News

CS PhD Student Wins Intel Fellowship

<p>Vishakha Gupta, a Ph.D. student in computer science, has been awarded an doctoral fellowship from Intel Corp. for the 2009-10 academic year. Gupta, whose adviser is Professor Karsten Schwan, works in the Center for Experimental Research in Computer Systems (CERCS). <i>Source: Office of Communications</i><br /></p>

Can Anti-Paparazzi Laser Shield Work?

<p>Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich has installed an electronic system on his yacht that's meant to disrupt the prying lenses of paparazzi with focused beams of light. But according to the system's inventors, Gregory Abowd and Jay Summet of the College of Computing, Abramovich's plan probably won't work. <i>Source: TechRadar.com</i><br /></p>

Atlanta Flood Monitored Through Social Media

<p>As nonstop rain pummeled metro Atlanta in mid-September, causing widespread flooding and an estimated $250 million in damages, residents kept informed as much through their online social networks as by traditional media. "In an emergency situation, you find the social networks you've been building up on a daily basis, that sometimes seem like a waste of time, suddenly become very useful," said Amy Bruckman, associate professor in Interactive Computing. <i>Source: AJC.com</i><br /></p>

GT Looks to Shift Unemployed IT Pros to Teaching

<p>The College of Computing is looking to transform economic lemons into educational lemonade by shifting unemployed technology professionals into teaching careers. Dubbed "Operation Reboot," the program will combine with the Georgia Teacher Alternative Preparation Program and is designed prepare IT professionals to teach high school computer science. It kicked off Sept. 1 with an initial set of 30 technology workers and is expected to operate for the next three years. <i>Source: CampusTechnology.com</i><br /></p>

Boldyreva Photo Featured on NatGeo

<p>Computer Science's Sasha Boldyreva, an accomplished nature photographer, has a photo in National Geographic's International Photography Contest 2009. The assistant professor's shot of a Japanese snow monkey is one of the Nature photos featured for September - Week 3 in the online contest, in which site visitors vote for their favorite images. <i>Source: National Geographic.com</i></p>

Augmented Reality Gets Off to Wobbly Start

<p>Momentum has been building behind augmented reality, particularly AR incorporated into mobile devices, but applications that rely on GPS receivers and compasses built into those devices have been less than consistent. "These sensors are astonishingly bad at what people are trying to do with them," says Associate Professor Blair MacIntyre of Interactive Computing. <i>Source: New Scientist</i><br /></p>

Georgia Tech Receives Grant For Computing Training

<p>A $2.5 million federal grant will enable the College of Computing to transform 30 IT workers into high school computing teachers. "Operation Reboot" program pairs an IT worker with an existing computing teacher. The trainees will co-teach at least two computing classes for one year, allowing them to learn the ins-and-outs of classroom teaching. <i>Source: Associated Press</i><br /></p>

Georgia Tech to Transform Unemployed Technology Workers into High School Computing Teachers

<p>ATLANTA (September 17, 2009)— Through a recent $2.5 million grant from the National Science Foundation, the Georgia Tech College of Computing will mitigate the stress of joblessness for unemployed information technology (IT) professionals over the next three years. Operation Reboot, as the project is aptly titled, will transform an initial set of 30 IT workers in Georgia into high school computing teachers. The initiative began September 1. <i>Source: Office of Communications</i><br /></p>

Family Ties Compel Some to Tackle Autism

<p>Gregory Abowd, Distinguished Professor in Interactive Computing, realized while watching family videos that he and his wife missed signs of autism in their children as toddlers. He also realized his own work could help future parents spot those early signs. "There's nothing that beats having passion about something," Abowd says. <i>Source: SimonsFoundation.org</i><br /></p>

Google Earth+Augmented Reality=Wow!

<p>Professor Irfan Essa of Interactive Computing is directing a project that combines detailed aerial maps (such as those available through Google Earth) with live-action video feeds to create spectacular imagery, as a new video demonstrates. <i>Source: RevolutionMagazine.com</i><br /></p>

Digital Contacts Will Keep an Eye on Your Vitals

<p>Researchers already are building digital enhancements into contact lenses that conjure up visions of "cyborg eyes." While calling the work "exciting," Associate Professor Blair MacIntyre of Interactive Computing says it will be some time before the lenses can be used for augmented reality applications like gaming. <i>Source: Wired.com</i><br /></p>

Sparking Interest in CS With Video Game Testing

<p>Research shows that young African American males approach video games differently than do their white peers. Betsy DiSalvo, doctoral candidate in the School of Interactive Computing, has a hunch that she can use black teens' gaming habits to spur interest in computer science--and so far it's working. <i>Source: PhysOrg.com</i><br /></p>

Social Simon: Watch and Learn

<p>Simon, the latest robot creation of Assistant Professor Andrea Thomaz of Interactive Computing, is programmed to learn new skills from watching human teachers, rather than being programmed by them. This capability could make robots like Simon quite flexible--and useful--in any number of task environments. <i>Source: Ahmedabad Mirror</i><br /></p>

Bug Hunting With Glitch Game Testers

<p>Glitch Game Testers, a joint program between the College of Computing and Morehouse College, is helping Atlanta high school students make the connection between the fun of video games and the field of computer science, says Ph.D. student and program lead Betsy DiSalvo. <i>Source: GameSetWatch.com</i><br /></p>

Could Better Auto Batteries Mean Better Robots?

<p>Robots today contribute in walks of life from national defense to health care to housecleaning, but their effectiveness often lives only as long as their batteries. New U.S. investments in electric car technology could also lead to longer- and stronger-performing robots, says Henrik Christensen, director of the Robotics and Intelligent Machines (RIM) Center at Georgia Tech. <i>Source: The New York Times</i><br /></p>

Who's Driving Twitter's Popularity? Not Teens

<p>Twitter's unparalleled explosion in popularity is bucking the old model of young people and teenagers as the earliest adopters of Web-related innovations. Part of this may be due to "tweets" being a "comparatively adult kind of interaction," says new Interactive Computing Ph.D. graduate Andrea Forte, whose Georgia Tech dissertation examined how high school students use social media. <i>Source: The New York Times</i><br /></p>

Wolf Hits Hard With Intel 'Black Belt'

<p>Matthew Wolf, research scientist in Computer Science, has been recognized by the Intel Software Network as a "Black Belt" for his contributions to Intel's Academic Community. Already the recipient of a 2009 Academic Leadership Award from Intel, Wolf was cited for helping to further the parallel programming curriculum. <i>Source: Intel Corp.</i><br /></p>

Thomaz Named a Top Innovator Under 35

<p>Andrea Thomaz, assistant professor in Interactive Computing, has been named one of 2009’s Top Innovators Under 35 by MIT Technology Review. Thomaz’s research focuses on social interactions between robots and humans; her robots give visual cues—such as gestures and facial expressions—to indicate whether they understand what a person is telling them. Thomaz also develops machine learning methods to help robots more quickly learn physical tasks, particularly from teachers who are not necessarily programmers. <i>Source: MIT Technology Review</i><br /></p>

Only Developed World Lacks Women in Computing

<p>In many less developed countries, information technology and computer science are not considered “male” domains, according to a report written by Mark Guzdial, professor in Interactive Computing, for the National Center for Women &amp; Information Technology (NCWIT). In Malaysia, for example, one study showed 52 percent of all CS majors are female, often taught by female department heads reporting to female deans. <i>Source: Generation YES blog</i><br /></p>

MRI Simulation of Blood Flow Helps Plan Child's Heart Surgery

<p>Jarek Rossignac, professor in the School of Interactive Computing, developed Surgem, an interactive geometric modeling environment that allows surgeons to use both hands and natural gestures in 3D to grab, pull, twist and bend a 3D computer representation of a patient's anatomy. <i>Source: Reuters</i><br /></p>