Covert and Overt: How Ben Ami Lipetz and Colleagues Highlighted the Connection Between National Security Intelligence and Information Science
This panel features a discussion for graduate students about the topics and themes of the 2005 book Covert and Overt: Recollecting and Connecting Intelligence Service and Information Science, edited by Ben-Ami Lipetz and others.
It will cover the role that early military intelligence activities played in shaping information science, intelligence collection, and intelligence analysis as information science topics, and how information science might help address new and emerging intelligence topics, like cybersecurity and open-source intelligence (OSINT).
Panelists:
- Dr. Brian Nussbaum
- Biosketch
- Dr. Brian Nussbaum is an associate professor of Emergency Management and Homeland Security (EMHS) in the College of Emergency Preparedness, Homeland Security and Cybersecurity at the University at Albany.
- Dr. Nussbaum’s research focuses on cybersecurity, terrorism, homeland security, intelligence analysis, and critical infrastructure protection.
- Dr. Nussbaum formerly served as a senior intelligence analyst with the New York State Office of Counter-Terrorism, where he oversaw terrorism and cyber threat analysis. He also served as a subject matter expert on international terrorism and helped to create NYSIC’s Cyber Analysis Unit.
- Additionally, he was the first-ever Visiting Professor of Homeland Defense in the Strategic Wargaming Division at the Center for Strategic Leadership and Development, United States Army War College. As such, he has experience in wargaming, simulation, and professional education incorporating interactive and active-learning techniques.
- Education
- PhD, Political Science, University at Albany
- MA, Political Science, University at Albany
- BA, Political Science, Binghamton University
- Dr. Stephen Coulthart
- Biosketch
- Dr. Stephen Coulthart is an associate professor and director of the Open Source Intelligence Lab in the College of Emergency Preparedness, Homeland Security, and Cybersecurity at the University at Albany. He is the lead editor of Researching National Security Intelligence: Multidisciplinary Approaches.
- Dr. Coulthart’s teaching and scholarship are at the intersection of intelligence studies and information science. He seeks to understand how national and homeland security organizations improve data analysis to support more informed decision-making. He has examined this topic through the evaluation of structured analytic techniques, human capital development, technology implementation, and by examining the rise of open source intelligence (OSINT). His research has been published in high-impact factor journals like International Affairs, Journal of Conflict Resolution, and Public Administration Review.
- As an academic research associate with the Norwegian Intelligence School and a former Truman National Security Project fellow, Dr. Coulthart has also delivered lectures and training at the CIA, the U.S. State Department, and the El Paso Intelligence Center, among others.
- Education
- PhD, Public and International Affairs, University of Pittsburgh
- MA, Diplomacy and International Relations, Seton Hall University
- MPA, Public Administration, Seton Hall University
- BA, Political Science & Public Justice, State University of New York at Oswego
AI Governance
Major risks exist in the form of bias, privacy infringement, and misuse of artificial intelligence. AI governance can address these issues through processes, standards, and guardrails to realize AI systems and tools that are safe, ethical, and respect human rights. This fosters innovation and builds trust.
To achieve this, collaborative efforts are required from stakeholders, including AI developers, users, policymakers, and ethicists, so that the principles of empathy, bias control, transparency, and accountability can be achieved.
The panelists will guide us through various mechanisms that can be used to ensure the current oversight mechanisms align AI behaviors with ethical standards and societal expectations, thereby mitigating potential adverse impacts in data privacy, algorithmic biases, and AI decision-making processes.
Panelists:
- Dr. Kayla Schwoerer
- Biosketch
- Dr. Kayla Schwoerer is an assistant professor in the Department of Public Administration and Policy at Rockefeller College of Public Affairs and Policy and the Director of the Governance & Digital Experience Lab at the University at Albany.
- Dr. Schwoerer research focuses broadly on the intersection of public and nonprofit management, science and technology policy, and democracy. She is interested in understanding and improving the ways that public and nonprofit organizations use data and evidence, design thinking, and digital technologies to solve problems and engage diverse communities.
- Education
- PhD, Public Administration, Rutgers University, Newark’s School of Public Affairs and Administration
- MPA, Arizona State University
- BA, Sociology, Texas Tech University
- Dr. Md Nour Hossain
- Biosketch
- Dr. Md Nour Hossain is an assistant professor in the Department of Information Sciences and Technology at the College of Emergency Preparedness, Homeland Security and Cybersecurity, University at Albany.
- As the leader of the CS Innovation Research Group, Dr. Hossain focuses on fostering CS education and interdisciplinary research in health sciences.
- With a passion for innovation and teaching, Dr. Hossain has extensive experience in diverse, multi-level classrooms and is dedicated to advancing education in Computer Science (CS) and Health Sciences.
- In addition to academic work, Dr. Hossain has co-founded a software company aimed at bridging the gap between industry and academia by promoting innovation and real-world applications of computing.
- Beyond academia and industry, Dr. Hossain is actively involved with the non-profit organization EUTB (eutb.ca), which provides financial assistance to underprivileged talents in Bangladesh, helping them continue their education.
- Education
- PhD, Software Engineering, McMaster University
- MS, Computer Science, Brock University
- BS, Computer Science and Engineering, Rajshahi University of Engineering and Technology
- Dr. Eric Stern
- Biosketch
- Dr. Eric Stern is a professor at the College of Emergency Preparedness, Homeland Security, and Cyber-Security at the University at Albany. He is also affiliated with the Swedish National Center for Crisis Management Research and Training at the Swedish Defense University (where he served as Director from 2004-2011) and the Disaster Research Center at the University of Delaware. He is currently serving as Editor-in-Chief of the Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Crisis Analysis.
- Dr. Stern has published extensively in the fields of crisis and emergency management, crisis communication, resilience, security studies, executive leadership, foreign policy analysis, and political psychology. Other key areas of interest and expertise include social media and crisis preparedness, post-crisis evaluation and learning, interactive education and instructional design, and case research/teaching methodologies.
- In addition to his scholarly work, Dr. Stern has collaborated closely with a wide range of US (e.g. Department of Homeland Security Science and Technology, FEMA, Coast Guard, and FBI) and foreign (e.g. UK, Sweden, Switzerland, Estonia, Slovenia, and South Korea among others) government agencies, the European Union, and the OECD on a wide range of applied research and educational.
- Education
- PhD, Political Science, Stockholm University
- BA, Government, Dartmouth College
Moderator:
- Dr. Phung Lai
- Biosketch
- Dr. Phung Lai’s research interests focus on trustworthy machine learning with the core of privacy and security, spanning various applications, such as human sensing, mobile computing, social goods, natural language modeling, computer vision, finance, healthcare, data analysis, etc.
- Dr. Lai has authored many publications at leading venues, including AAAI, AISTATS, IEEE BigData, IEEE Transactions, etc. She is a recipient of the AAAI 2023 Distinguished Paper Award and a holder of several patents in privacy preservation in Natural Language Modeling. The NSF and industrial partners, including Adobe, Qualcomm, and Wells Fargo, have funded her work.
- Dr. Lai has extensive experience in collaborating with other research labs and working with industrial research partners, including the University of Florida, University of Michigan, University of Arkansas, Kent State University, Adobe Research, Qualcomm, etc. She has participated in several professional academic activities, e.g., a reviewer or external reviewer for many conferences and journals, and is also an active participant in some woman-in-tech activities, such as Women in IoT Workshop and Society of Women Engineers.
- Education
- PhD, Informatics, New Jersey Institute of Technology
- MS, Computer Science, Oregon State University
- BS, Electronics and Telecommunications, Danang University of Technology
Quantum Computing
Quantum information processing has become a huge interdisciplinary field at the intersection of both theoretical and experimental quantum physics, computer science, mathematics, and quantum engineering. Currently, we are experiencing industry-level quantum-computing maturity, affecting various aspects of life – healthcare, energy, finance, logistics, and public policy – with a rising adoption rate of this technology among industry leaders. However, there remain substantial challenges to the growth of quantum computing, from error correction and scalability to developing efficient algorithms and overcoming hardware limitations.
In this panel, the experts in quantum research will share their perspectives on the current development trajectory of quantum computing, as well as issues that need to be addressed. The panel aims to provide insights into the transformative power of quantum computing and discuss ways to harness this technology.
Panelists:
- Dr. Fabian Faulstich
- Biosketch
- Dr. Fabian Faulstich is an assistant professor of Mathematics at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, where he also holds the Eliza Ricketts Foundation Career Development Chair.
- Dr. Faulstich’s research focus is on the development and implementation of new numerical methods for quantum simulation and quantum embedding. More generally, he is interested in mathematical analysis and the development of electronic-structure methods in quantum chemistry and quantum computing. This involves the development, implementation, and mathematical analysis of cutting-edge numerical methods on classical as well as quantum machines. His goal is to create solutions that are not only more efficient but also more accurate, thereby pushing the boundaries of our understanding and capabilities in tackling complex quantum systems.
- Education
- PhD, Chemistry & Applied Mathematics, University of Oslo
- MS, Mathematics, Technical University of Berlin
- BS, Physics, Technical University of Berlin
- BS, Mathematics, Technical University of Berlin
- Dr. Ekta Bhatia
- Biosketch
- Dr. Ekta Bhatia is a research scientist working on quantum technology in a 300 mm wafer-scale development at NY CREATES. She is also an adjunct assistant professor at University at Albany, State University of New York.
- Dr. Bhatia’s work spans from Josephson junctions, superconducting qubits, and superconducting resonators to materials for quantum technology in 300 mm wafer-scale development. Her research areas of interest include superconducting materials, devices, circuits, superconducting spintronics, and superconducting quantum computing. She is also the author of 16 publications in various journals - AIP, ACS, AVS, IOP, IEEE, Elsevier, etc. - and 2 pending US patents.
- Dr. Bhatia has previously worked with the University of Maryland, College Park on developing high-quality superconducting microwave resonator devices for Superconducting Quantum computation; University of Cambridge (UK) on Magnetic Josephson junction and SQUID devices for Superconducting Spintronics; and the National Institute of Science Education and Research (HBNI, India) on Material Growth and optimization for superconducting and ferromagnetic materials.
- Education
- PhD, Physics, National Institute of Science Education and Research
- MS, Physics, Kurukshetra University
- BS, Electronics, Physics, Mathematics, Kurukshetra University
Moderator:
- Dr. Carol Anne Germain
- Biosketch
- Dr. Carol Anne Germain is currently serving as the department chair of Information Sciences and Technology, teaching and advising undergraduate and graduate students in the College’s Informatics and Library Information Science programs. She is active in several professional library organizations, including the State University of New York Librarians Association and the New York Library Association. In addition, she is a trustee and 2nd vice president of the Albany County Historical Association.
- Dr. Germain’s research interests include the persistence of URLs in academic resources, Web usability, and information literacy.
- Prior to this appointment, she served as an Instruction and Collection Development Librarian at the University Libraries. In this role, she assisted members of the Information Science and Sociology Departments with their instruction, research, and collection needs. For two decades, she served as the libraries’ liaison to the Office of Access and Academic Enrichment and worked extensively with the University’s Educational Opportunity Program.
- Education
- PhD, Information Science, University at Albany
- Masters in Library Science, University at Albany
- BA, Information Science and Policy, University at Albany
- AA, Individual Studies, Hudson Valley Community College
Data Augmentation for Machine Learning
Data augmentation is the process of generating new, artificial data from existing data, primarily for training machine learning models. Data augmentation techniques are diverse and dependent upon specific needs and requirements of the data scientist, but they are all employed to address the issue of unbalanced data. Augmented data can help improve a model’s generalization to diverse datasets and greatly enhance performance in general. Given the benefits of data augmentation, questions remain regarding its actual effectiveness, as well as technical and ethical issues that may arise when handling this new type of data.
In this panel, three expert panelists, from different areas of research, will share their unique experience and perspectives on the utility of augmented data in their own fields. They will also discuss recent advancements in data augmentation, as well as prominent challenges that need tackling.
Panelists:
- Dr. Penghang Yin
- Biosketch
- Dr. Penghang Yin is an assistant professor in the Department of Mathematics and Statistics at the University at Albany.
- Dr. Yin research spans analytical and computational methods for signal and image processing, as well as machine learning. Currently, he focuses on advancing efficient inference and fine-tuning techniques for modern AI models, including large language models. His research has been supported by the National Science Foundation and SUNY-IBM AI Research Alliance.
- Education
- PhD, Applied Mathematics, University of California, Irvine
- BS, Mathematics, University of Science and Technology of China
- Dr. Charalampos Chelmis
- Biosketch
- Dr. Charalampos Chelmis is an assistant professor in the Department of Computer Science at the University at Albany, State University of New York, and Director of the Intelligent Big Data Analytics, Applications, and Systems (IDIAS) Lab.
- Dr. Chelmis’ research interests comprise Network Science and Big Data analytics. This includes characterization, detection, and prediction tasks on complex networks, and Big Data analytics for social good, with emphasis on scalable and accurate algorithms for massive, and high-dimensional datasets. In his research, he exploits tools from graph theory, complex networks, data mining, machine learning, and data integration. To date, he has authored more than 40 conference and journal papers.
- Before joining UAlbany, Dr. Chelmis was a senior research associate with the Department of Electrical Engineering at the University of Southern California.
- Education
- PhD, Computer Science, Viterbi School of Engineering, University of Southern California
- MS, Computer Science, Viterbi School of Engineering, University of Southern California
- BEng, Computer Engineering and Informatics, University of Patras
Moderator:
- Dr. M. Abdullah Canbaz
- Biosketch
- Dr. M. Abdullah Canbaz is the founder of Clever AI Technologies, a LegalTech startup that focuses on engineering human rights practices to tailor and expand tech solutions for human rights practice. Additionally, he will host the Keen AI Studio, a specialized laboratory within CEHC’s growing research ecosystem.
- Dr. Canbaz’s research is at the intersection of security and privacy in networking, network science, and applied data science.
- He has also taught at the School of Sciences at Indiana University Kokomo, Kokomo, Indiana.
- Education
- PhD, Computer Science and Engineering, University of Nevada, Reno
- MS, Computer and Information Science, Indiana University Purdue University Indianapolis
- MS, Computer Science and Information Technologies, International Burch University, Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina
- BS, Computer Engineering, Fatih University, Istanbul, Turkey
