Minicourse at Univ Bucharest

Update: The room is 220 (second floor) at the University of Mathematics. See you Thursday.

Original post:

On Jan 31 and Feb 1 (Thursday and Friday), I am giving a minicourse at the University of Bucharest. It extends far beyond my own research (rough topic is "geometry in theoretical CS"). I am hoping that it will provide a taste of what modern algorithmic research is like, as well as present some really cool algorithms.

The course begins at 3pm each day. The room will be announced here in a few days.

In good theory tradition, I hope you will also come to a beer on Thursday evening, after the course. Details to be arranged.

The language will be Romanian. See below for announcement:

Titlu: Perspective geometrice in dezvoltarea algoritmilor

Abstract:
Cum ajuta o constructie Cantor pentru cardinalitatea numerelor rationale la obtinerea unor structuri de date eficiente? De ce estimarea normelor in dimensiuni inalte este necesara la optimizarea cautarilor in baze de date? Cum pot progrese in intelegerea geometriilor ne-euclidiene sa ajute la constructia microprocesoarelor?

Perspectiva geometrica s-a dovedit din ce in ce mai utila in progresele recente in dezvoltarea algoritmilor. In acest curs, vom discuta cateva idei matematice reprezentative, si cativa algoritmi frumosi care se obtin.

Cursul este la nivel introductor si speram ca va contine idei interesante si pentru informaticieni care urasca matematica si pentru matematicieni care urasc informatica.

Travel Update

First of all, yes, I'm alive and rather well. :) Perhaps the biggestproblem is that I've been Net-deprived for about a month.

Thanks to all the people who have sent me worried email about the Kenya situation; all was ok for me, and please accept my appologies for not replying in time.

Here's a short list of what has happened. I promise to ellaborate infuture posts.

• Jinja, Uganda: some of the best rafting in the world, due to thetruly unique features of the White Nile.
• Semuliki Valley, Uganda: avoid the Ebola outbreak, visit the pigmies, see geysers, travel with 20-something people and 3 chicken on the back of a pick-up truck
• Christmas, Ugandan style in Kasese
• Queen Elizabeth National Park, Uganda: get mock-charged by a lion, break personal speed record for running 100m, calm down and go on jeep and boat safaris
• Sipi Falls, Uganda: get disgusted by Ugandan tourism industry, get arrested and exercise negotiation skills
• return to Western Kenya from Christmas break. Unknowingly wonder why buildings have been burned and there's nobody on the streets.
• hear horror stories from town (5-7 dead per night while we were there) and evacuation stories from Kisumu. Experience living withKikuiu refugees, no supplies, and 6 liters of gas between 4 cars.
• bribe a priest to convince bar owners to get out of their basements and sell me all beer they had. I cleaned the village, and got 27 bottles of beer (for 15 people), making for a great New Year's party.
• evacuate to Uganda. Soon thereafter, the farm was attacked due to the Kikuiu refugees there. I'm now facing several weeks of forced vacation -- a very weird feeling.
• find our way across Uganda to Tanzania, in the middle of an economic collapse (no supplies passing from Kenya).
• cross Lake Victoria on ferry. A boat is never ever sold out in Africa; the question is the bribe needed to get on.
• meet an American drug dealer, vacationing in Africa. See him get arrested while he's trying to buy something for own consumption, and hear how he talked his way out in 4 hours.
• climb Mt Kilimanjaro! Be the first on top that morning, only to see your guide start to struggle with headaches and dizziness. Then go into hypothermic shock yourself; spend some time shivering on the bottom ofa cave, as you remark that you have lost all sensation and control in your arms. Fortunately all ended up well.
• for the rest of the forced vacation, I am in Zanzibar, where everything is peaceful and touristy. The Indian Ocean is a fabulous underwater experience.

Well alright, everything is almost peaceful. I collided with a Sea Urchin, and about 2 dozen needles penetrated my foot and broke in there. It made for some pain and a numb leg for a day.

Not to waste the time here, I decided to go back to school, in particular scuba-diving school. The dives are truly wonderful.

Give me a job!

At long last, my job application is done.

The file contains CV, research and teaching statements. If you're in a research lab, ignore any mention of how I like to teach ;)

Travel pictures (2): Kakamega Rainforest

Look at me, I can fly!

Pensative blue monkey:

Another blue monkey:

The eternal fight for food (the monkey climbed on Mira, bit her hand, and got the banana -- but I didn't quite have time to set up for the photo):

Black and white Colobus monkey:
The red-tail monkey:

Romanians are close descendents of monkeys:


I have a big telelens:

Many many ants:

Travel pictures (1): Kenya life

The dead was a rich man, he could afford a coffin. (I am told poor people pick their dead from the hospital wrapped in a mattress).

I live in the Romanian hut on the volunteer camp:

The medical clinic, and "the mobile clinic" (the van):

Inside the clinic: Dr. Mira and assisting clinical officer Belinda.

Medicine, Kenyan style (writing on the first jug: "Paracetamol")

On most days, the mobile clinic travels to remote villages to see people there. They set up in local churces, such as the following Catholic church:

If they are lucky, the curch has a separate room which becomes "the examination room":

Non-post

I made it to the Internet in town after a 10km walk. As Piotr had so wisely predicted, I am now a bit tired and not really feeling like writing a blog post. :)

Instead, let me point you to a recent comment by Kamal Jain (addressing my post about his talk), which is long enough to serve as a blogpost in itself :) Reply on that thread if you want to say something.

Away

An excellent tradition in the US academic world is the sabbatical: roughly every 6 years, you take a year off (with some pay). People typically travel around the world, spend some time at other universities, interact with industry etc. I think this is a great idea for maintaining your creativity and breadth, and it's a shame that companies which require serious thinking don't have a similar benefit.

In my own case, I have started doing research about 5 and a half years ago. And, the eager person that I am, I decided to take a sabbatical a bit early. Of course, since I'm still on MIT's payroll as a student, this is a bit unofficial :) But the basic idea is the same.

This is mostly plan-as-you-go, but here's the rough idea:

• first week of December: London.
• 6 weeks in a rural location in East Kenya, with a small detour to do white-water rafting in Uganda (at the source of the Nile)
• 1+ weeks climbing Kilimanjaro and taking a safari (Tanzania).
• 3 weeks in Romania (yes, I will gladly give talks!)
  
• 1 week in Dagstuhl (session on data structures)

After that I'm coming back to the US to hopefully interview for some faculty / research-lab positions. In the summer, I plan to go to some other exotic locations and write my thesis.

My main goals on this trip are to (1) relax and enjoy the life experience, (2) think about some really long-shot problems, (3) think about some diverse fields of research that I have not considered before. I feel a great danger for researchers is to get stuck improving a field that they have revolutionized earlier. One needs to spend time targeted at starting new revolutions, not on your old business-as-usual research.

So, going with the plan, I have spent the past week in London, minding the gap and trying not to get killed by all those maniacs driving on the wrong side of the road. (This skill proves useful, since they are also at it in Kenya.) London is a nice city, but I feel it has lost some of the European charm that I find in many cities on the continent. Or maybe I'm desensitized by prolonged exposure to American culture, a close descendant of the British culture.

The most durable thing about visiting London is the hole in your wallet. Roughly speaking, all prices look like the right number, except that they have this funny pound sign instead of "$". With an exchange rate of $2.2 for a pound, it feels like your pay-check comes from a third-world country. Unfortunately, dark days seem to lie ahead for all of us relying on this collapsing economy...

Today, I am in Nairobi catching up with things, and tomorrow I will be enjoying a 9-hour bus ride to the other end of Kenya. I will try to post once in a while depending on Internet connectivity (they say there's a post office with an Internet connection, at a convenient 10-mile run). But of course, if I happen to solve P vs NP I will make an effort to post about it.