Distinguished Lecture: Tuesday, November 7, 2023 at 4:00 PM Central | McMurtry Auditorium in Duncan Hall at Rice University

Ian Foster, Data Science and Learning Division Director, Argonne National Laboratory; Arthur Holly Compton Distinguished Service Professor of Computer Science, University of Chicago

Talk: Global Services for Global Science

Abstract: We are on the verge of a global communications revolution based on ubiquitous high-speed optical, 5G, 6G, and free-space optics technologies. The resulting communications fabric can enable new ultra-collaborative research modalities that pool sensors, data, and computation with unprecedented flexibility and focus. But realizing these new modalities requires that we overcome the friction that currently impedes actions that traverse institutional boundaries. The solution, I argue, is new global science services to mediate between user intent and infrastructure realities. I describe our experiences building and operating such services, and present examples of their application and use.

Bio: Dr. Ian Foster is Senior Scientist and Distinguished Fellow, and also director of the Data Science and Learning Division, at Argonne National Laboratory, and the Arthur Holly Compton Distinguished Service Professor of Computer Science at the University of Chicago. Ian received a BSc degree from the University of Canterbury, New Zealand, and a PhD from Imperial College, United Kingdom, both in computer science. His research deals with distributed, parallel, and data-intensive computing technologies, and innovative applications of those technologies to scientific problems in such domains as materials science, climate change, and biomedicine. Foster is a fellow of the AAAS, ACM, BCS, and IEEE, and an Office of Science Distinguished Scientists Fellow.

Sponsored by: The Ken Kennedy Institute

Registration: Free to attend.

Reception to follow. RSVP to stay updated on event details.