Global and Robust Optimization for Engineering Design

 Berk Öztürk, Global and Robust Optimization for Engineering Design, Ph.D. Thesis, MIT, 2022. (thesis, code, talk)

There is a need to adapt and improve conceptual design methods through better optimization, in order to address the challenge of designing future engineered systems. Aerospace design problems are tightly-coupled optimization problems, and require all-at-once solution methods for design consensus and global optimality. Although the literature on design optimization has been growing, it has generally focused on the use of gradient-based and heuristic methods, which are limited to local and low-dimensional optimization respectively. There are significant benefits to leveraging structured mathematical optimization instead. Mathematical optimization provides guarantees of solution quality, and is fast, scalable, and compatible with using physics-based models in design. More importantly perhaps, there has been a wave of research in optimization and machine learning that provides new opportunities to improve the engineering design process. This thesis capitalizes on two such opportunities.

Tackling Climate Change with Machine Learning

David Rolnic et al., Tackling Climate Change with Machine Learning, ACM Computing Surveys, Volume 55, Issue 2, March 2023, Article No.: 42, pp 1–96, https://doi.org/10.1145/3485128

Climate change is one of the greatest challenges facing humanity, and we, as machine learning (ML) experts, may wonder how we can help. Here we describe how ML can be a powerful tool in reducing greenhouse gas emissions and helping society adapt to a changing climate. From smart grids to disaster management, we identify high impact problems where existing gaps can be filled by ML, in collaboration with other fields. Our recommendations encompass exciting research questions as well as promising business opportunities. We call on the ML community to join the global effort against climate change.

from lab bench to public office and back

Chen Chien-jen, Taiwan’s pandemic vice-president — from lab bench to public office and back, Nature 603, 203 (2022)

Two years on from the World Health Organization’s official declaration of the pandemic, I’ve been thinking about lessons I’ve learnt toggling between science and public service. I think all researchers — from bench scientists to physicists to computational social scientists — might find this exercise useful. Government advisers, too.

Principles for Dealing with the Changing World Order by Ray Dalio

 Principles for Dealing with the Changing World Order by Ray Dalio

To make money, study maths or economics at a top university

 Economist, To make money, study maths or economics at a top university, Nov 26th, 2019.