|
|
Avi PfefferAssociate Professor of Computer Science School of Engineering and Applied Sciences |
Research
My
research focuses on two broad, central questions:
- How can we design intelligent
systems to autonomously make good decisions in challenging situations?
- How can we use intelligent
systems to help people make good decisions in such situations?
Situations can be challenging in a number of ways. First, many situations are fraught with uncertainty; a decision maker only receives partial information about the world, and that information itself is noisy. Second, situations are often complex, with many interacting components all affecting a decision. Third, dynamics is a crucial factor in many situations. Finally, some situations involve multiple interacting decision-makers, all of whom have their own interests and private information. My research considers all of these challenges.
Within computer science, my work touches on artificial intelligence, machine learning, human-computer interaction and programming languages. Beyond computer science, my work draws on economics, cognitive science and music.
The two main areas I study these questions in are:
- Probabilistic reasoning. Some research topics in this area are:
- Probabilistic reasoning for rich, complex systems
- Probabilistic programming
- Probabilistic modeling of music
- Strategic decision making. Some research topics in this area are:
A full list of my publications can be found here.
Courses
CS181: Intelligent Machines - Perception, Learning and Uncertainty
Tutorials
Graphical models for multi-agent decision making, AAAI 2008.
First-order probabilistic languages, IJCAI 2005.
Contact Information
Maxwell Dworkin 251
Tel: 617-496-1876
Cell: 857-222-9164
Fax: 617-496-1066