Department of Computer Science

David Naumann, professor and chair of the Department of Computer Science, has received a $588,353 grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) for his project titled “SaTC: CORE: Small: Auto-Active Hyperproperty Verification for Security.”

In this project, verification refers to proof of software correctness with respect to security and privacy requirements that are precisely specified using mathematical models of environments that include active adversaries. Auto-active verification leverages automated theorem provers to enable proving to be integrated into software development tools and processes. Auto-active verification is increasingly used in industry, but so far it has been limited to functional requirements that can be specified in terms of individual executions. Information-flow requirements must be specified in terms of relationships between multiple executions, called relational properties or hyperproperties. Naumann’s project aims to develop theory and techniques to enable auto-active verification of relational properties.

The project will develop logics and methods for reasoning about refinement, equivalence and hyperproperties. The theoretical advances will be realized in prototype tools used to evaluate usability and effectiveness. Naumann believes this research has the potential to transform computing practice by supporting accountability of system designers and builders through mathematically precise specifications and machine-checked proofs of security and privacy. This should improve software security and quality assurance. Equivalence verification may lessen the risk that code improvements and big fixes will introduce new vulnerabilities or adversely affect system functionality.

Tian Han, assistant professor of computer science at Stevens, recently received a five-year, $599,729 grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) CAREER Award program to explore generative AI.

The Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Program is a foundation-wide activity that offers the National Science Foundation's most prestigious awards in support of early-career faculty who have the potential to serve as academic role models in research and education.

Han aims to overcome three of the most significant hurdles regarding generative AI, which leverages advanced learning models to generate content such as articulate text and realistic images and videos.

“First, we will work to extract useful information from high-dimensional data such as images or text to learn structured knowledge for smart generative AI models,” said Han. “Then we will create controllable models that allow users to adjust both the models and the results, such as tweaking the intensity of a smile or adding a hat in a photo. Finally, we will design general, flexible frameworks that can simultaneously process data from different domains, such as text and images, to deliver consistent content.”

The grant also includes funding to train undergraduate, graduate and Ph.D. students. Research topics and findings will be used to further strengthen the AI curriculum at Stevens to continue to help lead the future of generative AI.

The Department of Computer Science’s Broadening Participation in Computing (BPC) plan has been verified by the BPCnet Resource Portal. The BPCnet Resource Portal is an initiative by the Computing Research Association with support from the National Science Foundation's Directorate for Computer and Information Science and Engineering.

Effective January 2024 through January 2026, the BPC plan seeks to improve diversity within the department through active recruiting and outreach efforts. In accordance with regional demographics, the plan focuses especially on increasing three historically underrepresented groups: women, Black and Hispanic students and faculty.

Additional goals include increasing academic, career and professional development activities and supports for historically underrepresented groups; exploring curricular and pedagogical changes to better support historically underrepresented students; and implementing processes for improving transparency, equity and addressing bias.

Under the leadership of Professor and Department Chair Dave Naumann, the Department of Computer Science is the first department at Stevens to receive BPC approval. Of Stevens’ approximately 9000 students, roughly 20% are pursuing degrees in the computer science department.

Teaching Assistant Professor Erisa Terolli led the plan's creation. She is also a member of the Stevens Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) Committee.

Samantha Kleinberg, an associate professor in the Department of Computer Science, has been appointed as the Farber Chair Associate Professor for a three-year term, effective September 1, 2023. This appointment has been made in recognition of Kleinberg’s excellence in scholarly activities and quality of teaching, as well as her significant contributions to Stevens and her field of expertise.

Since joining Stevens in 2012, Kleinberg has developed an international reputation as a leader in interdisciplinary work on causality, health and decision-making, as evidenced by 60 invited talks (21 international in nine countries), $8 million in funding as PI, two international collaborations, a best paper award, two books and an interdisciplinary edited volume. Her active research awards include three National Institute of Health grants and three National Science Foundation grants.

Her research uses computational methods to address problems in health, and it aims to advance human health by helping doctors and patients make better choices with data. In addition to the core impact on society, this has led to impact in other fields such as philosophy, psychology and biomedical sciences.