Ashwin Ram
Encyclopedia
Dr. Ashwin Ram is an Associate Professor
in the School of Interactive Computing
in the College of Computing of the Georgia Institute of Technology
, an Associate Professor of Cognitive Science
, an Adjunct Professor in the School of Psychology, and an Adjunct Professor in Department of Math & Computer Science
at Emory University. He is the Director of Georgia Tech's Cognitive Computing Lab. He has founded two Georgia Tech spinoffs, Enkia Corporation www.enkia.com, an artificial intelligence software company, and Inquus Corporation, an e-learning company.
.
Dr. Ram received his B.Tech. in Electrical Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology
, New Delhi, in 1982, and his M.S. in Computer Science from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 1984. He received his Ph.D. degree from Yale University
for his dissertation on "Question-Driven Understanding: An Integrated Theory of Story Understanding, Memory, and Learning" in 1989. Dr. Ram was married to Preetha Ram in 1984. They live in Palo Alto with their three children, Nikhil, Maya, and Naveen.
and cognitive science
. His current projects focus on AI for computer games and virtual worlds, healthcare informatics, and educational technologies. The research emphasis is on knowledge-based machine learning, case-based reasoning, cognitive modeling, and natural language processing. He has more than 100 research publications in these areas.
He is a co-editor of a book on Goal-Driven Learning and a book on Understanding Language Understanding: Computational Models of Reading, both published by MIT Press. He is a member of numerous academic journals and professional societies, including AAAI
, and CogSCI
.
Dr. Ram is currently conference co-chair of the Fourth Indian International Conference on Artificial Intelligence IICAI in Tumkur, India in 2009. He was program co-chair of the International Conference on Artificial Intelligence and Pattern Recognition AIPR in 2008, conference co-chair of the Third International Conference on the Learning Sciences ICLS in 1998, and program chair and conference co-chair of the Sixteenth Annual Conference of the Cognitive Science Society CogSci held at Georgia Tech in 1994.
Dr. Ram is a member of the GVU Center
, the Human-Centered Computing
program, the Intelligent Systems and Cognitive Science groups, the Robotics & Intelligent Machines center, and the Health Systems Institute. Dr. Ram's research has been supported by the National Science Foundation
, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency
, the Advanced Research and Development Activity, the Air Force Office of Sponsored Research, the Army Research Lab, the Office of Naval Research, the EduTech Institute, Digital Equipment Corporation
, Yamaha Motor Corporation, and the Georgia Research Alliance. He has received numerous awards, including College of Computing “gus” Baird Outstanding Faculty Teaching Award, the College of Computing Outstanding Junior Faculty Research Award, a National Science Foundation research initiation award, a President of India’s Gold Medal for best undergraduate performance at IIT Delhi, and the Rajiv Bambawale award for best undergraduate final project at IIT Delhi.
Professor
A professor is a scholarly teacher; the precise meaning of the term varies by country. Literally, professor derives from Latin as a "person who professes" being usually an expert in arts or sciences; a teacher of high rank...
in the School of Interactive Computing
Interactive computing
In computer science, interactive computing refers to software which accepts input from humans — for example, data or commands. Interactive software includes most popular programs, such as word processors or spreadsheet applications. By comparison, noninteractive programs operate without human...
in the College of Computing of the Georgia Institute of Technology
Georgia Institute of Technology
The Georgia Institute of Technology is a public research university in Atlanta, Georgia, in the United States...
, an Associate Professor of Cognitive Science
Cognitive science
Cognitive science is the interdisciplinary scientific study of mind and its processes. It examines what cognition is, what it does and how it works. It includes research on how information is processed , represented, and transformed in behaviour, nervous system or machine...
, an Adjunct Professor in the School of Psychology, and an Adjunct Professor in Department of Math & Computer Science
Computer science
Computer science or computing science is the study of the theoretical foundations of information and computation and of practical techniques for their implementation and application in computer systems...
at Emory University. He is the Director of Georgia Tech's Cognitive Computing Lab. He has founded two Georgia Tech spinoffs, Enkia Corporation www.enkia.com, an artificial intelligence software company, and Inquus Corporation, an e-learning company.
Personal life
Dr. Ram was born in New Delhi, India, on July 27, 1960. He is a great-grandson of Sir Ganga Ram and is the eldest of three children. He grew up in New Delhi with a brief stint in Bombay, and attended one of India's oldest boarding schools, Mayo CollegeMayo College
Mayo College is a public school founded by the 6th Earl of Mayo, who was Viceroy of India from 1869 to 1872.The school is located in Ajmer, in the state of Rajasthan, India....
.
Dr. Ram received his B.Tech. in Electrical Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology
Indian Institutes of Technology
The Indian Institutes of Technology are a group of autonomous engineering and technology-oriented institutes of higher education. The IITs are governed by the Institutes of Technology Act, 1961 which has declared them as “institutions of national importance”, and lays down their powers, duties,...
, New Delhi, in 1982, and his M.S. in Computer Science from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 1984. He received his Ph.D. degree from Yale University
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
for his dissertation on "Question-Driven Understanding: An Integrated Theory of Story Understanding, Memory, and Learning" in 1989. Dr. Ram was married to Preetha Ram in 1984. They live in Palo Alto with their three children, Nikhil, Maya, and Naveen.
Georgia Tech
Dr. Ram currently directs the Cognitive Computing Lab (CCL) at Georgia Tech.Dr. Ram's research interests lie in the areas of artificial intelligenceArtificial intelligence
Artificial intelligence is the intelligence of machines and the branch of computer science that aims to create it. AI textbooks define the field as "the study and design of intelligent agents" where an intelligent agent is a system that perceives its environment and takes actions that maximize its...
and cognitive science
Cognitive science
Cognitive science is the interdisciplinary scientific study of mind and its processes. It examines what cognition is, what it does and how it works. It includes research on how information is processed , represented, and transformed in behaviour, nervous system or machine...
. His current projects focus on AI for computer games and virtual worlds, healthcare informatics, and educational technologies. The research emphasis is on knowledge-based machine learning, case-based reasoning, cognitive modeling, and natural language processing. He has more than 100 research publications in these areas.
He is a co-editor of a book on Goal-Driven Learning and a book on Understanding Language Understanding: Computational Models of Reading, both published by MIT Press. He is a member of numerous academic journals and professional societies, including AAAI
Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence
The Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence or AAAI is an international, nonprofit, scientific society devoted to advancing the scientific understanding of the mechanisms underlying thought and intelligent behavior and their embodiment in machines...
, and CogSCI
Cognitive science
Cognitive science is the interdisciplinary scientific study of mind and its processes. It examines what cognition is, what it does and how it works. It includes research on how information is processed , represented, and transformed in behaviour, nervous system or machine...
.
Dr. Ram is currently conference co-chair of the Fourth Indian International Conference on Artificial Intelligence IICAI in Tumkur, India in 2009. He was program co-chair of the International Conference on Artificial Intelligence and Pattern Recognition AIPR in 2008, conference co-chair of the Third International Conference on the Learning Sciences ICLS in 1998, and program chair and conference co-chair of the Sixteenth Annual Conference of the Cognitive Science Society CogSci held at Georgia Tech in 1994.
Dr. Ram is a member of the GVU Center
GVU Center
The GVU Center at Georgia Tech is an interdisciplinary research center located near Technology Square in Atlanta, Georgia, United States, and affiliated with the Georgia Institute of Technology. It was founded by James D. Foley, the Center's first director, on October 15, 1992. According to U.S....
, the Human-Centered Computing
Human-centered computing
Human-centered computing is an emerging, interdisciplinary academic field broadly concerned with computing and computational artifacts as they relate to the human condition...
program, the Intelligent Systems and Cognitive Science groups, the Robotics & Intelligent Machines center, and the Health Systems Institute. Dr. Ram's research has been supported by the National Science Foundation
National Science Foundation
The National Science Foundation is a United States government agency that supports fundamental research and education in all the non-medical fields of science and engineering. Its medical counterpart is the National Institutes of Health...
, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency
Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency is an agency of the United States Department of Defense responsible for the development of new technology for use by the military...
, the Advanced Research and Development Activity, the Air Force Office of Sponsored Research, the Army Research Lab, the Office of Naval Research, the EduTech Institute, Digital Equipment Corporation
Digital Equipment Corporation
Digital Equipment Corporation was a major American company in the computer industry and a leading vendor of computer systems, software and peripherals from the 1960s to the 1990s...
, Yamaha Motor Corporation, and the Georgia Research Alliance. He has received numerous awards, including College of Computing “gus” Baird Outstanding Faculty Teaching Award, the College of Computing Outstanding Junior Faculty Research Award, a National Science Foundation research initiation award, a President of India’s Gold Medal for best undergraduate performance at IIT Delhi, and the Rajiv Bambawale award for best undergraduate final project at IIT Delhi.
Selected publications
- Understanding Language Understanding: Computional Models of Reading with Kenneth Moorman (eds.). MIT Press, 1998
- Goal-Driven Learning with David Leake (eds.) MIT Press/Bradford Books, 1995