his position at Chester, he worked as an Associate Lecturer at Manchester Metropolitan University (2012-2014) and as a Visiting Lecturer at Leeds University (2011-2013). His academic journey follows a substantial career in media where he presented TV for Rapture TV, hosted radio shows in Ibiza, produced and presented for Kiss Radio, and appeared on BBC Breakfast and BBC 5 Live. Dr. Morrison's research centers on the intersection of words and music , with particular focus on Popular Music , Musico-Literary Intermediality , and Electronic Dance Music Culture . His work explores how music subcultures, particularly rave and dance music scenes, are represented in literature and journalism. He examines the connections between different countercultural movements, notably drawing parallels between the Beat Generation writers and contemporary 'Chemical Generation' authors who write about club culture. His research also investigates the relationship between music journalism and subcultural movements across different historical periods. His recent publications reveal a clear trajectory connecting historical dance music developments across continents and eras. Morrison's work traces the evolution of electronic dance music from its American roots in Chicago and Detroit through its transatlantic journey to Europe and back again, examining how cultural exchange shaped musical innovation. His analyses of Pink Floyd demonstrate how rock bands interact with media landscapes, while his investigations of music journalism document the changing nature of music criticism in digital eras. The recurring theme across his scholarship is the examination of how subcultural experiences are translated into written form, whether through journalism, fiction, or academic analysis. Dr. Morrison actively supervises undergraduate dissertation projects and Negotiated Study production projects across all three years of undergraduate study. He has successfully supervised an MRes project to completion and examined PhDs (including one internal and two external, one being an Australian PhD by Artefact & Exegesis). He has served as an External Examiner for Music Journalism programs at Southampton Solent University (2016-2019) and BIMM London, Birmingham and Manchester (2016-2020). His teaching spans modules including Introduction to Journalism, Live Journalism, Dancing About Architecture: Popular Music Media, Histories and Technologies, The Cultural Politics of Music Journalism, The Politics of Social Media, Magazine Publishing and Music PR and Promotional Writing.
Dr.-Ing. Tobias Fiebig is a Senior Researcher at the Max Planck Institute for Informatics (Internet Architecture department) since April 2022. He previously served as a permanent Assistant Professor at TU Delft's Faculty of Technology, Policy and Management from 2017-2022. His work combines network measurement with human factors to improve security practices, focusing on email protocols, DNS infrastructure, and academic cloud migration. PhD in Computer Science from TU Berlin (2017) MSc in System and Network Engineering from University of Amsterdam (2013) BSc in Cognitive Science from University of Osnabrück (2012) His research spans Internet security (DNS, IPv6, email), academic freedom in cloud contexts, and human-centered security challenges. Recent work analyzes MTA-STS deployment, DNS sampling biases, and university cloud migration privacy implications. He has presented at top conferences including USENIX Security , IEEE Symposium on Security and Privacy , and ACM CCS . Teaching roles include lecturing Data Networks (2023-24) and On the Practice of System and Network Engineering (2024), with prior module management in cyber security analytics and sustainable system operations.
Dr. Wahab Hamou-Lhadj is a Professor and Chair at the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering , Concordia University, and an Affiliate Researcher at NASA JPL, Caltech . He leads research in Artificial Intelligence for IT Operations (AIOps) , Software Observability , and Model-Driven Engineering , focusing on improving the reliability of digital systems in AI-driven environments.
