Department of Computer Science Distinguished Professor Allen Tannenbaum recently received a government research grant for his work in networks and particle systems.  The award, from the U.S. Air Force Office of Scientific Research, is for Tannenbaum’s project, PDF: Particle Systems and the Dynamics and Functionality of Networks.

Tannenbaum and his team will be developing mathematical models to optimize the tools that handle the “big data” inherent in countless systems. The award provides funding for the professor and two computer science graduate students to work on the project. The work being conducted will remain consistent with much of the professor’s recent research, which tends to focus on complex networks.

“Our military and national security needs increasingly depend upon the reliability, robustness, quality of service and timeliness of networks, including those of power distribution, transportation, communication, and social.” said Tannenbaum.

According to the Distinguished Professor, a major goal of this project will be to develop the necessary theory and tools that will permit the understanding and managing of network dynamics at various scales. When asked about how he came up with the idea for this project, Tannenbaum cited his previous work in network theory and the ubiquity of networking in the field of computer science as two avenues that led naturally to this conclusion.

Distinguished Professor Tannenbaum began working in the Department of Computer Science, which is part of the College of Engineering and Applied Sciences at Stony Brook University, in 2013. After graduating from Columbia University with a mathematics degree, he went on to earn a PhD from Harvard University. In 2015, he received the prestigious SUNY Distinguished Professor Award, which came with a nomination abstract referring to him as “an internationally renowned superstar”. He has also received the Kennedy Research Prize, the National Science Foundation Research Initiation Award, and the O. Hugo Schuck Award over the course of his illustrious career.

-By Michael Curatola