Institute for Computational and Data Sciences names new associate director

Cyberinfrastructure expert Mahmut Kandemir to help ICDS meet growing need for AI research and innovation

5/10/2022

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Penn State’s Institute for Computational and Data Sciences announced that Mahmut Kandemir, distinguished professor of electrical engineering and computer science, has been named an associate director of the institute.

Kandemir is one of the world’s foremost experts on cyberinfrastructure and is leading the institute’s efforts to make the University a global resource for artificial intelligence — AI — cyberinfrastructure research and innovation. Nearly every application of computing and high-performance computing relies on cyberinfrastructure. Research and development on cyberinfrastructure promises to maximize its potential for science and society.

Kandemir’s leadership will help guide ICDS’s multi-pronged approach to provide next generation cyberinfrastructure support and increased capabilities for Penn State researchers, said Jenni Evans, professor of meteorology and atmospheric science and ICDS director.

“ICDS — and the entire Penn State research community — are fortunate that Mahmut has joined us as an associate director,” said Evans. “As a long-time member of ICDS’s affiliated faculty and an expert in both AI and cyberinfrastructure optimization, Mahmut’s expertise and guidance will be critical in our goal of providing world-class research cyberinfrastructure for the scientists at Penn State, as well as our growing community of ICDS-supported researchers across the country.”

According to Kandemir, much of tomorrow’s future technologies — and the benefits they provide society — rely on cyberinfrastructure research. 

“I believe computation and data are tightly coupled today and the success of many HPC applications of national importance depends strongly on how successfully they can exploit the synergy between the two,” said Kandemir. “Exploiting this synergy is more important and complex today than in the past because of massive datasets, enormous compute, memory and storage capabilities, as well as emerging paradigms based on AI and machine learning. In this setting, cyberinfrastructure is a key component, and how we should design, implement, deploy and manage it to cater to the needs of emerging data and compute intensive workloads is an open research problem.”

Kandemir added that his efforts will focus on broadening partnerships and deepening inclusion.

“My goal, in my capacity as an ICDS associate director, will be to promote and support cyberinfrastructure efforts within Penn State and with our partners at industry, academia and national labs,” said Kandemir. “Along this line, I will provide leadership in recruitment for ICDS with diversity, inclusion and equity in mind, mentoring of ICDS co-hires and other faculty across ICDS, and exploring the use of cyberinfrastructure research, education and deployment to advance ICDS strategic research goals and initiatives.”

Kandemir said he plans to implement and guide new and existing interdisciplinary research efforts that can combine some of the University’s existing scientific strengths.

“I will organize efforts to submit and carry out large-scale interdisciplinary research proposals on cyberinfrastructure and related topics,” he said. “In particular, I will work towards establishing strong research links between University Park and the Hershey Medical School. I strongly believe that ICDS is very important to Penn State’s Department of Computer Science and Engineering, and their goals and strategic plans align very well. We can work together toward bringing up next-generation computer engineers and data scientists.”

Kandemir is an ICDS associate and has been a member of the institute’s faculty council since it formed in 2020.

A faculty member at Penn State since 1999, Kandemir’s research interests include optimizing compilers, runtime systems, mobile systems, embedded systems, I/O and high performance storage, non-volatile processors and memory and public cloud trends. His work has been supported by the National Science Foundation (NSF), Department of Energy, Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, Intel and Microsoft. He received the NSF CAREER award in 2000 and was named an Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers fellow in 2016. In 2018, Kandemir received the Penn State Engineering Society’s Outstanding Research Award.

Kandemir joins Guido Cervone, professor of geography and meteorology and atmospheric science, and Vasant Honavar, Huck Chair in Biomedical Data Sciences and Artificial Intelligence, as ICDS associate directors.

 

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