Rena Malai

Take off to Vienna

Rena Malai — Thu, 14 Sep 2023 13:52:49 +0000

Take off to Vienna Rena Malai Thu, 09/14/2023 - 09:52

In This Story

Long known as a hub for art and music, Vienna is also ranked tenth in the world for software engineering education.

It’s one of the reasons the Department of Computer Science at George Mason University will host its first ever study abroad program in Austria, in a cultural hub that promises an enriching experience.

The program will take place summer 2024 at the Vienna University of Technology. Students will have the chance to delve into the Austrian way life as well as work on the term project – development of a software app – and learn about the software development life cycle.

The program’s six week length is something Rob Pettit, professor in the Department of Computer Science and associate chair for graduate studies, sees as important for students to have a well-rounded experience of studying and cultural immersion.

“Vienna is consistently rated as one of the best cities in the world to live in,” said Pettit. “That’s why I wanted this program to be long enough for students to do everyday activities, like interact with locals at the supermarket, so they can experience living abroad, not just studying.”

The program will offer six credits and is faculty run and led. Students will also have the chance to go on excursions within Austria as well as Hungary, Slovakia, and Czechia, led by Pettit.

Applications are open and being accepted until March 10, 2024. The program will start June 16, 2024 and end July 28.

Apply here or contact rpettit@gmu.edu for more information.

The following information sessions are also available, where Pettit will attend and can answer any questions:

September 19 – Study Abroad Fair – 11 a.m to 4 p.m. in Wilkins Plaza

September 26 – Information Session – 2 p.m. to 3 p.m. in room 235, Johnson Center

October 11 – Information Session – 12 p.m. to 1 p.m. in Engineering 4201

November 2 – Virtual Information Session – 7 p.m. to 8 p.m. via Zoom

Topics

study abroad

Amazon Research Award win for AI Safety Verification

Rena Malai — Wed, 19 Jul 2023 17:08:53 +0000

Amazon Research Award win for AI Safety Verification Rena Malai Wed, 07/19/2023 - 13:08

In This Story

ThanhVu Nguyen

Thanhvu Nguyen, an assistant professor in the Department of Computer Science, received a coveted Amazon Research Award (ARA). He is one among 79 awardees of the Fall 2022 ARA cycle, representing more than 54 universities in 14 countries.

The ARA offers unrestricted funding in support of research at academic universities and nonprofits. Winners are granted full access to Amazon’s public datasets to conduct their research.

"I am honored to receive this prestigious and, internationally recognized award," said Nguyen, who will use the funding for his research and teaching on AI safety.

While research areas for the ARA have included areas like machine learning, robotics, and quantum technologies, they generally have a theme every year, and this was the year for AI, according to Nguyen.

"AI is now employed in crucial sectors like Healthcare, Autonomous Vehicles, and Energy. However, despite extensive training on data, AI models can still make inaccurate predictions, posing risks to human lives,” Nguyen said. “One significant challenge is the scalability of existing formal methods and tools, as they often struggle to handle very large, real-world AI models. This project aims to develop novel formal methods and tools specifically designed to analyze and ensure the safety of extremely large AI models.”

He adds that by addressing scalability issues, it’s possible to bring rigor to safety-critical AI techniques and applications, enhancing their reliability and trustworthiness. He will work on the project with Hai Duong, a computer science PhD student at George Mason University.

Since joining Mason in 2021, Nguyen has successfully secured nearly $2 million in external funding to advance his research on enhancing the quality and reliability of AI and software development. Students interested in working on this ARA topic are encouraged to email Nguyen: tvn@gmu.edu.

Topics

Amazon

Award

Cutting edge delivered with new IST concentrations

Rena Malai — Tue, 16 May 2023 15:32:17 +0000

Cutting edge delivered with new IST concentrations Rena Malai Tue, 05/16/2023 - 11:32

In This Story

Ioulia Rytikova

Nora McDonald

With two new recently added concentrations in the Department of Information Sciences and Technology (IST) at George Mason University, graduate students have a cutting edge in machine learning and user experience (UX) design.

IST Professor and Associate Chair for Graduate Studies Ioulia
Rytikova

The Machine Learning Engineering and Human Computer Interaction (with UX design) concentrations offer courses that help students gain competitive skills and adapt to an ever evolving technology landscape, according to Ioulia Rytikova, IST professor and associate chair for graduate studies.

“The Machine Learning Engineering concentration was added in fall 2022, and HCI will be available in fall 2023,” Rytikova said. “We are committed to an inclusive program where students receive the hands-on learning they need to be successful in their careers while being supported in their studies every step of the way.”

According to IST assistant professor Nora McDonald, the HCI concentration will be useful for students interested in designing and engineering, as it’s important to know how to gather human user data.

“As soon as they do HCI, it opens them up to possibilities and has a profound effect on how they see technology,” McDonald said. “This is crucial no matter what role they pursue.”

IST adjunct professor Aisha Sikder adds the entire world will be in front of students pursuing the concentration in machine learning.

“It’s not just that they will take a few courses here and there, but this

IST Adjunct Professor Aisha Sikder

concentration opens the doors for students in so many different directions,” Sikder said. “They will be prepared for roles in the machine learning, data science, and AI realm and beyond.”

The new concentrations are part of ongoing efforts by the department to encourage and welcome a diverse range of students, providing them with a curriculum that suits their lifestyle and opportunities to succeed.

“We understand potential students come from all types of backgrounds, needs, and requirements,” Rytikova said. “We are a dedicated team of faculty that make sure every student has the tools and means to get the most out of their education and succeed.”

IST Assistant Professor Nora McDonald

The two concentrations are a part of Mason’s Master of Science in applied information technology.

Topics

innovative classes

information sciences and technology

MOBILESoft Award win improves app UI for all

Rena Malai — Tue, 11 Apr 2023 16:41:57 +0000

MOBILESoft Award win improves app UI for all Rena Malai Tue, 04/11/2023 - 12:41

In This Story

Kevin Moran

Mobile apps are an ever - changing platform. Some work well, others don’t. Still others have so many issues that they hardly function at all.

It’s a part of everyone’s world and an area that Kevin Moran, assistant professor in the Department of Computer Science at George Mason University, is working on to make it a better place. His research in user interfaces for apps coupled with his knowledge of AI led to his nomination and win for the 2023 MOBILESoft Rising Star Award.

Kevin Moran, assistant professor in the Department of Computer Science.
Photo courtesy of Moran.

“A good user interface on an app is aesthetically pleasing and helps the user accomplish the task they’re setting out to do quickly and easily, like booking a flight or checking a bank account,” said Moran.

Through the use of AI, Moran studies how machine learning can play a role in designing a successful user interface. This method can potentially help developers and designers when it comes to the coding aspect aligning with the aesthetics part, saving time and even some confusion in the early development stage of an application, or troubleshooting improvements to an existing one.

“I created an approach using machine learning that recognizes all the different elements of an application, and it automatically writes the code to implement that interface,” said Moran. “It’s being perfected, but it does a pretty good job and saves a lot of time for the developers.”

Moran says while busy with his research, many in his position don’t expect to win awards, but of course it’s a nice recognition.

“Although this award goes to one person, this is a result of the research and contribution made from several other collaborators throughout the last seven to 10 years,” he said. “I give credit to all of them. It’s not just me, it’s a small army.”

The MOBILESoft Rising Star Award is meant to recognize a young researcher within the MOBILESoft community that has made outstanding research contributions to the field of mobile software engineering during and since their studies.

MOBILESoft provides a premier working conference-style forum for discussing and presenting innovative contributions to the research and practice of the design, development, validation, execution, and evolution of mobile applications.

Topics

Boom crash: Mason researcher receives half million NSF grant that could steer AI safely

Rena Malai — Fri, 24 Feb 2023 20:12:21 +0000

Boom crash: Mason researcher receives half million NSF grant that could steer AI safely Rena Malai Fri, 02/24/2023 - 15:12

In This Story

ThanhVu Nguyen

AI is everywhere. It emphatically wends its way and creeps into daily life, from parking cars to vending machines. In some cases, the use of AI needs to be closely monitored to ensure all safety and precautionary measures are taken into consideration.

Thanhvu H. Nguyen, one of the newest professors in the Department of Computer Science, arrived at George Mason University in 2021 and knew of Mason’s diversity and proximity to one of the largest tech hubs in the nation.

Nguyen recently won the National Science Foundation (NSF) CAREER Award "NeuralSAT: A Constraint-Solving Framework for Verifying Deep Neural Networks.” Nguyen will work with his student Hai Duong, and a select team of students to develop technology that ensures AI machine learning is robust, safe, and unbiased.

“In certain scenarios, where AI is used for things like controlling airplanes or autonomous vehicles, any mistake could prove fatal,” says Nguyen. “This grant work will look at the deep neural networks (DNN) embedded in AI/machine learning technology and develop technology to prevent errors and ensure safety.”

According to the project’s abstract, the use of DNNs - a layered network that processes complex data - have emerged as an effective approach to tackling real-world problems. However, just like traditional software, DNNs can have ‘bugs’ and be attacked. 

This can be especially concerning, when it comes to the use of AI in driving cars, for example. Although it could eliminate some human error, Nguyen says any faulty DNNs could throw an AI program – and the car – off the road when it comes to something unexpected, like bad weather and icy roads.

“We all depend on AI, whether we realize it or not,” says Nguyen. “It’s a part of our lives. Whatever I can do to make it safer, is a benefit to my family and the society.”

Since coming to Mason, he has helped to bring in around $1.73M in external funding. Nguyen is excited to work with his students and the group of computer science faculty, noting how everyone brings a fresh perspective to the table.

The project runs for five years with a total of $510,509 in anticipated funding. Nguyen sees the project as helping society as a whole by improving the reliability of systems embedding DNNs. The research conducted throughout the project will allow AI and machine learning researchers and users to improve their DNNs and deploy them with confidence. 

Topics

Award win for IT capstone students immersed in African American history

Rena Malai — Wed, 09 Nov 2022 16:55:51 +0000

Award win for IT capstone students immersed in African American history Rena Malai Wed, 11/09/2022 - 11:55

In This Story

John McLaughlin

It was an award win for a group of George Mason IT capstone alumni, as they were honored with the Distinguished Achievement Award from the Fairfax County History Commission last weekend.

The team was presented with the award by Virginia Congressman Gerry Connolly and Chairman Jeff McKay.

Roman Patrick, Akbar Suri, Brian Do, Steve Cheuko, Samuel Pitch, and Fernando Galarza collaborated together in Alpha Team 4 during their senior capstone project in the 2021-2022 academic year. With Suri as project lead, the team created a platform called the Fairfax County African American History Inventory database that includes physical sites, private records, collections, and more as it relates to African American culture and previous residents.

The project is a collaborative effort between the Fairfax County History Commission and the Center for Mason Legacies. The goal is to capture, communicate, and preserve the African American experience throughout Fairfax County’s history

The county took the project on as a major initiative last year. The committee for the database was formed in January 2021, and led by history commissioners Mary Lipsey and Phyllis Walker-Ford.

“I want to give a special shout out to history commissioners Mary Lipsey and Phyllis Walker Ford for their assistance and communication all year as well as Professor John McLaughlin for his guidance (during) our entire capstone course,” says Patrick.

The database is hosted by George Mason and is designed to be interactive, user-friendly, informative, and easily updated.

Topics

diversity

Students get a professional boost with Break Through Tech’s Guild program

Rena Malai — Wed, 20 Jul 2022 15:13:01 +0000

Students get a professional boost with Break Through Tech’s Guild program Rena Malai Wed, 07/20/2022 - 11:13

In This Story

Shvetha Soundararajan

Team 6 present their app project during the last day of Guild.

The 2022 Break Through Tech DC summer Guild program at George Mason took place in June. A hybrid approach allowed students to participate remotely, with the last day commencing with an in-person gathering at Dewberry Hall.

About 40 students participated in the Guild at Mason, which included interactive activities, presentations, and team projects. With networking opportunities mixed in, students from underrepresented backgrounds had a chance to do a deeper dive into their computing education and career paths through Guild.

According to Shvetha Soundararajan, Break Through Tech DC site lead at George Mason, the Guild program is intended to encourage women and students from underrepresented groups to explore computing in a meaningful way.

“Through the Guild, we showcase that computing is for all, it is inclusive and accessible, and that there are many more aspects to building software than just coding,” she says.

Guild participants worked in teams to develop an app, and present their work at the end of the week. First place went to team 2, and their app Sign With Me, which teaches preschoolers the alphabet in sign language.

Second place went to team 3 for the app Biome World, that helps educate elementary school students about biomes. Team 6 received third place for their app APventures, an AP level study app designed to feel like an adventure game.

“The 2022 Guild participants worked together in teams to create innovative and unique EdTech apps that are valuable,” says Soundararajan. “They worked very hard to create productivity, study, and collaboration apps for students of different age groups.”

Mason junior Helen Chen says Guild opened up the doors for her to learn coding, and even get in some public speaking practice.

“I was so happy to learn JavaScript and create something with code for the first time,” says Chen. “Presenting our project to the professors and industry leaders was truly an unforgettable experience and I think it might have cured my fear of public speaking a little bit.”

Freshman Anabela Shearer says Guild was a great experience and it helped her feel more confident about pursuing a computing career.

“I was able to meet Mason students who are also pursuing a career in computer science,” says Shearer. “It helped me feel confident in my knowledge of coding. I have never coded before prior to Guild but it was easy for me to catch up with the others who have.”

Mentors from major corporations like Booz Allen Hamilton and Microsoft also attended Guild. According to Gerald Irish, senior software engineer at Microsoft, it’s important to contribute towards building a more inclusive industry for the next group of IT professionals.

“Sometimes we take for granted how we navigated the challenges we faced while moving through the industry, so sharing our experiences can help students from underrepresented groups feel more comfortable navigating those challenges for themselves,” says Irish. “Going forward I hope the mentees we interacted with will use us as a resource for guidance, connections, or just as a sounding board to help them along the way.”

The Break Through Tech Guild program is open to all students with a focus on women and nonbinary individuals who are first and second year students. Students can be enrolled in any major or minor. No prior experience is required to apply for Guild.

“The Guild and other BTT programs would not be possible without the support of our industry partners,” says Soundararajan. “For a second consecutive year, we received overwhelming support from our industry partners and industry mentors from Booz Allen Hamilton, Microsoft, Appian, and Accenture.”

About Break Through Tech 

Break Through Tech works at the intersection of academia and industry to propel more women and underrepresented communities into technology degrees and careers. BTT DC is the first cross-institutional collaboration, partnering with Mason and the University of Maryland. 

Topics

Tech Talent Investment Pipeline (TTIP)

Instinct can lead to great things

Rena Malai — Fri, 27 May 2022 15:20:51 +0000

Instinct can lead to great things Rena Malai Fri, 05/27/2022 - 11:20

Brenda Henriquez, a brand-new computer science graduate as of May, says she always had George Mason University on her radar. Coming into a STEM area felt like a natural fit for her and she was excited to join the Break Through Tech DC at George Mason initiative as a peer leader.

“I’ve already seen and experienced the empowerment that comes from being a part of the Mason community. Joining Break Through Tech as a peer leader was my opportunity to be on the other side, and offer empowerment back to the students in STEM,” she says.

Henriquez founded the first ever ThinkBowl 2022, a female and non-binary focused collaborative pitch competition to assist students in bringing their tech ideas closer to reality. Through support from Break Through Tech and Girls Who Code, Henriquez helped students reach their goals and dive deeper into STEM areas.

ThinkBowl differs from a traditional hackathon, according to Henriquez, as the focus is more on the process of creating and editing a pitch rather than developing a functioning piece of software or hardware by the end of the event. ThinkBowl participants created projects such as mobile apps on recycling, proposed changes to the Mason360 user interface and functions, and a contemporary connections app – helpful for roommates – that splits utility bills equally.

“ThinkBowl 2022 was created to invest in creating a community to help and support female and non-binary students accelerate their growth within technology education and careers,” says Henriquez. “Our peer leaders still keep in touch.”

Henriquez also spent time with her fellow peer leaders hosting events on Masters/PhD workshops and forming Break Through Tech groups to participate in Patriot Hacks 2022. She was awarded the Outstanding Undergraduate Student Award at the Computer Science Awards ceremony held in May.

“I feel fortunate to be a part of a community where there is support for many different paths,” she says. “I also hope others feel that they have a community where changing the plan they initially had for their future is supported. Break Through Tech is here to welcome them.”

About Break Through Tech

Break Through Tech works at the intersection of academia and industry to propel more women and underrepresented communities into technology degrees and careers. Break Through Tech DC is the first cross-institutional collaboration, partnering with Mason and the University of Maryland.

Topics

New Mason IT grad says ‘just go for it’

Rena Malai — Mon, 25 Apr 2022 19:59:42 +0000

New Mason IT grad says ‘just go for it’ Rena Malai Mon, 04/25/2022 - 15:59

It was a friend’s serendipitous homework assignment that had Dania O Abu-Irshaid, upcoming George Mason graduate from the Department of Information Sciences and Technology, switch her undergrad work from pre-law to a STEM path.

She says she’s always had a natural knack for coding, and it’s something that’s always interested her. But when she helped a fellow Mason student with a Python coding exercise, that’s when it clicked.

“I was thinking about pre-law, but after taking a class in it, I didn’t feel like it suited me. I was undecided,” says Abu-Irshaid. “Then my friend was struggling with this homework assignment and I ended up finishing it for her in five minutes. She looked at me and said, this is what you should be doing.”

When Abu-Irshaid made the move to study IT, with a concentration in cybersecurity, that’s when things really picked up for her. As the oldest child in her family, she was relied on to be the tech savvy expert and help fix wifi routers in the house or explain internet nuances to her parents. Although she is the first female in her family to study and work in STEM, she’s confident of the opportunities coming her way.

After graduation, Abu-Irshaid will enter a ten weeklong internship with the Virginia Department of Elections, where she will work in the cybersecurity sector. She also sees potential for a corporate position with one of the big contenders—namely Walmart. As a resident advisor at Mason to freshman engineering students, Abu-Irshaid says some of her mentees good naturedly tease her about her Walmart aspirations to this day.

“I’m like, guys, Walmart isn’t just about celery and sticky buns, they have a corporate side,” she says. “But they’ll still ask me how Walmart’s going and what kind of merchandise I have.”

With a bright future ahead, she says she’ll miss her time at Mason, particularly the diverse community and her role as an advisor.

“I love the community and culture at Mason. There’s always something to do, and something to look forward to on campus. But I’ll hopefully be back, in some capacity,” says Abu-Irshaid.

Her message for future grads is to just go for it, whether it’s a job, course of study, or opportunity.

“It’s really as simple as that, and it’s what got me everywhere,” she says. “Just go to that club meeting, go to that class, ask your professor that question. You’re not going to get the results unless you go for it.”

Topics

Information Sciences and Technology Department

Graduation

CEC 2022 graduates

Wing Lam brings home a flaky test achievement

Rena Malai — Mon, 04 Apr 2022 18:11:31 +0000

Wing Lam brings home a flaky test achievement Rena Malai Mon, 04/04/2022 - 14:11

In This Story

Wing Lam

Getting rewarded for being flaky doesn’t usually happen. But when it comes to computer science, researching flaky (non-deterministic) software tests resulted in Wing Lam – professor in the Department of Computer Science at George Mason University – receiving the ACM Special Interest Group on Software Engineering (SIGSOFT) Outstanding Doctoral Dissertation Award.

“It is a tremendous opportunity to be honored with this award,” says Lam. “It makes me reflect on the many tiring nights that I spent on the work in my dissertation and on the dissertation text itself.”

Lam’s winning dissertation pinpointed flaky tests, an important topic for software developers. He says these kinds of tests tend to non-deterministically pass or fail on the same code. Basically, the tests flake out and provide unreliable results, which can cause challenges for developers trying to see if their recent code changes introduced software bugs or not.

“In recent years, many companies – like Apple, Facebook, Google, and Microsoft –highlighted through research and blogs the difficulties developers face when dealing with flaky tests,” says Lam. “The work in my dissertation proposes techniques to help developers detect, understand, and fix them.”

A fairly new arrival at Mason, Lam has been with the university for about one year. He says he was drawn to Mason’s influential researchers and strong computer science presence, particularly in the area of software engineering, which he teaches and conducts research in.

“Software engineering at Mason is now ranked seventh in the country, based on publications in recent years according to CS rankings,” says Lam. “With Mason being close to Washington D.C., there are also many collaboration opportunities and software development companies unique to this region.”

According to Lam, the work in his dissertation detected more than 3,000 flaky tests in over 300 open-source projects and helped fix more than 1,200 flaky tests in over 170 open-source projects. Lam’s work also led to changes in Maven Surefire, the default plugin of a popular build system for running tests in Java projects.

His changes are part of a toolset that is used by over 6.8 million Java developers worldwide, he says.

His advice for folks looking to develop an award winning dissertation is to explore anything that is exciting or interesting and learn through the process.

“The work in this dissertation took me three years,” says Lam. “Although I explored other related topics, I ended up mainly focusing on flaky tests because of how important this subject is for software developers.”

Topics