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UCL ICCS student attends Heidelberg Laureate Forum
9 October 2023
Martin Ferianc, PhD student within the Institute of Communications and Connected Systems in the Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, recently attended the 10th annual Heidelberg Laureate Forum.
The Heidelberg Laureate Forum (HLF) stands out among other classical conferences in the world of academia due to the unique opportunity it offers 200 carefully selected young researchers to spend a week interacting with world-renowned laureates in mathematics and computer science: recipients of the Abel Prize, ACM A.M. Turing Award, ACM Prize in Computing, Fields Medal, IMU Abacus Medal and Nevanlinna Prize.
This year, PhD student Martin Ferianc was one of the 200 young researchers selected to spend a week interacting and networking with some of the most exceptional mathematicians and computer scientists of their generations. A relaxed atmosphere designed to inspire scientific exchange, the HLF aims to persistently promote and encourage interdisciplinarity in mathematical and computational research.
Martin, who is currently undergoing his PhD studies under the supervision of Professor Miguel Rodrigues, was also one of the 30 young researchers handpicked to present his research on stage as part of a session called “Poster Flash”. Martin used this rare opportunity to speak on his work enhancing calibration and efficiency of neural networks for real-world deployment. He is currently working on improving the trade-offs between accuracy, computational complexity and calibration of neural networks demonstrated in experiments targeting safety-critical settings like autonomous driving or healthcare.
Reflecting on this once-in-a-lifetime experience, Martin said: “The Forum has been an inspiring and motivating experience. The highlight of the event was the opportunity to meet and interact with the laureates who are my role models. I am similarly grateful for the opportunity to meet, interact, and learn from the other young researchers who are all very talented and passionate about their research. Overall, I strongly recommend the forum to any young researcher in mathematics or computer science.”
Aside from the technical sessions, the HLF also offered attendees a whirlwind of activities including a boat tour and a private tour of Heidelberg Castle. For Martin, one of the most memorable aspects of the experience involved participating in an interactive session with Vint Cerf, a renowned American computer scientist often referred to as one of the “fathers of the Internet”.
Now in its 10th year, the HLF is annually organised by the Heidelberg Laureate Forum Foundation (HLFF). Inspired by the idea of providing young minds the opportunity to interact with their scientific role models, it was initiated by the German Foundation Klaus Tschira Stiftung (KTS). This year, there were around 400 people in attendance, including 200 young researchers and more than 30 laureates.
Acknowledgement
Martin would like to thank G-Research for sponsoring his travel expenses and SAP for financing his participation in the conference.