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| Farewells and triumphs |
Dear readers,
This year, we bid farewell to three of my esteemed colleagues. Professors Emo Welzl and Juraj Hromkovic have already retired as of January, and Professor Joachim Buhmann will retire at the end of July. However, before his retirement, Professor Buhmann will give his farewell lecture on 30 May 2024. More information on his upcoming lecture as well as a recording of Professor Hromkovic’s farewell lecture from 10 April is available in the events section. I extend my heartfelt appreciation to all three of them for their invaluable contributions to our department.
On a different note, the Geneva Cyber 9/12 Strategy Challenge unfolded on 4 and 5 April, with four student teams from ETH Zurich showcasing their prowess. One of them, team CyBerg, emerged as the winner of the competition. Many congratulations!
Keep up to date with what else is going on in our department in this edition of READ.ME.
Best regards,
Kenny Paterson
Department Head
Title image: CSNOW 30th anniversary event, 9 April 2024. Credit: CSNOW
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| Faculty and staff |
We extend a warm welcome to all new staff members who have joined our department in the last month. We look forward to working with you.
Our new staff
To the staff who are leaving us, we wish you the best of luck in your future careers and hope to work with you again someday. |
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| Olga Sorkine-Hornung leaves the Executive Board |
| After serving for over 8 years, Professor Olga Sorkine-Hornung has stepped down from the Executive Board of our department. She joined the board in 2014 and attended her last meeting at the end of March. Thank you for your contributions and your excellent work on the board, Olga! |
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Welcome, Marija Hess
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| Marija started working as a Financial Controller in the Department Administration at the beginning of April. Previously, she was working in a similar position for five years at D-MAVT. We hope you had a successful start this month, Marija! |
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Congratulations, Timon Gehr
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| Timon, who was a postdoc in the SRI Lab, has been promoted to established researcher this month. His research interests include programming languages, formal methods, program synthesis, artificial intelligence and quantum computing. Congratulations on this new role, Timon! |
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Farewell, Theodora Kontogianni
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| Theodora leaves the department at the end of the month, where she worked as a postdoc at the ETH AI Center with Prof. Siyu Tang. Her interests span computer vision, 3D vision, and interactive and continual learning. Good luck with your future endeavours, Theodora! |
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Farewell, Carl Allen
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| Postdoc Carl leaves D-INFK for École Normale Supérieure in Paris, where he will continue to develop a mathematical understanding of how successful machine learning methods work. He worked at the AI Center with Profs. Mrinmaya Sachan and Ryan Cotterell. We wish you all the best on your future career path, Carl! |
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| Prizes and awards |
Congratulations to our faculty, researchers and students who have won prizes, awards and fellowships for their work. We are proud of you and thank you for asserting our reputation.
Browse our award section |
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First place for ETH students at Cyber 9/12 Strategy Challenge
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| The annual Geneva Cyber 9/12 Strategy Challenge was held on 4 and 5 April 2024, where several teams put their cyber skills to the test. Among them were four teams from ETH Zurich, and one of them, team CyBerg, emerged as the winner. Congratulations! |
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QS World University Rankings by Subject
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| Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) unveiled its 2024 World University Rankings by Subject. ETH Zurich landed in the top spot with three subjects. Data Science and Artificial Intelligence ranked 7th and Computer Science and Information Systems 9th. |
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| Stories of the month |
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Decoding diversity
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Professor Kenny Paterson, CSNOW
In an interview with CSNOW, the head of our department Kenny Paterson talks about the experiences he made with diversity, how D-INFK might be getting better one step at a time and his hopes for ETH Zurich to extend diversity to more than just gender. |
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How fitness trackers can help people with MS
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| Postdoc Shkurta Gashi, Professors Christian Holz and Gunnar Rätsch
Together with colleagues from ETH Zurich, the University Hospital Zurich, and the University of Zurich, Shkurta Gashi has shown that fitness trackers and smartphones can provide reliable long-term data on how the disease multiple sclerosis is progressing. |
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Artificial augmented creativity
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| Adrian Christopher Notz
Artists working with code, hacking and new media have been around for a long time, but artificial intelligence is transforming the way in which art is made and experienced. Are we at the end of creativity as we know it? Adrian Christopher Notz from the ETH AI Center looks at the big picture in this blog post. |
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Computer science made accessible to over 10,000 children
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| Professor Juraj Hromkovic
After 20 remarkable years as a professor of computer science in our department, Juraj Hromkovic retired at the end of January. In this interview, he talks about his journey and the special sense of achievement he felt when it was announced that computer science would finally become a core subject in Swiss schools. |
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Knocking cloud security off its game
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Professor Shweta Shinde
Public cloud services employ special security technologies. However, Shweta Shinde and her Secure and Trustworthy Systems Group have identified problematic vulnerabilities in the server hardware used by two leading manufacturers of computer chips, AMD and Intel. |
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| New D-INFK spin-off |
Plug-and-play robots for material handling
Newly founded Flink Robotics is crafting cutting-edge software for next-generation robots to enable automation anywhere and for everyone. Professor Stelian Coros, doctoral student Simon Huber and former postdoc Moritz Geilinger are the co-founders of this spin-off. We wish you every success in this new venture! |
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| READ.ME survey |
Last month, we conducted a survey on our newsletter. Thank you to everyone who participated! We are grateful for your opinions and suggestions on how we can enhance our content in READ.ME. If you are interested in the results, we have put together a landing page with the key findings and insights.
Congratulations to our survey participant Manuel on winning the "sweet surprise", our EAT.ME cake! |
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| Tip of the month |
Meet the Ambitious & Driven
D-INFK Master's student Aniruddh Ramesh has launched an interview series that contains success stories of tech students, alumni and founders from across the world with the aim to inspire fellow students. It details their stories, including how they built their careers, the mistakes they made along the way and the advice they can give to the readers. As Aniruddh says, the best way to learn is from those who have already achieved great things. |
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| Upcoming events |
Farewell lecture: Lernst du noch oder nutzt du schon KI?, 30 May, 17.15–18.30, HG F 30
Professor Joachim Buhmann is giving his farewell lecture ahead of his retirement at the end of July. He has spent over 20 years teaching and researching at the Department of Computer Science. The subject of his farewell lecture is artificial intelligence and its use in learning environments.
Read more
Distinguished Colloquium: Prof. Nadarajah Asokan, 13 May
Nadarajah Asokan is a professor of computer science at the University of Waterloo in Canada. He will provide insight into his primary research theme, which is systems security. More information will follow soon in the ETH event calendar.
Art & Computer Science talk series: Inhabiting the Void – Virtuality as an Ability Beyond Technology, 15 May, 18.15–19.30, CAB G 11
The Lundahl & Seitl Studio will talk about experiences that allow to expand one's mind by targeting the senses in unusual ways. They utilise choreography and immersive spaces as well as virtual reality. This talk series promotes a better understanding of art and what computer science can look like.
Learn more
Entrepreneurial Backpack Series: The Art of Sales & Marketing for start-ups, 16 May, 18.00–19.00, PB Labs, RZ D floor
The guest of the second event of this series will be ETH alumnus and entrepreneur Flavio Rump (founder of DeinDeal, acquired by Ringier) to talk about sales and marketing for start-ups. There will be a networking apero after the expert talk.
Register here
ETH Respect programme: Live events
Mutual respect is essential for a productive and inclusive work environment. The Respect Programme offers a regularly updated selection of online tools and live events. These are the next talks and workshops:
Expert talk: Sexual harassment: Legal matters and useful information
Feedback. Feedforward. Retros: Im Team im Flow bleiben (only available in German)
Embracing failure: A path to success |
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Save the Date: The D-INFK Summer Olympics 2024
Get ready to celebrate! On 11 June, our annual staff party will take place again at CAB, this time with a Summer Olympics theme. Mark your calendars and get ready for an evening full of sports challenges, delicious food and refreshing drinks. Whether you're a seasoned athlete or a rookie spectator, there will be something for everyone. More information will be provided soon via e-mail. |
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| Past events |
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Quo vadis education in the age of automation
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After 20 years as a professor of computer science in our department, Juraj Hromkovic gave his farewell lecture on 10 April. Afterwards, an apéro provided the opportunity to congratulate and talk to Professor Hromkovic. The recording of the lecture is now available. Thank you for all your remarkable work, Juraj! |
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Informatiktage 2024
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Last month, the CAB opened its doors to showcase the world of computer science to a broad audience. Around 1,000 people attended a variety of workshops, guided tours and visited the open exhibition area. Relive the event and immerse yourself in the highlights of the open day in this new video and take a look at the pictures in the gallery. |
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Shaping the tomorrow of women in computer science
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| CSNOW celebrated its 30th anniversary on 9 April in the Dozentenfoyer. Lucia Terrengi, Mihaela van der Schaar and Sarah Springman (via video) gave interesting talks, discussing the role of women in computer science. The talks were followed by a panel discussion featuring Professor Olga Sorkine-Hornung and D-INFK students. |
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| Open positions and opportunities |
Cyber-Defence Campus: Scientific Project Manager Cyber wanted
Are you tech-savvy and interested in working for a NATO cyber defence research centre for three years in Estonia? You will help shape the future of cyber defence with the NATO Cooperative Cyber Defence Centre of Excellence (CCDCOE) in Tallinn.
Apply here
Open Systems open house for students on 23 May
Open Systems is one of the leading cyber security-as-a-service providers and secures and monitors IT networks and business-critical applications for global enterprises, NGOs and institutions. If you want to learn more about the career opportunities they offer, you can register for the open house day.
More information and registration here
Spread the word: Info session for MAS ETH in Artificial Intelligence and Digitial Technology and associated CAS programmes
Are you considering pursuing a Certificate of Advanced Studies or Master of Advanced Studies? The MAS in AI and Digital Technology and three associated CAS are technical programmes for managers seeking a better understanding of machine learning, AI and other digital technologies. Register for the info session to meet the programme management and current CAS participants to answer your questions.
Register here
Volunteers wanted for CYBATHLON 2024
The main event of CYBATHLON 2024 showcases the latest advancements in assistive technology with and for people with disabilities. For the third time, teams from all over the world are invited to the competition in Kloten. They are looking for volunteers interested in setting up, communication, refereeing or event management.
Sign up to volunteer here
VIS job mailing list
Are you a student interested in open positions, full-time or part-time, and internships? Then the job mailing list by the Association of Computer Science Students (VIS) is for you. |
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| This is a spontaneous, light-hearted and fun segment, where we can share bits and pieces that we see along the way. We are also open to suggestions and submissions from our community! |
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| Funny finds: exploring the campus |
| Computer scientists are not just good with computers, they are also good cartographers! This map, showing the way from CNB to the Mensa Polyterrasse (we guess), was found on a whiteboard in a kitchenette. It's important to not just nourish your mind, but also your body. Or maybe it shows the way to a secret meeting or a hidden treasure? |
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Meet the new VIS board
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| VIS, the Association of Computer Science Students, has elected its new board members. The different departments, committees and the full list of board members can be found on their website. |
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wiegETHs survey
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| Have you already filled in the survey? VSETH and AVETH want to know more about how you are doing and how they can better support you in your studies and work at ETH Zurich. Fill in the anonymous survey sent to you via e-mail. |
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VISTA Grill & Drinks
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| VISTA is the spiritual successor to VISKAS, another grill event. Sign up for the opportunity to meet all your friends, have a chat, drinks and lots of grilled cheese. The event takes place at the Circle Park, Zurich Airport. |
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ETH Competitive Programming Contest
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| Bring up to two friends, a good mood and join the contest! The emphasis is more on problem-solving skills rather than knowing algorithms. Thanks to QuantCo, there are fantastic prizes lined up with a special price for the best Ersti Team. |
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