Computational Sustainability

CENTER FOR ALGORITHMIC SYSTEMS

MSc Programme ``Computing Science" 2012-2013

Computational Sustainability (MCS)

Lecturers:

Dr.ir Marjan van den Akker
Prof.dr.ir Han la Poutré
Prof.dr Jan van Leeuwen
Email: <mcs.seminar-- at -- gmail.com>, tel. 030-2533989/4001, BBL office 505/508. (The email adress will only be active at the time of the seminar.)

Seminar overview

Computational sustainability deals with the computational models and techniques that can help reduce the use of (scarce) natural resources, in all domains of activity where economic and environmental factors meet. It is a new branch of computer science, highly intertwined with other fields and full of diverse developments that are gradually revealing the novel dimensions of the field.

The AAAI-13 conference distinguishes the following subareas in computational sustainability: natural resources and the environment, economics and human behavior, energy resources, human built systems and land use, and climate. In all cases, research concerns complex questions of modeling activities and ways of planning and decision making such that the use of natural resources and/or waste production are minimized.

In the seminar we will not deal with the political or policy issues in the domain of `sustainability', but focus entirely on (a selection of) the computational modelings and combinatorial optimization techniques that are developing in the field. Here, computer science and computational thinking make the difference.

The seminar will specifically focus on energy and ICT. We study algorithms and ICT for smart energy use, as well as energy reduction in ICT. The topics include the following:

Capacity planning in energy networks,
Operational planning in energy networks,
On-line energy markets,
E-vehicles,
Energy-constrained scheduling, and
Wireless sensor networks.

Class schedule

Seminar hours:
- Tuesday 13.15-15.00, in: BBL 075.
- Thursday 09.00-10.45, in: BBL 075.
First meeting: Tuesday April 23, 2013 (in: BBL 075).
Office hours: by appointment.
Present: present; some criteria: criteria.
Final exam: The grade will be based on the course work (see below).
Here is the weekly schedule.

Prerequisites

Students are required to have a good background in algorithmics, at the level of the MSc program Computing Science (also Technical AI or GMT). The seminar will require a good understanding of algorithmic modelling and optimization methods such as LP.

The seminar is part of the MSc program `Computing Science' and is to be taken after you have completed at least several of the regular courses in the program. If you have not, see the MSc-program advisor: you may not be admissable to this seminar yet.

Note. If there is considerable interest for the seminar, students may be grouped in two for the presentations part of the seminar requirement. Due to the seminar format, the total number of participants is limited to 20.

Text

The seminar is based on recent literature. The papers for study and presentation will be listed in the weekly schedule.

Additional material will be listed in the weekschedule as the seminar develops.

Course Work

Presentations/responding The seminar meets twice a week. After a few introductory lectures by the lecturers, students are expected to give presentations covering the assigned seminar material while others are assigned the task of `responder'. Students are expected to give at least two presentations each, and serve at least twice as responder to other presentations. Each presentation typically covers a 45-minute part of one seminar session, responding included. Responders should prepare two questions concerning the presented material and propose these questions at least one day before a session to the seminar leaders. The seminar will be in English unless all participating students are fluent in Dutch.)
Term paper Students are challenged to explore their topics in an active way. Towards the end of the seminar every participant must write a term paper (in English) of a special topic from the seminar domain and present an outline of it, typically based on recent research material.
Participation Students are expected to participate in an active way. Attendance is recorded. (Absence should be reported at <mcs.seminar-- at -- gmail.com>. The participation grade is lost when the seminar is missed four times or more.)