As we approach the Fall 2024 semester, we wanted to reflect on the last year of our events. TAMIDS hosted roughly 50 different seminars, workshops, and competitions, including our annual Student Data Challenge and our first annual Space Week! Our goal with all of our events is to promote research, education, and outreach in Texas A&M’s data science community and beyond. If you would like to collaborate on an event, seminar, or workshop, please contact Drew Casey (TAMIDS Assistant Director for Program Engagement) at drew.casey@tamu.edu. Below are some highlights from the past year.
2024 Student Data Challenge
Our annual data challenges aim to present real-world problems to teams of students and encourage creative solutions using actual datasets. This year’s theme was the impact of sea level rise. Eight teams were selected to present their work to our judges and over $9,000 in prizes were awarded to the winning teams. Thank you to Chevron and the Texas A&M Departments of Statistics and Electrical & Computer Engineering for sponsoring and participating!
Space Week
This year we held our first annual Space Week! This was a week-long event to introduce students to the roles of data science, machine learning, and artificial intelligence in space exploration. Each event had a different theme or topic of discussion including:
- Automation and AI in Deep Space
- Astronomers Using Data Science, AI, and Machine Learning Tools
- AI Creating Space Materials, Tools, and Crafts
- Tracking Space Junk
- Machine Learning in Astronaut Health
- From Earth to Mars: Observations in Biological and Physical Sciences
- The Internet (of Things) in Space
Thank you to the organizers, Dr. Julie Howe, Harrison Coker, and Dr. Manoranjan Majji, as well as the students in the AggieSat Laboratory for representing their student organization!
Machine Learning, AI, and Health Collaborations Workshop
This workshop brought together machine learning/AI researchers and researchers from the field of health and medicine to offer guidance, showcase available collaboration resources, and inspire joint applications for major grants. Participants had to opportunity to learn the current landscape of AI and health collaborations and discover strategies to foster connections. Thank you to the organizers, Drs. Nilanjana Laha and Paula Shireman, and the McFerrin Center for Entrepreneurship for allowing us to use their facilities.
Workshop on Digital Twins in Advanced Semiconductor Manufacturing
In response to President Biden enacting the bipartisan CHIPS and Science Act, allocating $52 billion to rejuvenate the U.S. semiconductor sector and bolster both economic and national security, this workshop aimed to discuss Texas A&M’s potential to be chosen as the location for a CHIPS Manufacturing USA Institute. The goal of this workshop was to identify collaborating researchers and organizations in the areas of digital twins and semiconductor manufacturing that could partner with Texas A&M, strategic measures at the university level to enhance Texas A&M’s capabilities, and the need for additional resources for research, education, training, or outreach that would enhance Texas A&M’s competitiveness for major funding in the area. Thank you to our partners at the Texas A&M Semiconductor Institute and the McFerrin Center for Entrepreneurship for allowing us to use their facilities!
Ph.D. Research Development Workshop
Dr. Jian Tao hosted a workshop for Ph.D. students from all disciplines to learn methods and tools of data science, machine learning, and artificial intelligence that they could take back to their departments and apply to their own ongoing research. Thank you to Prairie View A&M University and Texas Southern University for sponsoring this event!