Two Computer Science Professors Win Sloan Fellowships
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NEWSLETTER OF THE DEPARTMENT OF COMPUTER SCIENCE AT COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY VOL.8 NO.1 SPRING 2012 From left to right: Assistant Professors Xi Chen and Junfeng Yang Two assistant professors of to areas of computer science, to Two Computer Science computer science, Xi Chen understand how selfish behavior and Junfeng Yang, have been and outside influences impact named Alfred P. Sloan Research decision-making processes in Professors Win Sloan Fellows for 2012. They are the computing world. He studies among 126 early-career algorithmic game theory, a Fellowships researchers of outstanding new and rapidly growing field, promise who have each been and works on computational awarded a $50,000 fellowship problems that arise from the Xi Chen and Junfeng Yang Named for use in their research. game-theoretic study of the Alfred P. Sloan Research Fellows Internet, e-commerce, and other “I am very excited to receive a decentralized systems. His Sloan research fellowship,” says current research examines algo- Chen. “It is a great honor, and rithmic issues related to some the funding will support both of the most fundamental models my ongoing and new research and solution concepts in game projects in algorithmic game theory and economics. Chen, theory and complexity theory. who earned his B.S. in physics/ I am very grateful especially to math and Ph.D. in computer my department and colleagues science from Tsinghua University for their great support ever (Beijing), was a postdoctoral since I joined Columbia two researcher at the Institute for years ago.” Advanced Study, Princeton Chen is interested in applying University and University of concepts and methodologies Southern California. He won an from game theory and economics NSF CAREER award in 2012. CS@CU SPRING 2012 1 Cover Story (continued) Student Awards “It feels great that my research has been recognized by the Ph.D. Student Engineering Senior Sloan Foundation and the fellowship committee,” says Yang. “I owe so many thanks to Jeremy Andrus Wins Jacob Andreas Wins my collaborators, my colleagues at Columbia, and my brilliant Facebook Fellowship Churchill Scholarship students for their constant and tremendous support over the years. I am really thrilled to continue pushing the research frontiers in software systems.” Yang’s research centers on cre- ating effective tools to improve the reliability and security of Computer “I would like to refine and Columbia school, said he feels “honored “Jacob is one of those amazing real software systems. While in Science unify the mobile computing Engineer- and humbled”to be a part of students who knew since he graduate school, he created an Ph.D. experience using a system-level ing senior this year’s group. “Everyone arrived what he wanted to automated and comprehensive student approach,” he says. “Of course, Jacob has a really extraordinary record work on,” said McKeown. “He approach to detect storage Jeremy I’m also interested in fun, Andreas of research and study.” has published two papers with system errors and then went Andrus exciting, and relevant research.” has my group and just had a third to work at Microsoft Research, has been won the But so does Jacob, who is busy accepted. That’s in addition where he extended his research named a In its announcement, Facebook Churchill this semester working on his to another paper on machine to distributed systems on large Facebook posted the following description Scholar- senior thesis on a model of translation that came out of his networks. His work led to Fellow. of Jeremy and his research: ship, machine translation driven by course work. This is absolutely “When Jeremy sees many meaning, and as a researcher in numerous patches for the Linux Jeremy Andrus Jeremy Jacob Andreas the first amazing for an undergraduate. Operating System and a tech- is one of people carrying multiple student the Natural Language Processing Not only is Jacob creative and nology transfer at Microsoft. At only 12 fellows tapped nation- smartphones, he also sees a from the School to receive the Group, under the guidance of his thoughtful, he’s also a great Columbia Engineering, he co- wide from a field of more than challenge: How can we unify prestigious award. Jacob, a professors Kathleen McKeown communicator and a nice guy.” directs the Software Systems 300 applicants. all those phones and their computer science major, is one and Michael Collins. Lab (SSL), and is focusing on functionalities so we need to of 14 students nationwide to As if there is more that can be This exciting news for Jeremy carry only one device? His goal “I tell people I’ve been interested squeezed into his day, Jacob efficient and reliable multi- receive the Churchill scholarship, in natural language processing threading, tools for the cloud, comes on the heels of winning is to revolutionize the mobile which gives exemplary students also teaches; he has taught as a best paper prize with his market with virtualization since the fifth grade,” said Jacob. a T.A. in the computer science and operating systems support the opportunity to study for The first computer program for reliability. Yang, who joined advisor, Associate Professor solutions that will allow us to one year at the University of department’s Emerging Scholars Jason Nieh. As a Facebook use multiple virtual devices on he ever wrote was a Mad Libs- Program and for Computer Columbia in 2008, won an NSF Cambridge with all tuition and style fill-in-the-blank game. CAREER award in 2011 and an Fellow, Jeremy will receive a single physical device. fees paid, including a living Science Theory, as a tutor, and AFSOR YIP (Air Force Office a $30,000 stipend to cover allowance and travel and “Language has always excited as a coach on the robotics team study expenses, $5,000 for Jeremy will work to unify the at the Engineering School. He of Scientific Research Young mobile user experience by research expenses. me,” added Jacob, who studied Investigator Research Program) conference travel, and $2,500 Spanish in high school and held a software engineering for a personal computer. investigating efficient and Jacob was surprised when internship at Google’s New York award in 2012. He earned his secure ways to virtualize whole Mandarin here. “Computational B.S. from Tsinghua University he got the call in early January linguistics really gets to the offices last year, and in 2010, In addition, the Facebook platforms like Android. His that he had won the scholarship at Microsoft in Bellevue, WA, and his M.S. and Ph.D. from Fellowship comes with an work will help facilitate the heart of some of the most Stanford University. from the Winston Churchill interesting problems in artificial where he developed several invitation to visit Facebook next generation of mobile Foundation. Having misread an Windows Phone 7 applications headquarters in Palo Alto, virtual appliances, open up new intelligence and machine learning Awarded annually since 1955, earlier email announcing the that exist today.” using Live Labs technologies. Sloan Fellowships are given CA, later this year to meet opportunities for mobile cloud- date on which finalists would be to early-career scientists and one-on-one with engineers based applications and services, notified, he actually assumed he Jacob began working in Thinking ahead to life after scholars in recognition of working on problems relevant and clear our cluttered pockets was already out of the running. McKeown’s lab as a sophomore. Cambridge, Jacob said he achievement and the potential to his research. of excess devices.” The winners were announced He is interested in semantic definitely wants to return to the to contribute substantially to on February 6. parsing and generation— U.S. for a Ph.D., and after that, “It’s an honor to be chosen, and Jeremy anticipates leaving intends to pursue a professor- their fields. Administered and I would hope the recognition academia after completing his transforming text into language- funded by the Sloan Foundation, “So for the last month or so I’ve independent representations ship. Indeed, his parents were can fuel more productive Ph.D. and hopes to return to been smiling at inappropriate very pleased to hear of the the Fellowships are awarded collaboration,” he says. industry to work at a startup of meaning and back again. in close cooperation with the moments without being able When he attends Cambridge Churchill news; and perhaps or an established organization. to explain why,” said Jacob, 21, even more so since they both scientific community. Potential Jeremy is developing an app “I really enjoy creating new this fall, he plans to build a fellows must be nominated that would allow two separate from Piedmont, CA. “It’s a relief better semantic parser under attended Cambridge. Said Jacob, technologies that people can to finally be able to talk about it!” “Perhaps unsurprisingly, most for recognition by their peers personas—say, one for work use,” he says. the supervision of Professor and are subsequently selected and one for home—on a single Stephen Clark. of our discussion so far has Jacob, who began programming taken the form of dating advice.” by an independent panel of smartphone. when he was just in elementary senior scholars. 2 CS@CU SPRING 2012 CS@CU SPRING 2012 3 New Faculty Feature Article on an operating system design notch research they produce, Imagine your tax return with all kinds of Roxana Geambasu overhaul for mobile devices many of these researchers are with security in mind. Today’s determined to build systems Can you Trust personal information printing out not just mobile operating systems— that are as close to reality as Joins CS Faculty including Android and iOS— possible, a notion I deeply on your printer but also on a criminal’s in are descendants of traditional believe in (please see below).