Rahgooy was among the initial cohort of five students to join the program when it was established two years ago and was one of two students who transferred to UWF from Tulane University on the heels of Dr. Brent Venable, the programs founding director. Venable previously held a joint appointment as a professor of computer science at Tulane and research scientist at IHMC.
The graduation of our first doctoral student is an incredible milestone for the intelligent systems and robotics program, Venable said. Only two years after its establishment, our program is contributing to the highly skilled workforce in the intelligent systems field, which is a national priority with a high demand market. His graduation validates and motivates all of our students, as well as UWF and IHMC mentors, to continue pursuing our innovative and personalized approach to graduate education in intelligent systems and robotics.
Rahgooy was a second year doctoral student at Tulane University when Venable accepted the director role at UWF. He said it wasnt initially an easy decision to transfer, but three key factors played a role in convincing him to make the jump.
I really enjoyed working with Dr. Venable, as she is an extraordinary researcher and advisor and I knew that continuing to work with her would keep me on track for my future career, Rahgooy said. She told me about the IHMC community, which gives intelligent systems and robotics students access to world-class researchers. Finally, I knew the program would provide facilities for doctoral students that are essential for performing many machine learning and artificial intelligence tasks requiring the handling of big data.
The program centers on developing leading-edge software and hardware technology that combines human and machine elements to exploit their respective strengths and mitigate their respective weaknesses. It aligns with the Universitys strategic vision for research that impacts Northwest Floridas economic development and technology enterprise. The first of its kind in Florida and one of only a few in the nation, the program serves the manufacturing, health care, defense and other high-tech industries, providing critical support to high-demand career fields.
The doctorate in intelligent systems and robotics program provides students with individualized paths tailored to their interests. The program is comprised of foundational courses in robotics and artificial intelligence that address topics such as knowledge representation and reasoning, machine learning, computational methods in AI, basic hardware/software interaction and research methods.
Through the program, I worked with great researchers who helped me understand the whole research environment better, and who gave help and guidance about the choices I should make for my future, Rahgooy said. The financial support of the program allowed me to fully focus on research without any distractions, and I was always supported and encouraged by the department to participate in prestigious conferences both for presenting my work and as an attendee. This accelerated my progress, which resulted in several publications and presentations. Now at the end of my doctorate, I feel really proud of what Ive achieved and the kind of resume I was able to build in this program.
Since its establishment in Fall 2019, the program has grown to include 15 students from seven countries and 20 supervisors from IHMC and UWFs departments of intelligent systems and robotics, computer science and earth and environmental sciences. Venable said the cutting-edge research portfolio of investigated topics includes human-machine teaming, vision, robotics, natural language processing, cybersecurity, machine learning, cognitive systems, multi-agent systems and marine environmental sensing.
Our program allows the mentor-student team to tailor the coursework and research portfolio to specific interests pursued by each team, following the European style for doctorates and freeing them from the academic constraints typically involved in the vast majority of AI and robotics graduate programs in the United States, Venable said. This level of personalization facilitates collaboration with industry and a project-driven style of research.
Rahgooy earned a bachelors degree in computer engineering from the University of Isfahan in Iran, and a masters in artificial intelligence at Ferdowsi University in Mashdad, Iran, before beginning his doctoral studies in computer science at Tulane University. His research focus at UWF has been learning cognitive models of decision-making using machine learning.
His dissertation, titled Machine Learning Guided by Linguistic and Behavioral Knowledge discusses the data-driven methods hes developed for learning various cognitive models of decision making, along with his work to expand into problems with sequential settings such as reinforcement learning.
Rahgooy said the next step in his career is finding research positions in the intelligent systems and robotics industry to continue his efforts.
Working with Taher has been a true pleasure, Venable said. He is the ideal doctoral student, one to whom you throw an idea and he comes back with a paper. He features a rare combination of a theoretical clarity of thought and very strong algorithmic and coding skills. He has grown into a mature and independent expert in intelligent systems and I am looking forward to hearing about his future successes.
For more information about the intelligent systems and robotics doctoral program at UWF, visit uwf.edu/isr.
Read the rest here:
- Brief: NVIDIA's venture arm invests in autonomous weeding startup Carbon Robotics - AgFunderNews - May 11th, 2024 [May 11th, 2024]
- 7 Robotics Stocks to Bet On for Reliable AI-Powered Returns - InvestorPlace - May 11th, 2024 [May 11th, 2024]
- NSF and USDA join forces to boost innovation in agricultural robotics - Future Farming - May 11th, 2024 [May 11th, 2024]
- Meet The Swiss Start-Up Taking On The Tech Giants In Robotics And AI - Forbes - May 11th, 2024 [May 11th, 2024]
- LimX Dynamics' W1 robot can stand, walk and roll on its hind 'legs' - Interesting Engineering - May 11th, 2024 [May 11th, 2024]
- Lear Corporation's acquisition showcases the industry's use of robotics and AI for efficiency and innovation - CBT Automotive News - May 11th, 2024 [May 11th, 2024]
- OMRON and NEURA Robotics Partner to Unveil New Cognitive Robot at Automate 2024 - Automation.com - May 11th, 2024 [May 11th, 2024]
- Community briefs: Ravenswood robotics at world championship, Bike to the Library Day - The Almanac Online - May 11th, 2024 [May 11th, 2024]
- JCHS Robotics shimes at VEX World Competition | Community News - The Tomahawk - May 11th, 2024 [May 11th, 2024]
- Carbon Robotics to Help Revolutionize Farming with AI, Using Investment from NVentures - Business Wire - May 11th, 2024 [May 11th, 2024]
- Nvidia's DrEureka outperforms humans in training robotics systems - VentureBeat - May 11th, 2024 [May 11th, 2024]
- Humanoid Robots: The Next-Generation Robotic Workforce - Tech Briefs - May 11th, 2024 [May 11th, 2024]
- PHOTOS Motiva helping fund Port Arthur ISD robotics and engineering - Port Arthur News - The Port Arthur News - May 11th, 2024 [May 11th, 2024]
- Kiwanis Club of Miami helps fund McMillan MS robotics team trip - Miami's Community Newspapers - May 11th, 2024 [May 11th, 2024]
- The Interplay Between Robotics and Artificial Intelligence in Manufacturing | RoboticsTomorrow - Robotics Tomorrow - May 11th, 2024 [May 11th, 2024]
- Doosan Robotics releases its longest reach cobots with PRIME SERIES - Robot Report - May 11th, 2024 [May 11th, 2024]
- KION North America and Fox Robotics Announce Non-Exclusive Strategic Partnership - Automation.com - May 11th, 2024 [May 11th, 2024]
- Ag tech startup Carbon Robotics lands Nvidia investment - The Business Journals - May 11th, 2024 [May 11th, 2024]
- Mars Robotics offers chance to drive Mars rover on Saturday - Butler Eagle - May 11th, 2024 [May 11th, 2024]
- Comparative analysis of robot-assisted language learning systems and human tutors in English conversation lessons - EurekAlert - May 11th, 2024 [May 11th, 2024]
- Valencia College to more than double students training in semiconductors, robotics and optics - The Business Journals - May 11th, 2024 [May 11th, 2024]
- DeepMind is experimenting with a nearly indestructible robot hand - New Scientist - May 11th, 2024 [May 11th, 2024]
- Five Things to Consider Before Adopting Robotics for Warehouse Automation - Automation.com - May 11th, 2024 [May 11th, 2024]
- Nvidia and Alphabet's Intrinsic aim to revolutionize next-gen robotics - VentureBeat - May 11th, 2024 [May 11th, 2024]
- NVIDIA and Alphabet's Intrinsic Put Next-Gen Robotics Within Grasp - Automation.com - May 11th, 2024 [May 11th, 2024]
- STEM robotics team celebrates 10 years and remembers hero who saved lives - Denver 7 Colorado News - May 11th, 2024 [May 11th, 2024]
- Zero-shot learning helps Intrinsic pave the future for robotics - FierceElectronics - May 11th, 2024 [May 11th, 2024]
- EN robotics team demonstrates real-world learning | News Sun | kpcnews.com - KPCnews.com - May 11th, 2024 [May 11th, 2024]
- Future Innovators Challenged to Design Nuclear Fission and Fusion Decommissioning Robots - Automation.com - May 11th, 2024 [May 11th, 2024]
- Meet Pepper and Bernard: The robots shaping AI research at SDSU - Daily Aztec - May 11th, 2024 [May 11th, 2024]
- Gene Haas Foundation Partner Hosts FIRST Robotics District Competitions - Kettering University - May 5th, 2024 [May 5th, 2024]
- NASA Showcases Innovations at the 2024 FIRST Robotics World Championships - NASA - May 5th, 2024 [May 5th, 2024]
- Robots are invading the San Carlos Branch Library - San Diego Community Newspaper Group - May 5th, 2024 [May 5th, 2024]
- Wyoming-Based Company Makes High-Tech Robots To Go Where Humans Don't Want To - Cowboy State Daily - May 5th, 2024 [May 5th, 2024]
- Anzu Robotics launches U.S.-based clone of DJI Mavic 3 - Robot Report - May 5th, 2024 [May 5th, 2024]
- Carnegie Mellon University's Robotics Institute begins developing drones to fight wildfires - CBS Pittsburgh - May 5th, 2024 [May 5th, 2024]
- 3 Robotics Stocks That Could Be Multibaggers in the Making: Spring Edition - MSN - May 5th, 2024 [May 5th, 2024]
- Hopkinton teams advance to Robotics World Championships - Hopkinton Independent - May 5th, 2024 [May 5th, 2024]
- "Big Cat Robotics" team from Wellsville returns from VRC World Championship - THE WELLSVILLE SUN - THE WELLSVILLE SUN - May 5th, 2024 [May 5th, 2024]
- PropStream-Sponsored Robotics Team Places in Competition - RisMedia.com - May 5th, 2024 [May 5th, 2024]
- Bellefontaine Robotics Team Travels to World Championship Peak of Ohio - peakofohio.com - May 5th, 2024 [May 5th, 2024]
- ASL Aviation Holdings Inks Deal with Reliable Robotics for 30 Aircraft Autonomy Systems - Business Wire - May 5th, 2024 [May 5th, 2024]
- Global Nano Robotics Market Projected to Surge to US$ 19.86 Billion by 2032: Healthcare Trends Catalyzing Nano ... - GlobeNewswire - May 5th, 2024 [May 5th, 2024]
- 'Afghan Dreamers' | Film about Afghan girls robotics team to be screened on May 15 - Piedmont Exedra - May 5th, 2024 [May 5th, 2024]
- 3 Robotics Stocks That Could Be Multibaggers in the Making: Spring Edition - InvestorPlace - May 5th, 2024 [May 5th, 2024]
- The Rise of the Navy Robots - Signal Magazine - May 5th, 2024 [May 5th, 2024]
- Elon Musk Keeps Talking About the Future of Robotics With Optimus, but This Phenomenal Growth Stock Has Already ... - The Motley Fool - May 5th, 2024 [May 5th, 2024]
- Robosen Robotics Teams Up with Hasbro to Debut the Worlds First Auto-Converting Decepticon Megatron! - aNb Media - May 5th, 2024 [May 5th, 2024]
- John P. Stevens Robotics Team Wins Excellence in Technology at Innovators Awards - TAPinto.net - May 5th, 2024 [May 5th, 2024]
- Nala Robotics and Re-Up partner to develop AI-powered robotic chef - Robotics and Automation News - May 5th, 2024 [May 5th, 2024]
- LCSD1 to Host Final Robotics Competition of the School Year Tomorrow - The Cheyenne Post - May 5th, 2024 [May 5th, 2024]
- GMV showcases its robotic inspection capabilities Robotics & Automation News - Robotics and Automation News - May 5th, 2024 [May 5th, 2024]
- Trine's armored robot finishes 4th in national combat - Trine University - May 5th, 2024 [May 5th, 2024]
- Female robotics founders discuss their journeys in the industry - Robot Report - May 5th, 2024 [May 5th, 2024]
- Hanwha Robotics, B-Robotics join hands on restaurant automation project - Aju Press - May 5th, 2024 [May 5th, 2024]
- Dishchii'bikoh Community School Robotics Team Heads to VEX World Championship - White Mountain Independent - May 5th, 2024 [May 5th, 2024]
- ETH unveils space-hopping robot for asteroid exploration - Robotics and Automation News - May 5th, 2024 [May 5th, 2024]
- Nickelytics and Starship release robots at UCLA and Utah universities - Robotics and Automation News - May 1st, 2024 [May 1st, 2024]
- Next-Level Robotics: Enhancing Accuracy with Advanced Multisensory Interfaces - AZoRobotics - May 1st, 2024 [May 1st, 2024]
- Death of Lake Orion teen on robotics trip determined to be suicide, Houston police say - Detroit News - May 1st, 2024 [May 1st, 2024]
- Niqo Robotics Raises $9 Million In Funding Round Led By Brida Innovation Ventures: Report - Outlook India - May 1st, 2024 [May 1st, 2024]
- Mission to 'Holy Grail of Shipwrecks' Will Employ Robotics - USNI News - May 1st, 2024 [May 1st, 2024]
- Kiwibot acquires Auto Mobility Solutions Robotics & Automation News - Robotics and Automation News - May 1st, 2024 [May 1st, 2024]
- Untethered soft actuators for soft standalone robotics - Nature.com - May 1st, 2024 [May 1st, 2024]
- Robotics in the restaurant industry are here to stay: Carlos Gazitua - Fox Business - May 1st, 2024 [May 1st, 2024]
- It's time for UK business to embrace robotics - Design Products & Applications - May 1st, 2024 [May 1st, 2024]
- Meet the `One Percenters' - The Top Ranked Robotics Group from Franklin - Franklin Observer - May 1st, 2024 [May 1st, 2024]
- Atlas, forefather of humanoid robots, gives way to next generation - Marketplace - May 1st, 2024 [May 1st, 2024]
- BlueBotics releases new version of its server fleet management software - Robotics and Automation News - May 1st, 2024 [May 1st, 2024]
- U.S. manufacturers invested heavily in robotics in 2023, finds IFR - Robot Report - May 1st, 2024 [May 1st, 2024]
- This is a unique time: ARK Invests chief futurist tackles tech innovation from AI to robotics - CNBC - May 1st, 2024 [May 1st, 2024]
- U.S. Companies Invest Heavily in Robots - IFR Preliminary Results EMSNow - EMSNow - May 1st, 2024 [May 1st, 2024]
- MiR launches new autonomous mobile forklift-type robot - Robotics and Automation News - May 1st, 2024 [May 1st, 2024]
- Rutland Area Robotics' IBOTS compete in FIRST World Championships finals for first time - Rutland Herald - May 1st, 2024 [May 1st, 2024]
- Micropsi Industries introduces new AI-vision software Robotics & Automation News - Robotics and Automation News - May 1st, 2024 [May 1st, 2024]
- Robots on a Roll: The Future of Farming Is Here Now - Growing Produce - May 1st, 2024 [May 1st, 2024]
- Grand Force, Grand Forks' only FIRST Robotics team, returns from world championship with good memories - Grand Forks Herald - May 1st, 2024 [May 1st, 2024]
- Reston Robotics Team Wins National Competition At Tech Conference - Patch - May 1st, 2024 [May 1st, 2024]
- CapSen Robotics Introduces CapSen PiC 2.0 Bin-Picking Software - Supply and Demand Chain Executive - May 1st, 2024 [May 1st, 2024]
- Gecko Robotics and Al Masaood Energy Partner to Help ADNOC Gas Revolutionize Asset Operations and ... - Business Wire - May 1st, 2024 [May 1st, 2024]