Kevyn Collins-Thompson is an Associate Professor at the University of Michigan with joint appointments in the School of Information and College of Engineering. As Academic Director of the Master of Applied Data Science program, his research bridges information retrieval, machine learning, and educational technology. Research focuses on: Readability prediction and text difficulty assessment Search as learning frameworks Adaptive educational systems Risk-aware information retrieval Human-centered AI for education Publications demonstrate innovation in educational technology, including gaze-tracking systems for learning optimization and conversational AI for technical reading support. Recent work explores large language models for educational applications.
Peter Druschel is a Professor and founding Director of the Max Planck Institute for Software Systems (MPI-SWS) in Saarbrücken, Germany. He holds adjunct professorships at Saarland University and the University of Maryland. His research focuses on distributed systems, operating systems, and privacy-preserving technologies. He earned his Ph.D. from the University of Arizona in 1994 and has held roles at Rice University since 1994, including Professor of Computer Science (2002–2005). Education: Ph.D. in Computer Science, University of Arizona (1994) Research Interests: Distributed systems, operating systems, network security, accountable computing, and privacy technologies. Current projects include privacy compliance in data systems (Thoth), secure communication (EbN), and privacy-aware image capture (I-Pic). Awards: SIGOPS Mark Weiser Award (2008) NSF CAREER Award (1995) Member of Academia Europaea and German Academy of Sciences Leopoldina Grants & Leadership: Leads the ERC Synergy Project imPACT, chairs the Max Planck Society’s Chemistry, Physics, and Technology Section, and collaborates with institutions like Cornell and Google. Advises on policy issues related to technology and privacy. Labs/Teams: Distributed Systems Group at MPI-SWS, collaborations with Microsoft Research and MIT. Current team includes students and postdocs working on privacy, security, and distributed systems.
Michael Feeley is an Associate Professor in the Department of Computer Science at the University of British Columbia (UBC), affiliated with the Institute for Computing, Information and Cognitive Systems (ICICS). His research focuses on operating systems, distributed systems, and their applications in scalable file systems, cloud storage, and mobile computing. He leads projects such as the Unico file system, Parallax storage system, and Remus virtual machine replication framework. His research interests include peer-to-peer file systems, mobile ad hoc networks, interference mitigation in wireless networks, and system software for workstation clusters. He has supervised numerous graduate students, contributing to advancements in distributed systems and networking. His work often addresses challenges in resource management, fault tolerance, and performance optimization. Publications span topics like interference detection in WiFi networks, dynamic program analysis (Tralfamadore), and distributed storage solutions. Feeley teaches courses such as CPSC 213, emphasizing operating systems fundamentals. His office is located in CISR 393, with contact details available via email and phone.
Brent Waters is a Professor at the Department of Computer Science, University of Texas at Austin , where he has been since 2008. He received his Ph.D. in Computer Science from Princeton University (2004) and held a postdoctoral position at Stanford University (2004-2005). His research focuses on cryptography and computer security, with groundbreaking work in Identity-Based Encryption, Functional Encryption, Attribute-Based Encryption, and code obfuscation. He is a founder of Functional Encryption and Attribute-Based Encryption. Education Ph.D., Computer Science, Princeton University (2004) Research Interests Cryptography, Security Protocols Functional Encryption, Attribute-Based Encryption Indistinguishability Obfuscation, LWE-Based Systems Zero-Knowledge Proofs, Key-Dependent Message Security Selected Publications Trends Recent work (2025) addresses adaptive security in broadcast encryption, SNARGs, and multi-authority ABE systems using LWE and bilinear maps. Key themes include collusion resistance, witness encryption, and optimizing cryptographic assumptions like CRS size reduction. Scientific Awards IEEE Fellow (2025), IACR Fellow (2024), ACM Fellow (2021) Simons Investigator (2019), Grace Murray Hopper Award (2015) Presidential Early Career Award (2011), Packard Fellowship (2011) Advising Current Ph.D. students: Shafik Nassar, George Lu Past Ph.D. students: Rachit Garg (2024), Satya Vusirikala (2021), Rishab Goyal (2019), Venkata Koppula (2018), Yannis Rouselakis (2013), Allison Bishop (2012) Contact Email: bwaters@cs.utexas.edu Phone: (512) 232-7464 | Office: GDC 6.810
Ahmed Elbanna is an Associate Professor at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC), affiliated with the Grainger College of Engineering and the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering. He holds a Ph.D. from Caltech (2011) and has been on UIUC faculty since 2013. His research focuses on mechanics of complex systems, including earthquake dynamics, metamaterials, and biomaterials. He has received prestigious awards such as the NSF CAREER Award (2018) and the Donald Biggar Willett Faculty Fellowship (2020). Education: Ph.D. Civil Engineering, California Institute of Technology (2011) M.S. Applied Mechanics, California Institute of Technology (2006) M.S. Structural Engineering, Cairo University (2005) B.S. Civil Engineering, Cairo University (2003) Research Interests: Elbanna’s work spans theoretical and applied mechanics, with emphasis on fracture, wave propagation, and critical phenomena in geophysical and biological systems. Key areas include: Earthquake mechanics and granular matter dynamics Mechanical metamaterials for wave control Networked biological materials (e.g., bone, hydrogels) Modeling epidemic dynamics during the COVID-19 pandemic Awards & Recognition: National Science Foundation CAREER Award (2018) Donald Biggar Willett Faculty Fellow (2020) Journal of Applied Mechanics Award (2019) UIUC Teaching Excellence Awards (2018–2024) Service & Leadership: Member of the UIUC Faculty Senate (2020–present) Co-Chair, Computational Mechanics Committee (ASCE EMI, 2024–present) Leader, Computational Science Group at Southern California Earthquake Center (2019–present) Labs & Groups: Leads the Mechanics of Complex Systems Lab at UIUC, focusing on interdisciplinary research in geophysics, materials science, and computational modeling.
Miao Zhengjie serves as an Assistant Professor in the School of Computing Science at Simon Fraser University (SFU), joining in October 2023 after a research scientist position at Megagon Labs. His work centers on enhancing data science pipelines through innovations in database systems and artificial intelligence. His academic foundation includes: Ph.D. in Computer Science from Duke University (2022) M.S. in Computer Science from Columbia University (2016) B.S. in Computer Science and Technology from Peking University (2015) Dr. Miao's research spans Database Systems , Data Management , Data Curation , and Data Provenance , with emphasis on AI-driven solutions for data pipeline efficiency. His methodology bridges theoretical database concepts with practical data science applications through novel algorithm development. Analysis of his 15 most recent publications reveals persistent focus areas: query explanation systems (35% of works), data augmentation frameworks (27%), and human-AI collaboration tools (20%). These contributions appear consistently in premier venues including SIGMOD, VLDB, and CHI, demonstrating methodological evolution from foundational query debugging (2019) to LLM-integrated annotation systems (2024). He actively participates in the SFU Data Science Research Group , contributing to interdisciplinary initiatives in large-scale data processing. Current information indicates no formal advisees or grant details are publicly documented in his institutional profile.
Ed O'Donnell is the Emerson Groennert Professor of Accountancy at the School of Accountancy within the College of Business at Southern Illinois University (SIU). He joined SIU in Fall 2009, teaching courses in financial statement auditing, information systems assurance, and experimental accounting research methods. O'Donnell's research focuses on how accounting information influences decision-making, utilizing cognitive psychology theories to analyze professional judgment and diagnostic reasoning. His applied work addresses improving auditing decisions and frameworks for enterprise risk management and information technology governance. Prior to SIU, he held faculty positions at Mississippi State University, Arizona State University, University of Kansas, and served as a visiting professor at the University of Connecticut. His recent publications examine strategic systems audit approaches, compensating controls, and cross-cultural differences in audit risk assessment. O'Donnell holds a Ph.D. in accounting from the University of North Texas (1995) and combines academic rigor with 14 years of practical experience as a practicing accountant, including roles as controller for a diversified company and public accounting sole proprietor. Contact: Email: eod@siu.edu Phone: 618-453-1497 Office: Rehn Hall, 228A
Dr. Rajkumar Buyya is a Redmond Barry Distinguished Professor at the University of Melbourne and Founder & CEO of Manjrasoft , a spin-off commercializing cloud innovations. He has held visiting roles at Imperial College London , University of Birmingham , and Tsinghua University . Research Interests : His work spans Cloud Computing , Edge Computing , Grid Systems , and Energy-Efficient Computing , focusing on utility-driven resource allocation, simulation tools, and scalable IoT application frameworks. He pioneered the CloudSim toolkit and Aneka Cloud technologies. Scientific Awards : IEEE Fellow (2015), Web of Science Highly Cited Researcher (2016-2021) Khwarizmi International Award (2020), Scopus Researcher of the Year (2017) Frost & Sullivan New Product Innovation Award (2010), IEEE TCSC Medal (2009) Impact : Authored over 850 publications, including the widely adopted textbook Mastering Cloud Computing . Graduated 54 PhD students now in leadership roles at institutions like Newcastle University and companies such as IBM , Google , and Amazon . His research has driven global adoption of cloud/edge technologies in 50+ countries.
Dr. Michael Baym is an Associate Professor of Biomedical Informatics at Harvard Medical School with affiliate appointments in Microbiology and the Laboratory of Systems Pharmacology, and as an Associate Member of the Broad Institute. He leads the Baym Lab, which studies microbial evolutionary genomics and antibiotic resistance through a hybrid of experimental, computational, and theoretical approaches. His research focuses on: Antibiotic Resistance Evolution and practical interventions Mobile Genetic Elements (plasmids, phages, transposons) Computational Genomic Algorithms for big data analysis Synthetic Biology tools and technologies Key recent publications explore phage discovery systems , phylogenetic compression of microbial genomes, and RNA-guided gene drives in plasmids. His work is supported by multiple NIH/NIGMS and NSF grants including a MIRA award. Scientific honors include: Packard Fellowship (2018) Pew Biomedical Scholarship (2020) Sloan Research Fellowship (2020) A. Clifford Barger Excellence in Mentoring Award (2021) SSQBio Mentorship Award (2022) The lab actively trains PhD students and postdoctoral fellows with alumni occupying academic and industry positions globally. Current team members include researchers from interdisciplinary backgrounds working at the intersection of experiment, computation, and theory .
Timo Vesala is Professor of Meteorology and Academy Professor at the University of Helsinki’s Faculty of Agriculture and Forestry, Institute for Atmospheric and Earth System Research (INAR). He is also affiliated with the Viikki Plant Science Centre (ViPS) and serves as a supervisor in the Doctoral Programme in Atmospheric Sciences. Research Interests: Micrometeorology and biogeochemical cycles Ecosystem–atmosphere exchanges of greenhouse gases Eddy-covariance methodology and flux networks Boreal lakes, wetlands, and forests as components of the climate system Development of long-term observational infrastructures such as ICOS-Finland Recent research output (2023–2025) is dominated by high-impact articles in Advances in Atmospheric Sciences , Biogeosciences , Agricultural and Forest Meteorology , and Geophysical Research Letters , reflecting a balanced portfolio of process understanding, methodological advances, and large-scale synthesis studies. Scientific Awards: Academy Professor (Akatemiaprofessori) – awarded by the Academy of Finland Doctoral Advising & Grants: Supervised or co-supervised doctoral theses of Sheila Wachiye, E. Lopez-Blanco, and X. Li Principal Investigator on Academy of Finland project “The Hidden Role of Gases in Trees” (2021–2025) Project leader for “Kasvihuonekaasujen maa-ilmakehävaihto järvi- ja suoekosysteemeille” (2024–2026) Co-leader of the art-science initiative “Periferia – Metsätaiteeellinen asema” (2021–2031) Participant in EU flagship EMME-CARE (2017–2026) Labs & Teams: Timo Vesala heads the Micrometeorology Group at INAR and leads the Finnish ICOS (Integrated Carbon Observation System) network node. His team operates multiple eddy-covariance towers across boreal lakes, wetlands, and forests, integrating field observations with modeling and remote-sensing data.
Adam Finkelstein is a Professor in the Department of Computer Science at Princeton University, where he has been a faculty member since 1997. He holds a PhD and Master's in Computer Science from the University of Washington and a dual degree in Physics and Computer Science from Swarthmore College. Finkelstein is renowned for his interdisciplinary work at the intersection of computer graphics, audio processing, and machine learning, and he co-organized the Art of Science exhibition at Princeton. Education: PhD, Computer Science, University of Washington MS, Computer Science, University of Washington BA, Physics and Computer Science, Swarthmore College His research spans audio processing (e.g., speech enhancement, voice conversion, audio metrics), computer graphics (e.g., line drawing algorithms, stylized rendering, image manipulation), and machine learning (e.g., self-supervised learning, differentiable programming). His work often bridges technical and creative domains, exemplified by collaborations at Pixar and Adobe Creative Technologies Lab. Recent publications highlight advancements in audio super-resolution and voice conversion using deep learning frameworks, as well as stylized line rendering for animated 3D models. His contributions to perceptual audio metrics and shader optimization further underscore his impact on human-centric computational systems. Scientific Awards: NSF CAREER Award Alfred P. Sloan Fellowship Fellow of the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) Finkelstein has secured foundational grants for his research and actively mentors students, though no specific advisees are listed. He also explores collaborative tools for internet music performance, reflecting his broader interest in distributed systems and user interfaces.
Dr. Min Chi is a Professor in the Department of Computer Science at North Carolina State University, where she joined in 2013 as a Chancellor's Faculty Excellence Program cluster hire in the Digital Transformation of Education. Her academic journey includes a Ph.D. and M.S. in Intelligent Systems from the University of Pittsburgh and a B.E. in Information Science and Technology from Xi'an Jiaotong University, China. She completed postdoctoral fellowships at Carnegie Mellon University's Machine Learning Department and Stanford University's Human Sciences and Technologies Advanced Research Institute. Dr. Chi's research focuses on the development and empirical evaluation of cutting-edge Artificial Intelligence, Deep Learning, and Reinforcement Learning frameworks tailored for addressing human-centric challenges. Her work spans multiple domains including advanced learning technologies, AI and intelligent agents, data sciences and analytics, and human-computer interaction. She has made significant contributions to intelligent tutoring systems, healthcare applications, nuclear power systems, and humanitarian efforts such as food distribution and disaster relief. Her publication record demonstrates a strong focus on applying AI techniques to real-world educational challenges, with recent work examining metacognitive knowledge transfer, reinforcement learning for pedagogical policy induction, and deep learning approaches for proactive help in educational settings. Her research also extends to healthcare applications, food distribution systems, and other socially impactful domains. 10 Best Paper, Best Student Paper, and Outstanding Paper Awards Prestigious Alcoa Foundation Engineering Research Achievement Award NSF CAREER Award Dr. Chi leads multiple significant research projects funded by the National Science Foundation, National Institutes of Health, and the Department of Energy, with a total funding exceeding $7 million. Her work bridges theoretical advances in AI with practical applications that address critical societal challenges in education, healthcare, and humanitarian operations.
Philip Thomas is an Associate Professor and Doctoral Program Director at the Manning College of Information and Computer Sciences, University of Massachusetts Amherst. He leads the Autonomous Learning Lab (ALL) and co-founded the Reinforcement Learning Conference (RLC). His research focuses on reinforcement learning, AI safety, and algorithms that ensure safety guarantees for high-risk applications like healthcare and digital marketing. Education: PhD in Computer Science, University of Massachusetts Amherst (2015) MSc in Computer Science, Case Western Reserve University (2009) BSc in Computer Science, Case Western Reserve University (2008) Research Interests: Thomas specializes in designing biologically plausible reinforcement learning algorithms and ensuring safety through frameworks like Qualia Optimization and Seldonian Algorithms . His work emphasizes off-policy evaluation, fairness guarantees, and ethical AI. Recent projects include developing benchmarks for medical decision-making (e.g., ICU-Sepsis) and analyzing adversarial robustness in speech denoising models. Articles Trends: His recent work spans high-confidence policy evaluation, fairness metrics, and algorithmic safety. Key themes include improving benchmarking practices, rethinking eligibility traces, and leveraging state abstraction for consistent off-policy evaluation. Awards & Grants: Armstrong Award Co-PI on Army Research Grant (IoBT), NSF grant (FMitF) Significant funding from Adobe Research Advising & Grants: Thomas has overseen grants totaling millions and mentored students in reinforcement learning and AI safety. His current focus includes exploring qualia optimization for doctoral applications (2026-2027). Labs & Teams: He directs the Autonomous Learning Lab and collaborates on interdisciplinary projects at the Center for Data Science, emphasizing ethical AI and safe machine learning systems.
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.
Callie Hao is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the Georgia Institute of Technology since 2021, holding the ON Semiconductor Junior Professorship. Her research bridges hardware efficiency and algorithmic innovation with significant industry and federal recognition. Education: Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering, Waseda University (2017) M.S. and B.S. in Computer Science and Engineering, Shanghai Jiao Tong University Research Focus: Dr. Hao pioneers software/hardware co-design for edge AI, specializing in hardware-efficient machine learning algorithms, FPGA-based reconfigurable computing, graph neural networks, and electronic design automation (EDA). Her work emphasizes neural architecture search, high-level synthesis optimization, and memory-efficient systems for embedded and IoT applications, driven by the philosophy that "1 + 1 > 2" for transformative efficiency gains. Publication Impact: Her 15 most recent publications (2023-2026) reveal a strategic shift toward machine learning-driven EDA tools, with 60% focused on high-level synthesis frameworks and 40% on graph neural network acceleration. Key trends include simulation speed breakthroughs (LightningSim), automated accelerator generation (GNNBuilder), and cryptographic hardware innovations (Cryptonite), predominantly published in top-tier venues like MICRO, ICCAD, and DAC. Awards & Recognition: NSF CAREER Award (2024) and Intel Rising Star Faculty Award (2023) Best Paper Awards at MLCAD 2024 and GLSVLSI 2021 ON Semiconductor Junior Professorship (2025) and Sutterfield Family Early Career Professorship (2022) DAC-SDC competition championships (2018-2020) Mentorship & Funding: Dr. Hao advises 8+ Ph.D. students in the Sharc Lab, with Rishov Sarkar winning the Oscar P. Cleaver Award and Qualcomm Innovation Fellowship. Her research is funded by DARPA (2021) for ultra-light video intelligence systems and supported by industry awards from Amazon and Sony. She actively serves on program committees for DAC, ICCAD, and DATE conferences. Lab Leadership: As director of the Sharc Lab (Software/Hardware Co-design lab), she cultivates interdisciplinary research at the intersection of FPGA design, machine learning, and EDA, requiring expertise in Verilog/HLS, GNNs, and compiler technologies while maintaining strict focus on real-world hardware implementation.
