Recent News & Accomplishments
2024
Eugenia Brin, a Russian immigrant and retired NASA scientist who, with her family of accomplished Terps, became an important benefactor of the University of Maryland, died on Dec. 3, 2024. She was 76 years old.
Eugenia and her husband, Professor Emeritus of Mathematics Michael Brin, supported projects that reflected their personal journeys and professional passions, donating nearly $57 million to UMD programs in mathematics, computer science, and climate science, Russian studies and the performing arts and the Campus Pantry. "The generosity of Eugenia Brin and her husband, Michael, has manifested itself in every corner of our campus, from scholarships to program funding to support for research," said UMD President Darryll J. Pines. "She was a beloved member of a storied family of Terps, and we mourn... read more
$1.3M available for interdisciplinary work focused on responsible, ethical AI development.
The University of Maryland announced on Friday a new seed award program designed to support the development of cutting-edge, interdisciplinary artificial intelligence-related research projects and courses. The $1.3 million in grants will be administered by the Artificial Intelligence Interdisciplinary Institute at Maryland (AIM), a collaborative hub launched last spring to conduct research, offer innovative and experiential learning opportunities for students and focus on responsible and ethical AI technology to advance the public good. UMD and its philanthropic and industry partners plan to... read more
Debanjan Saha ’95 discusses how nontraditional paths can lead to leadership in tech-driven industries.
There is a constant desire to find the companies of tomorrow. For the last seven years, Fortune has highlighted the companies that despite increasing competition and global volatility, are set down a path for long-term growth. The Future 50 list focuses on those likely to adapt, thrive, and grow—and serves in part as a guide for those seeking partners and role models. But for those looking to one day lead a company that may be the next big thing, the educational background of the Future 50 CEOs may surprise you. No, they did not all attend an Ivy League institution or go to business school... read more
Sreyan Ghosh received the award for his research that aims to improve audio reasoning in AI systems.
Imagine an AI system that doesn’t just transcribe speech but can truly understand, reason and respond like an expert. This vision is at the heart of University of Maryland Ph.D. student Sreyan Ghosh ’s research, which seeks to revolutionize audio processing in artificial intelligence. His work, which addresses limitations in data efficiency and representation learning, has earned him the highly competitive NVIDIA 2025-2026 Graduate Fellowship , positioning him to advance what AI systems can achieve with sound. Ghosh is among ten recipients selected from nearly 600 applications worldwide. The... read more
The institute led by Adam Porter welcomed dozens of leaders to its headquarters in North Bethesda for a ribbon cutting and announced new partnerships with industry and the federal government.
From left, Bradley Maron, UM-IHC co-executive director; Kate Stewart, Montgomery County councilmember; Andrew Friedson, Montgomery County councilmember; Jared Solomon, Maryland state delegate; Darryll Pines, UMCP president; Marc Elrich, Montgomery County executive; Bruce Jarrell, UMB president; Adam Porter, UM-IHC co-executive director; Emily Kaine, senior vice president of Global Health and Manufacturing Services at United States Pharmacopeia; Aldo Badano, director of the FDA’s Division of Imaging, Diagnostics, and Software Reliability; Warren D’Souza, UM-IHC co-director. Uncovering bias in... read more
Ph.D. student Phillip Pope merges quantum chemistry and machine learning to combat climate change and improve energy efficiency.
At the crossroads of quantum chemistry and machine learning, researchers are advancing novel discoveries in materials science to improve energy efficiency—new knowledge that could revolutionize how we tackle global challenges like sustainability and energy production. Phillip Pope, a sixth-year doctoral student in computer science at the University of Maryland, is active in this area, combining his skills in machine learning with a strong commitment to combating the climate crisis. A native of St. Petersburg, Florida, Pope has seen firsthand the devastating impacts of climate change. “My... read more
Starting Spring 2025, the Grant Family Outstanding Achievement Undergraduate Student Award will recognize graduating seniors excelling in both fields.
The University of Maryland will launch the Grant Family Outstanding Achievement Undergraduate Student Award in Computer Science and Mathematics in Spring 2025 to honor exceptional graduating seniors excelling in both fields. Established by computer science Adjunct Professor John Grant , the award recognizes undergraduate students pursuing double majors in these interconnected disciplines. Grant has been a faculty member in both mathematics and computer science departments for over 50 years. All majors conferred by the Department of Computer Science are eligible for the award, which will be... read more
Furong Huang discusses the impact of AI during The New York Academy of Sciences’ 2025 Machine Learning Symposium.
The New York Academy of Sciences (the Academy) hosted the 15th Annual Machine Learning Symposium. This year’s event, sponsored by Google Research and Cubist Systematic Strategies, included keynote addresses from leading experts, spotlight talks from graduate students and tech entrepreneurs, and opportunities for networking. Exploring and Mitigating Safety Risks in Large Language Models and Generative AI Pin-Yu Chen, PhD, a principal research scientist at IBM Research, opened the symposium with a keynote lecture about his work examining adversarial machine learning of neural networks for... read more
Team found the mnemonics we prefer may not match those that actually help.
What is melancholy, really? Consider a hardworking collie after a day of herding sheep. She’ll be hungry, but all she has to eat is a melon. The pup will be sad—melancholy, even. Whether it’s memorizing vocabulary for a test or learning new foreign language phrases, we’ve all used such “keyword mnemonics,” which help us to learn and remember new terms or phrases by associating them with something that’s easy to recall. But crafting mnemonics can be almost as hard as memorization. What if there was a way to make using this classic technique easier? Enter SMART—an AI-driven keyword mnemonic... read more
Nakul Garg and Aritrik Ghosh’s ultra-low-power tracking system, LiTEfoot, earns acclaim for its innovation in supply chain localization.
University of Maryland Department of Computer Science graduate students Nakul Garg and Aritrik Ghosh presented their research at the 22nd ACM Conference on Embedded Networked Sensor Systems (SenSys) held from November 4-7, 2024, in Hangzhou, China. Their work received the Best Poster Runner-Up Award, highlighting innovations in networked sensing and actuation systems. Garg and Ghosh, advised by computer science Assistant Professor Nirupam Roy, developed LiTEfoot, a low-power localization system designed for the long-term tracking of small assets across global supply chains. By leveraging... read more