“Data scientist” is third on Glassdoor’s list of the “50 Best Jobs in American for 2020,” which shouldn’t be too surprising given the rise of big data and growing demand for empirical-based decision making across many industries. To help meet this demand, the Donald Bren School of Information and Computer Sciences (ICS) is currently accepting applications for the new Master of Data Science (MDS) program it is launching in the fall of 2021. Anyone interested in joining the inaugural cohort of this 15-month professional graduate program can apply online. The early application deadline is December 15th, 2020. After that, applications will be accepted on a rolling basis until April 15th, 2021.
[Read more…]ICS Team Takes 1st Place at Baidu’s AutoDriving Capture the Flag Competition
On Saturday, Sept. 26, 2020, Baidu Security hosted the world’s first capture the flag (CTF) competition focused on autonomous driving security. Twenty-four teams from around the world competed in AutoDriving CTF, and UCI’s ASGuard (Autonomous Systems Guard) team took the top prize.
[Read more…]UCI News: “UCI and Disney Research scientists develop AI-enhanced video compression model” (Stephan Mandt quoted)
A new artificial intelligence-enhanced video compression model developed by computer scientists at the University of California, Irvine and Disney Research has demonstrated that deep learning can compete against established video compression technology.
[Read more…]UCI-led Project Seeks to Combat Wildfires
A UC Irvine-led team has received $3.6 million over three years for a project that uses science and engineering to help California fight wildfires. The research will integrate physics, chemistry, engineering, computer science and ecology to conduct and disseminate information supporting an increase in the pace and scale of prescribed fires in the region. Computer Science Professors Nalini Venkatasubramanian and Sharad Mehrotra are co-PIs on the grant.
Read the full story here.
UCI researchers’ deep learning algorithm solves Rubik’s Cube faster than any human
Work is step toward advanced AI systems that can think, reason, plan and make decisions
Read the full story at UCI News.
UCI Computer Scientists Breathe Life Into Venice Biennale Installations
Computer scientists from the University of California, Irvine are making a splash in the art world this year through their participation in Italy’s Venice Biennale, one of the oldest and most prestigious cultural festivals.
The team – led by Alexandru Nicolau, UCI Distinguished Professor and chair of computer science, and Alexander Veidenbaum, UCI professor of computer science – collaborated with Israeli-Romanian artist Belu-Simion Fainaru to create three art installations for the event. One is on display at the Romanian Pavilion in the Giardini della Biennale, and the other two are at the Romanian Institute of Culture and Humanistic Research in Venice.
Read the full story at UCI News.
ICS Alumnus Nithin Jilla’s Nonprofit Inspires Students to Love STEM
Middle school students found ways to escape ghosts in The Silent Forest, battle monsters in Pyramid Escape, and avoid balloon-popping birds in Piggy Pop — the top three mobile app games at a 2018 AppJam+ showcase. But the students weren’t merely playing the games — they had developed them through the AppJam+ program, part of the Dreams for Schools organization founded by UCI alumnus Nithin Jilla ’13. “The whole experience is a crash course in mobile app development and computer coding, designed to get kids excited about STEM, specifically computer science,” says Jilla. “In creating their own mobile app video games, students are able to create something they see in their everyday lives and relate it back to how versatile knowledge in STEM can be.”
[Read more…]Professor Irani Receives Distinguished Service Award
Computer Science Professor Sandy Irani was recently recognized for her “dedicated and indispensable service to the theory community.” The steering committee of the IEEE Technical Committee on Mathematical Foundations of Computing (TCMF) and IEEE Symposium on Foundations of Computer Science (FOCS) gave her the TCMF Distinguished Service Award — an award given “whenever a worthy person materializes.”
[Read more…]ICS Partnership with Allen Institute for AI Advances Machine Learning
The mission of the Allen Institute for Artificial Intelligence (AI2) is to “contribute to humanity through high-impact AI research and engineering.” In support of that mission, the nonprofit — started by Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen — often collaborates with other institutions, and one of its latest partnerships is with the Donald Bren School of Information and Computer Sciences (ICS).
“Researchers from a diversity of institutions bring different perspectives, motivations and previous experiences to a cross-institution collaboration,” says Matt Gardner, a senior research scientist at AI2. “This is a huge help in both identifying and executing on the most promising new research directions.” As a member of the AllenNLP team, Gardner’s research focuses on deep learning for natural language processing, and he’s now furthering that work as a visiting scholar at UCI.
Ardalan Amiri Sani’s NSF Grant Aims to Secure Mobile Devices
Assistant Professor of Computer Science Ardalan Amiri Sani recently received a National Science Foundation (NSF) CAREER award for his research on “Securing Mobile Devices by Hardening their System Software” (see the NSF award page here.) The NSF CAREER program supports early career-development activities of those who are integrating research and education. As outlined in the award abstract, Amiri Sani’s project aims to “[enhance] the security of mobile devices [such as smartphones, tablets, and wearables]” and at the same time “train students in systems software programming through outreach and tutorial activities.”
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