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News 2004 spring (old)
Computer Science Newsletter
Spring, 2008
Samford Hosts BACHE REU Symposium
In November the Department of Mathematics and Computer Science hosted the annual research presentations for students who participated this past Summer in the National Science Foundation sponsored BACHE Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) program. Dr. Allan Dobbins of the Vision Science Research Center & Department of Biomedical Engineering at The University of Alabama at Birmingham delivered the keynote address on Perceptual Grouping of Metastable Objects. The following students gave presentations on their Summer research projects:
Clark Weber (Birmingham Southern College; mentor: Dr. Marietta Cameron, BSC)
Image Reconstruction Using Computer Tomography
Bradley Whited (Samford University; mentor: Dr. Brian Toone, Samford)
Online Handwriting Recognition
Amos Smith (University of Alabama at Birmingham; mentor: Dr. Ken Sloan, UAB)
Coding by Voice with Alice
Blake McDaniel (Birmingham Southern College; mentor: Dr. Ken Sloan, UAB)
Solving Sudoku Logically
Greg Brazda and Ben Dennis (Samford University; mentor: Dr. Steve Donaldson, Samford)
Cognitive Mapping and Navigation in Artificial SystemsSamford Computer Science Students Win First Place at Gatlinburg Conference
Samford Computer Science faculty members Steve Donaldson, Brian Toone, and Greg Kawell, together with students Ben Dennis, Greg Brazda, Alex Karaman, and Jay Knox attended the 2007 Fall Conference of the Mid-Southeast Chapter of the ACM, held in Gatlinburg, TN.
Computer Science students Ben Dennis and Greg Brazda won first place in their track for their presentation Cognitive Mapping and Artificial Systems.
Computer Science faculty members gave the following professional presentations:
Dr. Donaldson: Modeling Paradigm Blindness
Dr. Toone: Designing a Professor’s BlogNew Cognitive Science Scholarship
The Department of Mathematics and Computer Science is pleased to announce the creation of a new scholarship to support students interested in interdisciplinary studies in Cognitive Science. Initial funds for this scholarship were provided by Dr. and Mrs. Frank Donaldson. Students receiving this scholarship can select their own major but will take a prescribed set of courses in Computer Science, Psychology, Biology, and Philosophy. For more details contact Dr. Donaldson at sfdonald@samford.edu.
Scholarships in Computational Biology
This past Fall, Samford welcomed the first group of students receiving scholarships under the new Clark Scholarship in Computational Biology program. Initial funds for this scholarship were provided by Dr. and Mrs. Howard Clark and are used to support students who are interested in interdisciplinary studies that unite insights from Computer Science and Biology. Entering students were hosted early in the Fall semester by Dr. Donaldson (Computer Science) and Dr. Elizabeth Dobbins (Biology) for a “get-acquainted” dinner at the Donaldson’s home.
Pictured (from left to right) are: Seated: Dr. Dobbins, Spann, Ashley (Douglasville, GA), Dzugan, Laura (Corbin, KY), Ames, Jordan ( Huntsville, AL), Hardin, Kara ( Knoxville, TN). Standing: Witcher, Adam (Cullman, AL), Howell, Jared (Lake View, AL), Moore, Josh ( Birmingham, AL), Cope, Scott (Juliette, GA), Zeiger Jonathan ( Indonesia), Dr. Donaldson. Not pictured: McGee, Cody ( Chattanooga, TN), Nammour, Collette (Spring, TX).
Later in the semester students met the Clarks at a special luncheon in the Science Center.
For scholarship details, click here. For an application (for prospective students), click here.
Out and About
Dr. Donaldson joined Dr Bill Collins (Political Science) and Dr. Fisher Humphreys (Divinity) for a panel presentation and discussion entitled The Einstein Dilemmas—Then and Now. This was one of the preliminary events leading up to the Fall Davis Lecture presentation on “Einstein’s Creativity” by Walter Isaacson, author of the bestselling biography Einstein.
The panel topics were:
The trouble with paradigms
Dr. Steve Donaldson, Department of Math and Computer Science
Free will in a deterministic universe
Dr. Fisher Humphreys, Beeson Divinity School
What nature really tells us
Dr. Bill Collins, Political Science Department
Dr. Donaldson presented a professional development seminar in November for teachers in the Homewood City School system. The title of his presentation was Chance, Determinism, and Life’s Deep Questions.
During the Jan-term time slot, Mr. Kawell conducted two special one-week training classes in Java for professional members of the Birmingham Large Users Group.
Dr. Donaldson gave a talk, Why God Can Play Dice with the World (and Win Every Time) to the Shades Mountain Christian School chapter of Mu Alpha Theta in February.
Recent Computer Science graduates Laurel Matherly, Daniel Mills, William Ellis, and Jason Wilson attended a special ACM event during the Fall to share their new professional and graduate school experiences with current Computer Science majors.
Bethany Carroll is currently doing a Computer Science internship with Southern Progress Corporation.
Computer Science faculty help with Habitat for Humanity House in December
BACHE Research Scholarship Applications Now Being Accepted
The Birmingham-Area Consortium of Higher Education (BACHE) Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) Scholars in Computer Science program offers research opportunities for students attending BACHE institutions. This program is funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) and provides the opportunity for selected students to work closely with a faculty mentor on a project selected from a variety of computing disciplines. Students receive a stipend plus housing and meals during the Summer phase of their work, which includes hands-on research experiences, weekly presentations, and training in research and presentation skills. Participating institutions currently include Birmingham-Southern College, Miles College, The University of Alabama in Birmingham, and Samford University.
We are now accepting applications for research stipends for Summer, 2008 for students interested in being part of the National Science Foundation funded BACHE (Birmingham Consortium for Higher Education) REU (Research Experiences for Undergraduates) program. Contact Dr. Steve Donaldson (sfdonald@samford.edu) or Dr. Brian Toone (brtoone@samford).
Graduate Spotlight
Laurel Matherly graduated with a double major in Computer Science and Mathematics in May, 2007 and is employed by Penta Research Incorporated in Huntsville, AL. Laurel and her team are currently working on a project for Boeing, developing a simulation of the ground-based missile defense system.
Upcoming Events…
Mr. Kawell will be taking several trips to Perry County in the Spring of 2008 to assist local high schools with their technology needs. The dates for these trips will be posted soon. Contact him if you are interested in participating in this service project.