Maria Papadopouli
Maria Papadopouli (Ph.D., Columbia University, 2002) Professor of Computer Science, University of Crete, Associate Faculty Member of the Institute of Informatics, Technology and Research Foundation, Archimedes Research Unit of the Athena Research Center, and Visiting Professor at Brigham Women's Hospital in Medicine Harvard School (2022-2025). Her research interests include the study of complex networks, applying algorithms from machine learning, graph theory, and information theory. She began her university career as an Assistant Professor at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (2002-2004), where she worked on the analysis and modeling of wireless networks. She has served as a Visiting Professor at KTI Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm (2011-2013), and as a Fulbright Scholar at CSAIL, MIT (2017). Since then her interests have expanded to include bio-informatics, and computational neuroscience, with a main interest in the analysis of neural networks of the brain (network neuroscience). Her research has been supported by awards (such as IBM Faculty Award, Google Faculty Award, Comcast Innovation Fund) and national and European programs (such as MSCA RISE and ELIDEK).
In Search of the Computational Principles of Neural Networks to Accomplish a less Artificial Intelligence
We will travel through the fascinating world of networks, presenting various architectures and their organization rules, and the effects of these architectures on the operation of networks. We will focus on the networks of the brain, specifically the visual cortex. How does the brain perform the complex computations that allow us to interact with the environment, how does it process and transfer information from one area to another, and how does its connectivity change when there is brain injury or disease? I will present results of our research concerning the neural computing and communication units of the architecture of the visual cortex, and we will discuss the basic principles governing the functional networks of the brain. Computer science and neuroscience come together to answer questions of great scientific, technological, and philosophical interest, inviting us to look at them boldly, creatively, and collaboratively.
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