Spring 2023 Hybrid-Seminar Series Mondays 1.00-2.00 pm (EST) Towne 225 / Raisler Lounge “For Zoom link, please contact <manu@seas.upenn.edu>”
In the past half-century, partial differential equation (PDE)-based computational models have emerged as indispensable for science and engineering. However, remarkable gaps still exist between state-of-the-art simulations and reality, meaning that many simulations are ineffective in supporting decision-making or design under uncertainty for complex systems (e.g., Mars landing). To bridge the gap and fulfill challenging real-world […]
Expressive cryptography, including Secure Multi-Party Computation (SMPC) and Fully Homomorphic Encryption (FHE), has the potential to enable transformative new applications, drawing significant interest from industry. Unfortunately, it is often slow and resource-intensive, making those applications difficult to realize. For example, SMPC enables multiple organizations (e.g., hospitals) to run joint computations on their data (e.g., for […]
Abstract: Machine learning algorithms are increasingly used in conjunction with optimization to guide decision making. A key challenge is aligning the machine learning loss with the decision-making loss. Existing solutions have limited flexibility and/or scale poorly to large datasets. We propose a principled decision-aware learning algorithm that uses a Taylor expansion of the optimal decision […]
We will discuss methods of data lookup, with a focus on hash sets / tables, including motivation, properties, and variants. This will be in the context of a "CS 2" or data structures course. We will assume a basic familiarity with programming and comfort with implementing resizable lists; as well as knowledge of (but not […]
Abstract: A fundamental question in nature is how the cellular processes are organized with sequential and spatial precision in a dynamic and densely packed environment. Evidence is now mounting that biomolecular condensation, a demixing process mediated by phase separation coupled with percolation, dictates the organization principles of cellular biochemistry. From the perspective of synthetic biology, […]
Divide-and-Conquer and incremental compilation strategies are widely used in software compilations. To enable these strategies for FPGAs, this dissertation presents an open-source framework called PRflow, which can speed up the compilation times by at most an order of magnitude. PRflow supports different optimization levels to make better trade-offs among compile-time, area, and performance. -O0 (PRflow_RISCV) […]
Cell adhesion molecules (CAMs) are ubiquitous in multicellular organisms and specify precise cellular interactions in processes as diverse as tissue development and immune cell trafficking. We have generated an array of synthetic CAMs by combining orthogonal extracellular interactions with native intracellular domains. Diverse homotypic or heterotypic extracellular binding domains specify the connectivity between cells, while […]
Humans exhibit a strong tendency to associate with those similar to them. This tendency, termed homophily in the social sciences, impacts both the structure of society and its outcomes. In this talk, Nicole Immorlica discusses the mathematics of homophily. She first quantifies its theoretical implications for geographic segregation. We will see that even tolerant societies […]
This is a hybrid event with in-person attendance in Wu and Chen and virtual attendance via Zoom. This week's presenter will be in-person as well. ABSTRACT The human body is capable of dexterous manipulation in many different environments. Some environments, however, are challenging to access because of distance, scale, and limitations of the body […]
