Events

Feb 13 - Feb 20, 2022

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  Causal reasoning in settings with competing events and truncation by death

  Prof. Mats Julius Stensrud, Department of Mathematics, EPFL

  Feb 16, 16:00 - 17:00

  B9 L2 R2322

  A competing event is any event that makes it impossible for the outcome of interest to occur. The presence of competing events requires us to be careful about the interpretation of classical causal estimands. In particular, the average treatment effect captures effects through the competing event, pathways that may not be of primary interest. As a solution, we suggest the separable effect, inspired by Robins and Richardson’s extended graphical approach. We will give criteria that allow different interpretations of the separable effects and present identification conditions that can be evaluated in causal graphs.
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  Intermediate Distributions and Complexity Bounds for SMC

  Prof. Anthony Lee, School of Mathematics, University of Bristol

  Feb 16, 15:00 - 16:00

  KAUST

  It is now fairly common to use Sequential Monte Carlo (SMC) algorithms for normalizing constant estimation of high-dimensional, complex distributions without any particular structure. In order for the algorithm to give reasonable accuracy, it is well known empirically that one must introduce appropriate intermediate distributions that allow the particle system to “gradually evolve” from a simple initial distribution to the complex target distribution, and one must also specify an appropriate number of particles to control the error. Since both the number of intermediate distributions and the number of particles affect the computational cost of the algorithm, it is crucial to study and attempt to minimize the computational cost of the algorithm subject to constraints on the error.
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  Security and Resiliency for Critical Infrastructures

  Professor Roberto Di Pietro, College of Science and Engineering, Cybersecurity at Hamad Bin Khalifa University

  Feb 14, 12:00 - 13:00

  B9 L2 R2322 H1

  Our standard of living, nation GDP, and, in some cases, even our safety rely on critical infrastructures (CIs). In particular, being CIs generally perceived as a commodity (think of GPS availability, or avionics & maritime traffic routes and hubs), their security has largely been overlooked. The emergent property is that, nowadays, CIs systems are generally fragile, especially with respect to cyber attacks.

Feb 6 - Feb 20, 2022

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  Fully-integrated gas sensing systems and self-powered NO₂ gas sensors

  Mani Teja Vijjapu, Ph.D. Student, Electrical and Computer Engineering

  Feb 13, 12:00 - 13:00

  B9 L2 R2322 H1

  Fully integrated gas sensing systems

  Mobile devices for the personalized detection of health and environmental hazards are becoming the basis for futuristic sensing technologies.

Feb 6 - Feb 13, 2022

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  Exploring Spectral Dependence in Multivariate Time Series

  Hernando Ombao, Professor, Statistics

  Feb 10, 12:00 - 13:00

  KAUST

  Advances in imaging technology have given neuroscientists unprecedented access to examine various facets of how the brain “works”. Brain activity is complex. A full understanding of brain activity requires careful study of its multi-scale spatial-temporal organization (from neurons to regions of interest; and from transient events to long-term temporal dynamics). Motivated by these challenges, we will explore some characterizations of dependence between components of a multivariate time series and then apply these to the study of brain functional connectivity. This is potentially interesting for brain scientists because functional brain networks are associated with cognitive function and mental and neurological diseases.
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  Phase Separation in Heterogeneous Media

  Irene Fonseca, Center for Nonlinear Analysis, Carnegie Mellon University

  Feb 8, 19:00 - 20:00

  KAUST

  A variational model in the context of the gradient theory for fluid-fluid phase transitions with small scale heterogeneities is studied. In the case where the scale of the small heterogeneities is of the same order of the scale governing the phase transition, the interaction between homogenization and the phase transitions process leads to an anisotropic interfacial energy. Bounds on the homogenized surface tension are established. In addition, a characterization of the large-scale limiting behavior of viscosity solutions to non-degenerate and periodic Eikonal equations in half-spaces is given. This is joint work with Riccardo Cristoferi (Radboud University, The Netherlands), Adrian Hagerty (USA), Cristina Popovici (USA), Rustum Choksi (McGill, Canada), Jessica Lin (McGill, Canada), and Raghavendra Venkatraman (NYU, USA).
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  Procedural Modeling of Botanical Trees

  Wojtek Palubicki is leading the Natural Phenomena Modeling Group at the Faculty of Mathematics and Compter Science at the Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznan.

  Feb 7, 12:00 - 13:00

  KAUST

  The exact mechanisms controlling plant growth are a topic of ongoing botanical research. This makes the realistic computer simulation of plants a challenging task. We present a method for generating realistic models of trees and shrubs. This method is based on the biological hypothesis that the form of a developing tree emerges from a self-organizing process dominated by the competition of buds and branches for light or space, and regulated by internal signaling mechanisms. Simulations of this process robustly generate a wide range of realistic trees and bushes.

Jan 30 - Feb 13, 2022

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  Numerical analysis, physics, and high-performance computing: A firm three-hand shake for next-generation predictive computational fluid dynamics frameworks.

  Matteo Parsani, Associate Professor, Applied Mathematics and Computational Sciences

  Feb 6, 14:00 - 16:00

  B4 L5 R5220

  Together with the algorithm suitability to exploit current petascale and next-generation exascale supercomputers, robust, accurate, and structure-preserving discretizations are necessary for developing predictive computational tools. The research carried out in the Advanced Numerical Algorithms and Numerical Simulations Laboratory (AANSLab) leverages a multidisciplinary platform that integrates numerical analysis, physics, and high-performance computing. In particular, we focus on the analysis and development of novel numerical methods for ordinary and partial differential equations with provable properties such as nonlinear stability and conservation, and structure-preserving techniques. These properties are critical for designing reliable, efficient, and self-adaptive solvers for complex geometries – an essential cornerstone for next-generation computational frameworks. Current classes of partial differential equations that we are working on are the compressible Navier–Stokes equations, the Eulerian model for compressible heat-conducting flows, and the diffusion-reaction and convection-diffusion-reaction equations for molecular communication. We also use deep learning to complement and speed up the process of solving efficiently large-scale PDE-based problems. In this talk, I will summarize the progress we made in the last five years in the following areas: - Numerical analysis and algorithm development for robust, smart compressible flow solvers. - Development from the ground up of a new scalable hp-adaptive computational fluid dynamics (CFD) framework that places KAUST a few years ahead of the NASA CFD 2030 vision: o Applications and impact in the automotive and aerospace industry. o Improving knowledge of flow physics: Examples in detonation and aeroacoustics. - Advection-reaction-diffusion algorithms for molecular communication. Finally, I'll discuss our translational work to solve industrially relevant flow problems in partnership with Boeing, NASA Langley Research Center, and McLaren F1 Racing Team, and my future research plans.
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  Safe and Secure Computer Control Systems? The devil is in the details...

  Feb 6, 12:00 - 13:00

  B9 L2 R2322 H1

  In modern societies, there is an accelerated convergence of information technology (IT) like the internet-cloud-web complex, with operational technology (OT) like cyber-physical systems (CPS) control, complemented by Internet-of-Things fabrics (IoT).

Jan 30 - Feb 6, 2022

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  Fully-integrated systems and self-powered gas sensors for sustainable environment monitoring

  Mani Teja Vijjapu, Ph.D. Student, Electrical and Computer Engineering

  Feb 3, 13:30 - 15:00

  B3 L5 R5209

  Mobile devices for the personalized detection of health and environmental hazards are becoming the basis for futuristic sensing technologies. In recent decades, air and environmental pollution levels have risen globally. Therefore, environmental protection must be strengthened by developing sensors that detect pollutants. The monitoring of these pollutants with high spatial coverage requires inexpensive electronic gas sensors and self-sustainable sensing systems that can be deployed everywhere. This dissertation reports on technological developments to provide solutions for inexpensive, compact, power-efficient, and easily deployable toxic gas sensors and integrated systems using semiconducting metal-oxide thin-film transistors (TFTs).
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  A Non-stationary Autologistic Model for Space-time Data

  Yiping Hong, Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Statistics

  Feb 3, 12:00 - 13:00

  KAUST

  Abstract In many research fields such as meteorology, ecology, and epidemiology, the spatio-temporal datasets are binary, describing the existence of particular species or events. The spatial dependence of the binary observations often exhibits nonstationarity. However, most nonstationary models in the literature are based on Gaussian random fields, which may be computational demanding. We propose a nonstationary spatio-temporal autologistic regression model, which allows the spatial covariances to vary in space. We investigate the spatial and temporal correlation of autologistic models with
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  Exoplanet Imaging Coronagraphic Mask Development and Testing: A North American Perspective

  Benjamin L. Gerard, Postdoctoral Scholar, University of California, UC Observatories

  Feb 2, 16:30 - 17:30

  KAUST

  Over 4000 exoplanets - planets beyond the Solar System - have been discovered since the first Nobel prize-winning exoplanet detection around a Sun-like star in 1995. The majority of these exoplanets have been detected by indirect methods, inferring the presence of the exoplanet by observing the star.
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  Elliptic PDEs: Regularity under minimal assumptions - Part 3

  Prof. Giuseppe Di Fazio, Department of Mathematics, University Of Catania, Italy

  Feb 2, 15:00 - 17:00

  B1 L4 R4102

  Elliptic PDEs are ubiquitous both in Mathematics and in applications of Mathematics. Regularity of generalized solutions is a fundamental issue necessary to handle in proper way if one want to obtain qualitative information about solutions. My goal is to introduce the audience to the topic of regularity for elliptic PDEs under assumptions on the coefficients that are of minimal requirements.
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  Climate variability and change in the past, present, and future: complementary insights from models, satellites, and ground stations

  Dr. Hylke Beck, Senior Scientist, Joint Research Centre (JRC), European Commission, Italy

  Feb 2, 10:15 - 11:15

  B2 L5 R5220

  climate variability

  Extreme climate events affect the lives of millions people around the world each year and are anticipated to increase in frequency and magnitude due to climate change. Improving our understanding of historical and expected climate variability and change is paramount to mitigating the impacts of these extreme events. In this seminar, I will talk about my research on the fusion of information from weather models, satellites, and ground stations to gain a better understanding of climate variability in the past, present, and future.
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  Elliptic PDEs: Regularity under minimal assumptions - Part 2

  Prof. Giuseppe Di Fazio, Department of Mathematics, University Of Catania, Italy

  Jan 31, 15:00 - 17:00

  B1 L4 R4214

  Elliptic PDEs are ubiquitous both in Mathematics and in applications of Mathematics. Regularity of generalized solutions is a fundamental issue necessary to handle in proper way if one want to obtain qualitative information about solutions. My goal is to introduce the audience to the topic of regularity for elliptic PDEs under assumptions on the coefficients that are of minimal requirements.
• 

  New tools for symbolic computation in partial differential equations

  Diogo Gomes, Program Chair, Applied Mathematics and Computational Sciences

  Jan 31, 12:00 - 13:00

  KAUST

  The qualitative study of PDEs often relies on integral identities and inequalities. For example, for time-dependent PDEs, conserved integral quantities or quantities that are dissipated play an important role. In particular, if these integral quantities have a definite sign, they are of great interest as they may provide control on the solutions to establish well-posedness.

Jan 23 - Feb 6, 2022

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  On-Chip Antennas: The Last Barrier to True RF System-on-Chip

  Atif Shamim, Program Chair, Electrical and Computer Engineering

  Jan 30, 12:00 - 13:00

  KAUST

  Antennas are integral part of wireless communication devices and traditionally have remained off the Integrated Circuits (ICs which are also commonly known as chips) resulting in large sized modules.

Jan 23 - Jan 30, 2022

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  Modulating Functions Based State and Parameter Estimation for Robotic Systems

  Matti Noack, Research Fellow, Control Engineering, Technische Universität Ilmenau

  Jan 27, 13:00 - 14:00

  B1 L4 R4214

  Robotic systems are well-known to be highly nonlinear processes due to their complex kinematics. The identification of the corresponding system dynamics plays an important role in obtaining an adequate model which is especially hard under changing parametric circumstances. Furthermore, precise knowledge of the state is crucial for a large variety of control tasks. Sparse sensor setups make these problems more challenging due to significant noise impact. For designing an efficient and robust algorithm, an integral transform approach is proposed exploiting the robotic system structure. Specifically, the Modulating Function Method is introduced in the context of multi-body systems for fixed-time parameter and state estimation. An adaptive observer structure is presented in order to give an impression of the general methodology and the related research questions.
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  Backward induction: from theory to empirics

  Konrad Grabiszewski, Instructional Professor, Applied Mathematics and Computational Sciences

  Jan 27, 12:00 - 13:00

  KAUST

  Backward induction, the cornerstone of dynamic game theory, is the classical algorithm applied to solve finite dynamic games with perfect and complete information. While theoretically sound and beautiful in its simplicity, backward induction does not perform so well when it comes to predicting human behavior. The objective of this seminar is twofold. First, we will understand what backward induction is and how to apply it on game-theoretic trees. Second, we will answer the question of whether backward induction is a good model of how people make choices in dynamic interactions.
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  Designing a Stable Periodic Orbit for a Triple Pendulum on a Cart

  Prof. Johann Reger, Automation and Systems Engineering, Technische Universität Ilmenau

  Jan 27, 12:00 - 13:00

  B1 L4 R4214

  In this talk an inversion-based control approach is presented for the generation and stabilization of a periodic orbit in a multi-link triple pendulum on a cart. To this end, a nominal trajectory is generated by formulating the posture transition problem as a two-point Boundary Value Problem (BVP) in an input-output representation. For solvability of the BVP, a setup function is introduced such that additional parameters are provided in the differential equation of the internal dynamics. Based on the linearized dynamics about the nominal trajectory, a linear-quadratic-Gaussian controller is implemented to compensate for measurement noise, model uncertainties, and external disturbances. This way we force a triple pendulum to move along a non-trivial periodic orbit and render it attractive. The high performance and accuracy of our approach is illustrated on an experimental setup.
• 

  Elliptic PDEs: Regularity under minimal assumptions - Part 1

  Prof. Giuseppe Di Fazio, Department of Mathematics, University Of Catania, Italy

  Jan 26, 15:00 - 17:00

  B1 L4 R4102

  Elliptic PDEs are ubiquitous both in Mathematics and in applications of Mathematics. Regularity of generalized solutions is a fundamental issue necessary to handle in a proper way if one wants to obtain qualitative information about solutions. My goal is to introduce the audience to the topic of regularity for elliptic PDEs under assumptions on the coefficients that are of minimal requirements.
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  RobotoKAUST 2022 Call for Poster Abstracts

  Prof. Eric Feron, Electrical and Computer Engineering

  Jan 25, 12:00 - Jan 31, 17:00

  KAUST

  RobotoKAUST

  We are excited to announce the KAUST Research Conference on Robotics and Autonomy 2022, which will be held on Feb 28 - March 2, 2022 (#RobotoKAUST). The conference will address the most recent trends of robotics application in a range of disciplines. The conference will give space for presentations and discussions of systems, items, and methods related to robotics and autonomy. As part of this event, we are accepting poster abstract submissions.
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  Extensions of Dynamic Programming for Combinatorial Optimization and Data Mining - 2022-01-24

  Mikhail Moshkov, Professor, Applied Mathematics and Computational Sciences

  Jan 24, 12:00 - 13:00

  KAUST

  Dynamic programming is an efficient technique to solve optimization problems. It is based on decomposing the initial problem into simpler ones and solving these sub-problems beginning from the simplest ones.

Jan 16 - Jan 30, 2022

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  Towards Compact Grid Interactive EV Charging

  Shehab Ahmed, Professor, Electrical and Computer Engineering

  Jan 23, 12:00 - 13:00

  KAUST

  Towards Compact Grid Interactive EV Charging

  After a quick overview of the ECE Graduate Seminar logistics, I will share the progression of our team’s work in the field of compact integrated on-board EV charging.

Jan 16 - Jan 23, 2022

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  Miniaturized Drug Delivery Systems for Biomedical Applications

  Khalil Moussi, Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Electrical and Computer Engineering

  Jan 18, 18:15 - 20:00

  KAUST

  Highly integrated and customizable systems have been a principal focus of development for parenteral and oral drug administration. Extensive work has been done to optimize drug efficacy via localized delivery and dosage control providing new ways for accomplishing targeted therapeutic effects. However, many challenges and opportunities for advancement remain. One promising research path is introducing novel microfabrication methods or engineering discoveries in concept realization, making devices more versatile and effective.

Jan 9 - Jan 16, 2022

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  Multilevel Methods for Stochastic Forward and Inverse Problems

  Marco Ballesio, Ph.D., Applied Mathematics and Computational Sciences

  Jan 12, 11:00 - 12:00

  KAUST

  This thesis studies novel and efficient computational sampling methods for applications in three types of stochastic inversion problems: seismic waveform inversion, filtering problems, and static parameter estimation.

Dec 19 - Dec 26, 2021

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  Control Design for Alignment Problem in Optical Wireless Communication

  Asem Al Alwan , Ph.D. Student, Electrical and Computer Engineering

  Dec 23, 16:00 - 18:00

  KAUST

  Optical Wireless Communication (OWC) offers many benefits over established radio frequency-based communication links. In particular, high beam directivity generates efficient power usage and high-speed data services. Moreover, due to its ease of deployment, high transmission security, license-free operation, and insensitivity to interference, the OWC link is becoming an attractive solution for the next generation of communication systems.

Dec 12 - Dec 19, 2021

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  Signal Processing and Optimization Techniques for High Accuracy Indoor Localization, Tracking, and Attitude Determination

  Mohammed Hussain AlSharif, Ph.D. Student (former), Electrical and Computer Engineering

  Dec 16, 14:00 - 15:00

  B1 L3 R3119

  Indoor localization Ultrasonic-based Localization Signal processing

  High-accuracy indoor localization and tracking systems are essential for many modern applications and technologies. However, accurate location estimation of moving targets is challenging. This thesis addresses the challenges in indoor localization and tracking systems and proposes several solutions. A novel signal design, which we named Differential Zadoff-Chu, allows us to develop algorithms that accurately estimate the distances of static and moving targets even under random Doppler shifts. The results show that the proposed algorithms outperform the state-of-the-art in terms of both accuracy and complexity.

Dec 5 - Dec 12, 2021

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  Backward Error Analysis for Nonlinear Differential Equations

  David Ketcheson, Professor, Applied Mathematics and Computational Sciences

  Dec 9, 12:00 - 13:00

  KAUST

  Backward error analysis is a tool that allows us to understand the effect of errors without knowing exact solutions.
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  Deconfounding

  Professor Peter Bühlmann, Statistics and Mathematics, ETH Zürich

  Dec 7, 15:30 - 16:30

  B9 L2 H2

  Hidden confounding is a severe problem when interpreting regression or causal parameters, and it may also lead to poor generalization performance for prediction. Adjusting for unobserved confounding is important but challenging when based on observational data only.
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  Statistical Learning: Causal-oriented and Robust

  Professor Peter Bühlmann, Statistics and Mathematics, ETH Zürich

  Dec 7, 12:00 - 13:00

  B9 L2 H2

  Reliable, robust and interpretable machine learning is a big emerging theme in data science and artificial intelligence, complementing the development of pure black box prediction algorithms. Looking through the lens of statistical causality and exploiting a probabilistic invariance property opens up new paths and opportunities for enhanced interpretation, robustness and external validity, with wide-ranging prospects for various applications.
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  Deploying DNNs in the Embedded Space: Challenges and Opportunities

  Christos-Savvas Bouganis, Reader in Intelligent Digital Systems in the Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Imperial College London, UK

  Dec 6, 12:00 - 13:00

  B9 R2322 H1

  The talk will discuss the challenging problem of designing Deep Neural Network systems that achieve high performance under low power envelopes, hindering their deployment in the embedded space.

Nov 28 - Dec 12, 2021

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  Integrated Sensors: The synergistic combination of materials and microelectronics - 2021

  Khaled Salama, Professor, Electrical and Computer Engineering

  Dec 5, 12:00 - 13:00

  KAUST

  Integrated Sensors

  In this talk we will present the design and implementation of monolithic and hybrid sensors using integrated circuits.

Nov 28 - Dec 5, 2021

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  Particle filter in high dimensions

  Dec 2, 12:00 - 13:00

  KAUST

  Filtering (or data assimilation) is the process of combining noisy observational data with an output of a numerical model to produce an optimal estimate of the evolving state of the system.
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  From Intrusion Tolerance to Trust and Recovery: A Research Overview

  Professor Miguel Correia, Computer Science and Engineering Department, Instituto Superior Técnico, Universidade de Lisboa

  Dec 1, 12:00 - 13:00

  B9 L3 R3223

  The seminar is an overview on my research path and approach. I will start with my initial research on the concept of intrusion tolerance and present some of the results I had at the time. Then, I will show how this initial research had led me to other areas and related approaches: software security, trusted computing, intrusion detection, intrusion recovery, and blockchain interoperability. I will present with some detail very recent research on securely moving data between trusted execution environments (TEEs) in a non-interactive way, a problem that must be solved for digital id crypto wallets starting to appear in Europe and elsewhere.
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  Robust high temperature operation of quantum dot lasers grown on (001) Si for Photonic Integrated Circuit

  Chen Shang, PhD candidate, University of California, Santa Barbara

  Dec 1, 08:00 - 09:00

  KAUST

  Epitaxially grown quantum dot (QD) lasers are emerging as an economical approach to obtain on-chip light sources. Thanks to the three-dimensional confinement of carriers, QDs show greatly improved tolerance to defects and promise other advantages such as low transparency current density, high temperature operation, isolator-free operation, and enhanced four-wave-mixing.
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  DeepReduce: A Sparse-tensor Communication Framework for Distributed Deep Learning

  Panagiotis Kalnis, Professor, Computer Science

  Nov 29, 12:00 - 13:00

  B9 R2322 H1

  Sparse tensors appear frequently in distributed deep learning, either as a direct artifact of the deep neural network's gradients, or as a result of an explicit sparsification process. Most communication primitives are agnostic to the peculiarities of deep learning; consequently, they impose unnecessary communication overhead.

Nov 21 - Dec 5, 2021

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  Securing 5G and Beyond Networks from Malware Epidemics: A Percolation Theoretic Approach

  Hesham Elsawy, Assistant Professor, Electrical and Computer Engineering KFUPM, Dhahran

  Nov 28, 13:00 - 14:00

  B1 L3 R3119

  5G networks malware

  This talk will introduce and motivate a percolation theoretic approach to characterize and thwart malware diffusion in dense wireless networks. First, a brief tutorial on percolation theory will be introduced. Then, the talk will explain the utilization of percolation theory to develop security countermeasures for malware epidemics in 5G and beyond networks.
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  Exploiting Spatial-Temporal Graph Structure in the Data for Better EEG Source Imaging

  Feng Liu, Assistant Professor, School of Systems and Enterprises at Stevens Institute of Technology

  Nov 28, 12:00 - 13:00

  KAUST

  Exploiting Spatial

  The electroencephalogram (EEG) is an important neuroimaging modality to measure neuronal activity of the human brain.
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  Secure Dynamic Skyline Queries Using Result Materialization

  Gabriel Ghinita, Associate Professor, University of Massachusetts, Boston

  Nov 28, 12:00 - 13:00

  B9 L2 R2322

  Skyline computation is an increasingly popular query, with broad applicability to many domains. Given the trend to outsource databases, and due to the sensitive nature of the data (e.g., in healthcare), it is essential to evaluate skylines on encrypted datasets.
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  Semiparametric Regression Models for Between and Within-subject Attributes: Applications to High-Dimensional Data, Asymptotic Efficiency and Beyond

  Jinyuan Liu, PhD Student, Biostatistics, University of California, USA

  Nov 28, 08:30 - 09:30

  KAUST

  Breakthroughs such as high-throughput sequencing are generating flourishing high-dimensional data that provoke challenges in both statistical analyses and interpretations.

Nov 21 - Nov 28, 2021

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  An efficient high-order reconstructions multidimensional scheme with application to instabilities in direct initiation of gaseous detonations in free space

  Matteo Parsani, Associate Professor, Applied Mathematics and Computational Sciences

  Nov 25, 12:00 - 13:00

  KAUST

  When constructing high-order schemes for solving hyperbolic conservation laws with multi-dimensional finite volume schemes, the corresponding high-order reconstructions are commonly performed in characteristic spaces to eliminate spurious oscillations as much as possible.
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  KAUST Saudi National Kidney Paired Donation Workshop

  Nov 25, 09:00 - 16:30

  B3 L5 R5220

  The 2016 Global Burden of Disease Study identifies chronic kidney disease (CKD) as the 11th most common cause of death globally, accounting for 2.17 % of deaths globally, and the 4th most common cause of death in the KSA, accounting for 4.04% of death. The preferred treatment for end-stage renal disease is kidney transplantation. Transplantation is more effective and more cost-effective than dialysis. Unfortunately, living transplant kidney donors are often incompatible with their intended recipients. Kidney Paired Donation programs circumvent these barriers as they enable patients to exchange donors. We aim to build the analytic ground for the Saudi National Paired Donation Program providing a better quality of life for the patients and net savings. This workshop brings together Saudi clinicians and KAUST scientists to discuss modern developments in Kidney Paired Donation along with strategies and research directions for Saudi National Kidney Paired Donation Program.
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  Is probability theory the only viable solution to modelling statistical information?

  Prof. Jeremie Houssineau, Department of Statistics, University of Warwick.

  Nov 24, 15:00 - 16:00

  KAUST

  probability theory data assimilation

  Many alternatives to the probabilistic modelling of information have been proposed since the birth of modern Statistics; yet, few have been successfully applied to the complex inference problems that modern Statisticians are faced with.
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  High Agility and other Aerial Robots

  Eric Feron, Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering, KAUST, Saudi Arabia

  Nov 23, 16:30 - 17:30

  KAUST

  Abstract Robotic flight is as old as aviation itself. It might be argued that today, the only robots to whom humans are OK trusting their lives are Airplanes, Air Trains, Elevators, and Escalators. Flying Robots can take many shapes, motions, and missions. Flying robots where dynamics matters constitute the core of this presentation. To begin with, the aerobatic flight will be discussed as it happened at a time when computer power was limited and flying machines were still running with gas engines. Then, atmospheric reduced-gravity autonomous test platforms will follow, introducing the initial
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  Knowledge-based methods in bioinformatics

  Robert Hoehndorf, Associate Professor, Computer Science

  Nov 22, 12:00 - 13:00

  B9 R2322 H1

  The life sciences have invested significant resources in the development and application of semantic technologies to make research data accessible and interlinked, and to enable the integration and analysis of data. Utilizing the semantics associated with research data in data analysis approaches is often challenging. Now, novel methods are becoming available that combine symbolic methods and statistical methods in Artificial Intelligence. In my talk, I will show how to incorporate biological background knowledge in machine learning models for identification of gene-disease associations, genomic variants that are causative for heritable disorders, and to predict protein functions. The methods I describe are generic and can be applied in other domains in which biomedical ontologies and structured knowledge bases exist.

Nov 14 - Nov 28, 2021

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  Harnessing complexity for technological applications

  Andrea Fratalocchi, Professor, Electrical and Computer Engineering

  Nov 21, 12:00 - 13:00

  KAUST

  Harnessing complexity for technological applications

  This talk will give an overview of research activity of engineering different types of complex systems into technological applications in energy harvesting, material science, artificial intelligence and bio-imaging.

Nov 14 - Nov 21, 2021

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  Forecasting High-Frequency Spatio-Temporal Wind Power with Dimensionally Reduced Echo State Networks

  Huang Huang, Ph.D., Statistics

  Nov 18, 12:00 - 13:00

  KAUST

  Fast and accurate hourly forecasts of wind speed and power are crucial in quantifying and planning the energy budget in the electric grid.
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  The Role and Importance of Sparse Matrices in Statistics

  Haavard Rue, Program Chair, Statistics

  Nov 18, 09:50 - 10:30

  KAUST

  Plenary Sessions

  Abstract The common tool for dealing with dependence in statistics, is linear dependence described through covariance or it scaled version, correlation. In this framework, a zero in the correlation matrix indicate independence, which is a very strong property and not something we would aim for in statistical models. A weaker version of linear dependence, is conditional independence. This corresponds to the inverse correlation matrix called the precision matrix. A zero in the precision matrix corresponds to conditional independence. These matrices can be very sparse although all random
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  Double Enriched Finite Volume Spaces for the DNS of fluid-Particle Interaction - Scientific Conference

  Gabriel Wittum, Professor, Applied Mathematics and Computational Sciences

  Nov 17, 14:00 - 14:40

  KAUST

  Plenary Sessions

  Abstract We present double enriched finite volume spaces for the simulation of free particles in a fluid. This involves forces being exchanged between the particles and the fluid at the interface. In an earlier work we derived a monolithic scheme which includes the interaction forces into the Navier-Stokes equations by direct coupling. In multiphase flows oscillations and spurious velocities are a common issue. The surface force term yields a jump in the pressure and therefore the oscillations are usually resolved by extending the spaces on cut elements in order to resolve the discontinuity