I am pleased to announce that KAUST’s 2024 Winter Enrichment Program (WEP) will be chaired by Professor Xin Gao and co-chaired by Professor Michael Berumen. Next year’s WEP will run from January 7 to 18, 2024, with the theme of “Digital Adventure – the ride to the future”.
Xin Gao is a professor of Computer Science within KAUST’s Computer, Electrical and Mathematical Science and Engineering Division. He is also the Interim Director of the Computational Bioscience Research Center (CBRC) and the Deputy Director of the Smart Health Initiative (KSHI). Dr. Gao’s research lies at the intersection of computer science and biology. His work has two main focuses: 1) developing theory and methodology in the fields of machine learning and algorithms; and 2) solving key open problems in biological and medical fields through building computational models, developing machine-learning techniques, and designing effective and efficient algorithms. In particular, he aims to solve problems at various scales and resolutions, such as molecular sequence analysis, three-dimensional structure prediction, function annotation, systems biology, synthetic biology, and medical imaging, which ultimately lead to various applications in drug development, disease diagnosis and prognosis, and smart health.
Michael Berumen is a professor of Marine Science and Engineering within KAUST’s Biological and Environmental Science and Engineering Division. He is also the Director of the Red Sea Research Center. Dr. Berumen’s research interests are focused on coral reef ecology, including larval connectivity in coral reef fishes, movement ecology of marine organisms, and biodiversity and biogeography of coral reef ecosystems. These projects utilize techniques ranging from in-situ observations to comparative genomics. He is part of an international team developing techniques used to track the dispersal patterns of larval fish and he advises key stakeholders in making scientifically informed conservation decisions.
About WEP
WEP is an annual two-week program that creates a lively and engaging atmosphere, taking us away from our regular activities and bringing together the KAUST students, community, national and international visitors, and eminent speakers from Saudi Arabia and around the world. WEP’s success, as always, depends on the creativity of everyone here at KAUST, and will evolve from your proposal ideas selected by the WEP Committee, comprising faculty from all divisions and other representatives from the KAUST staff and community. The Call for Proposals for WEP 2024 will be sent out soon. We look forward to your creative ideas.
Please join me and the Office of Culture, Enrichment and Engagement in thanking Xin and Michael for leading WEP 2024. Larry Carin
KAUST Provost
#WEP2024 Digital Adventure – the ride to the future
January 7-18, 2024