Deva Kannan Ramanan is a Professor at the Robotics Institute of Carnegie Mellon University , focusing on computer vision , machine learning , and human-centered robotics . His work bridges neurorobotics and visual perception , with applications in autonomous driving and 4D reconstruction . Research Topics Computer Vision 3-D Vision and Recognition Visual Servoing Neurorobotics Human-Centered Robotics Graphics & Creative Tools His recent publications in CVPR , ICRA , and ICCV emphasize 4D human reconstruction , neural rendering , and vision-language models for autonomous systems. He serves as General Chair of CVPR 2027 and Program Chair of CVPR 2018 , with IARPA funding for aerial-ground rendering (2023-2027). Current students include PhD candidates Sally Chen, Kangle Deng, and Zhiqiu Lin, while past advisees like Arun Vasudevan and Olga Russakovsky now hold positions at Amazon and Meta respectively.
Elizabeth M. Belding is a Professor in the Department of Computer Science at the University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB). She holds leadership roles as an Associate Dean and Faculty Equity Advisor in the UCSB College of Engineering, and serves as Associate Director of the Center for Information Technology and Society (CITS). Her research focuses on mobile/wireless networking, network measurement, and ICTD, with a focus on improving Internet accessibility in underserved regions globally. She has authored over 180 technical papers and led the development of the AODV routing protocol, foundational to standards like 802.11s and Zigbee. Education: Ph.D./M.S. in Electrical and Computer Engineering from UCSB (2000/1997). Awards include ACM and IEEE Fellowships, the 2018 ACM SIGMOBILE Test-of-Time Award, and mentoring accolades. She directs the MOMENT Lab, exploring broadband measurement, rural connectivity, and satellite networks. Recent projects include the NSF-funded PuebloConnect initiative and analysis of US broadband inequities via the Connect America Fund. Research emphasizes socially impactful solutions, including tribal community internet access, disaster communication (e.g., refugee camps), and combating gender-based violence via social media analysis. She has held leadership roles in the UCSB CS department and campus-wide initiatives, including the Chancellor's Advisory Committee on the Status of Women. Key grants include NSF, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and industry partnerships (e.g., ViaSat). Notable students include Udit Paul (2024 SIGCOMM Dissertation Award) and Jiamo Liu. The MOMENT Lab's work spans technical innovations in mesh networks, cellular coverage, and policy-driven broadband analysis.
Prof. Konrad Schindler holds the position of Full Professor at the Department of Civil, Environmental and Geomatic Engineering at ETH Zürich. He is also the Head of the Institute of Geodesy and Photogrammetry (IGP), leading research and educational activities in geomatics and computer vision. His career spans roles as a Photogrammetric Engineer, scientific assistant, postdoc researcher, and academic faculty across institutions including Graz University of Technology, Monash University, and TU Darmstadt before joining ETH Zürich in 2010. Education: Undergraduate studies in Geodesy (1992–1995), Graz University of Technology, Austria MEng in Photogrammetry and Geoinformation (1995–1999), Vienna University of Technology, Austria PhD in Computer Science (2001–2003), Graz University of Technology, Austria Research focuses on Photogrammetry , Remote Sensing , Computer Vision , and Image Understanding with interdisciplinary applications in environmental monitoring, geospatial analysis, and disaster response. He develops computational methods for 3D reconstruction, fusion of multi-modal data, and AI-driven solutions for satellite imagery interpretation. His work bridges geomatic engineering and machine learning to address challenges in urban mapping, climate modeling, and biological systems analysis. Publications reflect expertise in geospatial AI, diffusion models, and benchmarking datasets for disaster resilience. Notable works include Marigold (image analysis adaptation) and BRIGHT (building damage assessment). His research emphasizes practicality and scalability, such as affordable depth estimation and global biomass datasets. He has received the 2013 Marr Prize Honourable Mention (IEEE) and the 2012 U.V. Helava Award (ISPRS), alongside several Best Presentation Awards. His contributions span technical leadership, editorial roles (ISPRS Journal), and service to Swiss remote sensing commissions. Advising and grants: While no specific advisee names or grant details are listed, his career trajectory includes mentoring postdocs and junior faculty. He teaches advanced courses in Photogrammetry , Image Interpretation , and Machine Vision , integrating cutting-edge AI techniques into curricula. His research group collaborates on global-scale projects like canopy height mapping and satellite-based climate variable assessments. Labs/Teams: As Institute Head, he oversees the IGP lab at ETH Zürich, with prior affiliations including the Digital Perception Lab (Monash University) and the Computer Vision Lab (ETH Zurich). His work often involves multi-institutional collaborations focused on geospatial AI and environmental science.
David Noyce is a Professor and Executive Director of the Traffic Operations and Safety (TOPS) Laboratory at the University of Wisconsin-Madison's Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering. He also serves as Associate Director of the Safety Research Using Simulation (SaferSIM) Center, a University Transportation Center. His work focuses on transportation safety, traffic operations, and automated/connected vehicle systems. Key roles include leading over $35M in research since 2003 through the TOPS Lab and advancing technologies like V2V/V2I communication, winter maintenance strategies, and work zone safety. Education: PhD (Texas A&M, 1999), MS (Civil Engineering, UW-Madison, 1995), MBA (UW-Whitewater, 1994), BS (UW-Madison, 1984). Research interests span traffic control devices, driver behavior analysis, crash reconstruction, and multi-modal transportation systems. He pioneered the national implementation of flashing yellow arrow signals and developed the Wisconsin Connected and Automated Transportation Consortium. Current projects include C-V2X localization frameworks, automated vehicle safety testing, and winter maintenance efficiency. Recognized with 20+ awards, including ITE and ASCE Fellowships and the Dr. Arthur F. Hawnn Professorship. His labs offer full-scale driving simulators and field-testing capabilities for real-world validation of innovations.
Shoudong Huang is a Professor at the School of Mechanical and Mechatronic Engineering , University of Technology Sydney, and Deputy Director of the UTS Robotics Institute. His research focuses on mobile robot navigation , SLAM , nonlinear state estimation , and surgical robotics . He has published over 200 papers and is recognized as one of the 100 Most Influential Scholars in Robotics (Aminer, 2018). PhD in Automatic Control, Northeastern University (China) Postdoctoral Research Fellow, University of Hong Kong (1998-2000) Research Fellow, Australian National University (2001-2003) Full-time academic roles at UTS since 2004 His work addresses challenges in robot localization across extreme environments (underwater, underground mining, surgical settings) and develops globally optimal SLAM algorithms with guaranteed performance. He has secured over $4 million AUD in external funding, including ARC Discovery grants and industry partnerships. Recent publications emphasize cross-modal calibration (camera-LiDAR), interval analysis for bounded noise , and template-based deformable surface reconstruction . These span applications in autonomous driving, surgical navigation, and UAV guidance. Chancellor’s Medal for Research Excellence (2020) Supervisor of the Year (2023) Best Paper Award (2016 ICARCV) Huang serves as Associate Editor for IEEE Transactions on Robotics and International Journal of Robotics Research , and has held leadership roles in top robotics conferences like IROS and RSS. His collaborations span MIT, USC, Zhejiang University, and industry partners including PMSW Research Pty Ltd and Multiplex Constructions Pty Ltd.
Amitabha Bagchi is a Professor in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering at IIT Delhi. His research spans data algorithmics, probability, networks, and theoretical computer science, with applications in distributed systems, social networks, and AI-driven platforms. He has published extensively in leading venues such as SIGMOD, VLDB, ICDE, AAAI, and KDD, often collaborating with students and researchers on problems involving graph algorithms, fairness, and large-scale data analysis. Research Interests: His primary research interests include Data Algorithmics, Probability and Networks, Theoretical Computer Science, Distributed Algorithms, Graph Algorithms, and Machine Learning Theory. He investigates algorithmic foundations for real-world problems such as food delivery optimization, social network analysis, and efficient data structures for streaming and large graphs. Publication Trends: Recent publications focus on fairness in gig economy platforms, efficient solvers for graph Laplacians, generalization in neural networks, and temporal graph querying. His work combines theoretical rigor with practical impact, often involving GPU acceleration, distributed computing, and data-aware algorithm design. Scientific Service: Editor, Algorithms (2020–present) Editor, Journal of Discrete Algorithms , Elsevier (2006–2018) Guest Editor, special issue on Algorithms for Shortest Paths in Dynamic and Evolving Networks , Algorithms (2021) Volume Editor for proceedings of ESA, ATMOS, COCOON, and others Conference Leadership: He has served on numerous program committees and as chair for conferences including ESA (Engineering Track, 2016), ATMOS (2020), and ICALP (2019). His involvement spans algorithmic engineering, transportation optimization, and theoretical computer science forums. Teaching: He currently teaches COL863: Special Topics in Theoretical Computer Science on concentration inequalities and their applications. He has previously taught advanced courses in algorithms and data structures.
Noah Snavely is a Professor of Computer Science at Cornell Tech and the Cornell Ann S. Bowers College of Computing and Information Science. His research spans computer vision and graphics with a focus on 3D scene understanding from image collections. He also works at Google DeepMind in NYC and leads the Cornell Graphics and Vision Group. His research interests include computer vision and computer graphics , particularly in recovering 3D structure from large photo collections, neural radiance fields, image-based rendering, and scene understanding. His work enables applications in mapping technologies, immersive VR experiences, and synthesizing 3D worlds from text prompts with implications for game design and filmmaking. Recent publications show a strong trend toward generative 3D modeling and neural rendering , with significant contributions in neural radiance fields, view synthesis, and dynamic scene reconstruction. His research group explores unstructured photo collections to develop new technology for 3D world modeling and image analysis. PECASE Microsoft New Faculty Fellowship Alfred P. Sloan Fellowship SIGGRAPH Significant New Researcher Award ACM Fellow (2023) IEEE Fellow NSF CAREER Award Helmholtz Prize Snavely has mentored numerous PhD students and postdocs including Ruojin Cai, Qianqian Wang, and Zhengqi Li. His teaching includes CS5670: Computer Vision across multiple semesters. He has received the Cornell College of Engineering Mr. and Mrs. Richard F. Tucker Teaching Excellence Award (2012). At Cornell Tech, his research group develops technology for modeling the world in 3D from online photo collections and analyzing images for computer graphics applications. His work has been featured in major news outlets including the New York Times, New Scientist, and MIT Technology Review.
David B. Shmoys is the Laibe/Acheson Professor of Business Management & Leadership Studies at Cornell University's School of Operations Research and Information Engineering (ORIE) and holds a joint appointment in the Department of Computer Science. He is a leading researcher in approximation algorithms, stochastic optimization, and computational sustainability. His work emphasizes data-driven decision-making in enterprise and society, with applications ranging from healthcare logistics to environmental conservation. Shmoys has advised 27 Ph.D. students and served as an editorial board member for top journals like Operations Research and Mathematics of Operations Research. Education: Ph.D. in Computer Science, University of California, Berkeley (1984). Postdoctoral positions at MSRI and Harvard University, followed by faculty roles at MIT before joining Cornell. Research Interests: Design and analysis of approximation algorithms for NP-hard problems, stochastic optimization, scheduling, facility location, and inventory management. Applications include computational sustainability, epidemiological modeling, and political districting optimization. Articles Trends: Focus on optimization under uncertainty, computational sustainability, and real-world applications like air ambulance routing, bike-sharing systems, and gerrymandering analysis. Notable works include the 2018 Wagner Prize-winning paper on bike-sharing analytics and the 2013 Lanchester Prize-winning textbook on approximation algorithms. Awards: Lanchester Prize (2013), Daniel H. Wagner Prize (2018), Fellowships from ACM, INFORMS, and SIAM, NSF Presidential Young Investigator (1987). Advising & Grants: Over 27 advised Ph.D. students, with former students at MIT, Waterloo, Brown, and D-Wave. Active in grants related to data science and sustainability. Labs/Teams: Involved in the Institute of Computational Sustainability at Cornell, focusing on applying algorithms to environmental challenges. Collaborates with organizations like Motivate (bike-sharing) and Ornge (air ambulance services).
Alice Reznickova is an Associate Teaching Professor and Capstone Lead in the Masters of Environment (MENV) Program at the University of Colorado. She holds a PhD in Environment and Resources from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, an MS in Chemistry from the same institution, and a BA in Chemistry from Smith College. Her work focuses on sustainability education, food systems, urban design, and policy, with a strong emphasis on equity and community engagement. Previously served as Director of Sustainable Urban Environments at NYU Tandon School of Engineering Worked as Campus Sustainability Director at Ripon College Interdisciplinary Scientist at Union of Concerned Scientists, focusing on sustainable food policy Reznickova pioneered NYC's first urban agriculture census and developed experiential learning programs such as the C40 Students Reinvent Cities competition and Ripon's Sustainability Fellowships. Her research addresses food justice, nutrition security, and inclusive sustainability practices.
Olga Sorkine-Hornung is a Professor of Computer Science at ETH Zurich and head of the Institute of Visual Computing. She leads the Interactive Geometry Lab, focusing on theoretical and practical advancements in digital content creation, geometry processing, and shape modeling. Current position: ETH Zurich, Department of Computer Science Previous roles: Courant Institute (NYU), Technical University of Berlin Education: BSc and PhD from Tel Aviv University, postdoc at TU Berlin Her research spans shape representation, digital fabrication, computer animation, and fundamental geometry processing. Key contributions include Laplacian surface editing, as-rigid-as-possible deformation, and generalized winding numbers. She works on applications in VR, AR, and autonomous systems. Awards include Test of Time Awards (2024), ACM Fellow (2020), ERC Consolidator Grant (2020), and EUROGRAPHICS Young Researcher Award (2008). She has supervised numerous students and co-developed software libraries like libigl and Instant Meshes . Co-chair roles for SIGGRAPH, Eurographics, and Pacific Graphics Editorial board member for ACM Transactions on Graphics and other journals Keynote speaker at VMV, CVPR, and SIAM conferences Her work bridges mathematical rigor with practical implementation, advancing computer graphics and geometry processing through intuitive algorithms that maintain surface detail while enabling efficient computation.
Steven Jackson is a Professor of Information Science and Science and Technology Studies at Cornell University's Bowers College of Computing and Information Science, with additional graduate field appointments in Communication and Public Affairs. Since July 2023, he has served as Vice-Provost for Academic Innovation at Cornell, and previously held leadership positions as Chair of Information Science and Dean of William Keeton House. His work bridges academic research with significant institutional leadership in higher education innovation. Dr. Jackson's research focuses on critical intersections of technology, society, and the environment, with three primary strands: technology ethics, law and policy; maintenance, repair and sustainability; and technology, inequality and global development. His work draws from American pragmatism, political economy, and science and technology studies, integrating methods from sociology, anthropology, philosophy, and media studies. He is particularly interested in how computing practices meet social and material worlds, with implications for infrastructure, collaboration, sustainability, and cultural practice. His recent publications reveal a strong emphasis on repair as both theoretical concept and practical methodology, exploring 'ordinary hope' as a framework for technological engagement and examining unmaking as a necessary counterpart to design. The research spans diverse geographical contexts from the global North to South, addressing caste dynamics in computing, digital authoritarianism, and infrastructure challenges in developing contexts. Dr. Jackson has received significant recognition including an NSF CAREER award and more than twenty paper awards at leading computing and information science venues. His research has been supported by major organizations including the U.S. National Science Foundation, Social Science Research Council, Ford Foundation, Sloan Foundation, World Bank, Intel Research, Atkinson Center for Sustainability, and the Canadian Social Science and Humanities Research Council. As an advisor, Dr. Jackson has mentored numerous graduate students who have gone on to prominent positions at institutions worldwide. He currently advises Jen Liu, Amy Cheatle, Daniel Mwesigwa, Johan Michalove, and Ritik Batra, while his former students include Palashi Vaghela (Assistant Professor at Simon Fraser University), Samir Passi (Responsible AI Researcher at Microsoft), Maggie Jack (Assistant Professor at NYU), and Ranjit Singh (Senior Researcher at Data and Society). Dr. Jackson convenes the Computing On Earth Lab, an experimental collaboration bringing together social scientists, humanists, artists, and engineers to rethink the material and planetary foundations of computing. The lab reflects his commitment to interdisciplinary approaches that address computing's environmental impacts and sustainability challenges.
Gianluca Iaccarino is a Professor of Mechanical Engineering at Stanford University and the Robert Bosch Chairholder. He serves as Director of the PSAAP Center and leads large-scale computational research initiatives in uncertainty quantification, exascale computing, and multiphysics simulations. His academic journey includes a PhD in Mechanical Engineering from Politecnico di Bari (2005), postdoctoral work at Stanford's Center for Turbulence Research, and progression from Research Engineer to full Professor. Education : PhD (Politecnico di Bari), MS/BS in Aeronautical Engineering (University of Naples) Research : Computational engineering, turbulence modeling, uncertainty quantification, biomedical fluid dynamics, and exascale-ready algorithms Publications : 15+ recent articles focus on turbulence modeling, data-driven simulations, and uncertainty quantification across diverse applications in aerospace, biomedical, and energy systems Awards : PECASE (2010), APS Fellow (2019), multiple best paper awards (AIAA, ASME), Terman Fellow (2007) Students : Advises doctoral and master's students in mechanical engineering and computational methods Leadership : Director of PSAAP Center (2014-present), Chair of Mechanical Engineering Department (2024-present)
Dr James Helal is the Assistant Dean for Sustainability and a Lecturer in Construction Management at the Melbourne School of Design (MSD), University of Melbourne. His research focuses on integrating life cycle assessment and computational tools into the structural design of tall buildings, emphasizing embodied carbon reduction. He is recognized for developing software frameworks that automate environmental impact analysis in early-stage structural design. Dr Helal teaches materials, structures, and life cycle assessment in construction management. His pedagogical excellence has earned prestigious awards, including the Edward Brown Award for Teaching Excellence. He coordinates the construction major in the Bachelor of Design program. His research addresses structural optimization, tall building sustainability, and environmental flows. Key contributions include frameworks for reducing carbon emissions in tall building design and critiques of decorative architectural elements' environmental impact. Awards: Structures Best Research into Practice Prize (Institution of Structural Engineers) Open Award for Excellence in Teaching (Faculty of Architecture, Building and Planning) Edward Brown Award for Teaching Excellence (University of Melbourne) Advising & Grants: Coordinates construction curriculum but no explicit student advisee list is provided in texts. His work aligns with sustainability-focused research grants. Labs/Teams: Engaged with MSD’s Future Cities Practice and Construction Innovation initiatives.
Wendy Ju is an Associate Professor of Information Science at Cornell Tech, with appointments in the Cornell Ann S. Bowers College of Computing and Information Science, the Jacobs Technion-Cornell Institute, and the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology. Previously, she served as executive director of interaction design research at Stanford University's Center for Design Research and as an associate professor of interaction design at the California College of the Arts. Her work bridges human-computer interaction, design, and robotics with a focus on how interactive devices can communicate with people without interrupting them. PhD in Mechanical Engineering from Stanford University Master's degree in Media Arts and Sciences from MIT Professor Ju's research centers on implicit interactions, human-robot collaboration, and automotive interfaces. She investigates how people interact with automated systems in natural contexts, develops methods for early-stage prototyping of autonomous technologies, and examines the social implications of robotics in urban environments. Her work spans from theoretical frameworks to practical applications, with particular emphasis on designing systems that integrate seamlessly into human activities without demanding constant attention. Her recent publications reveal a strong trajectory toward understanding human-robot interaction in public urban spaces, with increasing focus on robot navigation in city streets, the social implications of autonomous vehicles, and the integration of generative AI in design processes. Her work consistently bridges theoretical HCI frameworks with practical applications in transportation, urban design, and everyday robotics. Inducted into the ACM SIGCHI Academy (2025) Multiple Honorable Mention Awards at ACM CHI and DIS conferences Best Paper Award at Multimodal Technologies and Interaction (2023) Best Student Paper Award at IEEE Intelligent Vehicles Symposium (2017) Best Demonstration Award at HRI (2017) Professor Ju actively mentors numerous PhD and master's students, many of whom have become leading researchers in HCI and robotics. Her research has been supported by significant grants from NSF and industry partners, enabling extensive field studies of human-robot interaction in real-world settings. She has pioneered methodologies for studying autonomous vehicle interactions through both simulated and naturalistic driving environments. Her work with the Jacobs Technion-Cornell Institute supports interdisciplinary research at the intersection of computing, design, and urban technology. She has established research partnerships with transportation authorities, automotive companies, and urban planning organizations to study how emerging technologies can enhance urban mobility while respecting human needs and social contexts.
Sarah Billington is the UPS Foundation Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Stanford University and a Senior Fellow at the Woods Institute for the Environment. Her research program focuses on sustainable building design, human wellbeing, and ethical supply chain practices. Education: PhD, University of Texas at Austin, Structural Engineering (1997) MSE, University of Texas at Austin, Structural Engineering (1994) BSE, Princeton University, Civil Engineering & Operations Research (1990) Her lab employs interdisciplinary methods to study how built environments impact human physical, psychological, and social wellbeing. Current projects include developing tools to quantify nature exposure in buildings, exploring affordable housing's role in wellbeing, and using AI to assess forced labor risks in material supply chains. While no longer active in this area, her group previously pioneered research on sustainable construction materials like bio-based composites and ductile cement-based composites. Her recent publications address topics such as nature integration in architecture, workplace design optimization, and health impacts of building materials. The Billington Lab at Stanford fosters collaborative team science, welcoming partnerships to advance occupant-centric engineering solutions.
