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Research
Research interests
My research interests are focussed within the areas of evolutionary computation and multi-agent systems, or more generally, complex adaptive systems.
Evolutionary computation is the collective name for a range of machine learning algorithms in which a population of individual entities adapts according to the selection pressures exerted by an environment. Evolutionary algorithms are frequently used to tackle complex search and optimization problems.
Multi-agent systems consist of a population of interacting autonomous agents. Such systems, can be used to solve problems that are difficult or impossible for an individual agent to solve. More generally, multi-agent systems can be used to model both natural and artificial systems.
Typically, research projects undertaken incorporate a combination of theoretical inquiry, computational modelling and empirical study using evolutionary-based multi-agent systems.
Specific application domains investigated include: biologically inspired search and optimization techniques (eg. parallel evolutionary algorithms using Cloud computing deployment models); genetic-based machine learning (eg. classifier systems); the computational modelling of biological systems (eg. renal physiology; population ecology); social systems (eg. cultural dynamics; the evolution of cooperation in multi-player games); and economic systems (eg. double auction mechanisms; adaptive trading agents);
Current research projects include:
- Evolutionary computation
- Multi-objective optimization - parallel and distributed models
- Evolutionary game theory - evolving cooperation in N player spatial games
- Evolutionary-based classifier systems for high dimensional problems
- Meta-learning models for algorithm performance
- Evolving networks - tracking algorithms; characterizing model dynamics
- Modelling of complex systems
- Computational kidney model - large scale multi nephron model (see the recent University of Melbourne News article
Our medical future)
- Computational social science - modelling cultural dynamics using agent-based models
- Investigating the dynamics of the common pool resource game using agent-based models
An up-to-date list of my publications describing outcomes for these projects (and previous projects) is now available.
My DBLP listing
(Computer Science Bibliography) is also available.
Grants
- University of Melbourne, Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health Science Grant, Co-evolutionary dynamics of cultural and social structure (with Prof Yoshi Kashima and Prof Garry Robins)
- ARC Discovery Grant, Evolutionary multi-objective algorithms for Global Grids
- University of Melbourne ECR Grant, Cooperation in multi-agent systems
- University of Melbourne ECR Grant, Multi-objective evolutionary algorithms
- CSU Community Grant, Adaptive multi-agent systems
- CSU Competitive Grant, Learning in multi-agent systems
- IEEE CEC Travel Grant
- GECCO Travel Grant
Research student supervision
- Current students
- Jens Pfau, PhD (co-supervised by Prof Liz Sonenberg)
- Mani Abedini, PhD
- Raymond Chiong, PhD
- Mario Andres Munoz, PhD (co-supervised by Prof Saman Halgamuge)
- Maryam Varmazyar, PhD (co-supervised by A/Prof Nick Haritos)
- Minh Van Nguyen, Masters --> PhD (co-supervised by Dr Rodolfo Garcia-Flores)
- Past / completed students
- Golriz Rezaei, PhD (co-supervised by Dr Shanika Karunasekera, completed 2011)
- Rob Moss, PhD (co-supervised by Dr Ed Kazmierczak, completed 2008)
- Md. Rafiul Hassan, PhD (co-supervised by A/Prof Baikunth Nath, completed 2007)
- Khaled Talukder, Masters (co-supervised by A/Prof Rajkumar Buyya, completed 2009)
- Nicole Ronald, Masters (co-supervised by Prof Leon Sterling, completed 2007)
- Jens Pfau, Masters project (co-supervised by Prof Liz Sonenberg, completed 2008)
- Harold Soh Soon Hong, Masters (completed 2006)
- Cherhan Foo, BSc(Hons)
- Kalyanaraman Kaesava Kshetrapalapuram, BSc(Hons)
- Marc Riella, BSc(Hons)
- Nathan Clapham, BSc(Hons)
I am always on the "look out" for new postgradute students. If you are interesting in one of the projects listed
above (or a related project in the evolutionary computation / multi-agent systems domains), and have strong programming and algorithms skills, please send me an email with your resume.
You should also consult the
Graduate Research Opportunities guide in the Melbourne School
of Engineering for scholarship and application information.
Research staff
- Dr Christian Veccholia, Research Fellow (working on Cloud computing deployment models 2008-2009)
- Dr Robert Stewart, Research Fellow (working on Multi-objective optimization 2007)
- Graeme Gange, Research Assistant (programming -- complex networks 2007)
- Harold Soh Soon Hong, Research Assistant (programming -- Multi-objective optimization 2006)
Professional Activites
- Journal reviewing
- Applied Soft Computing
- Evolutionary Intelligence
- Genetic Programming and Evolvable Machines
- IEEE Transactions on Evolutionary Computation
- IEEE Transactions on Systems, Man and Cybernetics, Part B
- Physica A: Statistical Mechanics
- Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society
- Soft Computing
- Program committees (conference series selected in the period 2000-2012)
- Australian Joint Conference on Artificial Intelligence
- Asia Pacific Conference on Complex Systems
- Asia Pacific Symposium on Intelligent and Evolutionary Systems
- ACM Genetic and Evolutionary Computation Conference
- IEEE Congress on Evolutionary Computation
- IEEE/ACM Intelligent Agent Technology
- International Conference on Simulated Evolution and Learning
- Conference organization
- IEEE Congress on Evolutionary Computation (CEC 2003), Tutorial Chair
- 7th International Conference on Simulated Evolution and Learning (SEAL 08), Program co-chair
- First Australasian Computational Intelligence Summer School (ACISS 2009), Program co-chair
Teaching
Subjects
At the University of Melbourne, my teaching responsibilities have included the following subjects:
- Current
- Previous
- COMP20005 Engineering Computation (2011)
- COMP30017 Operating Systems and Network Services (2011)
- COMP90051 Statistical and Evolutionary Learning (2011)
- 433-151 Introduction to Programming (Advanced) (2004-2005)
- 433-253 Algorithms and Data Structures (2005)
- 433-254 Software Design (2006-2008)
- 433-296 Engineering Computation (2009)
- 433-303 Artificial Intelligence (2008-2009)
- 433-443 Software Project Management (2007)
- 433-679 Evolutionary and Neural Computation (2009)
- 433-322 Operating Systems and Network Services (2010)
Teaching Administration
In 2005-2006, I was an active member of the Faculty of Engineering Learning, Innovation and Diversity Committee.
I have also been active in Department committees. In 2004-2005, I was a member of the Teaching Committee.
In 2006, I was a member of the Teaching Quality Committee.
In 2007-2009, I was member of the Undergraduate Programs Committee.
In the period 2004-2007, I was the coordinator of the
Tutor and Demonstrator Support (TADS) program
in the Department of Computer Science and Software Engineering.
The major objective of this program was to foster the development of quality teaching skills for
casual staff members - approximately 70 tutors and laboratory demonstrators per semester.
Research and Teaching Awards
Research
- Excellence in Research 2009, Department of Computer Science and Software Engineering, The University of Melbourne
- Research Excellence 2003, Vice-Chancellor's Team Award, CSU
Teaching
- Excellence in Teaching 2011, Department of Computer Science and Software Engineering, The University of Melbourne
- Teaching Excellence 2005, Faculty of Engineering, The University of Melbourne
- Excellence in Teaching 2004, Department of Computer Science and Software Engineering, The University of Melbourne