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Computing Research News

September 2012 Vol. 24/No. 4     ∫ Download PDF Version - 1.5 Mb

2012 CRA-W Graduate Cohort Workshop

By Erik Russell, CRA Director of Programs Full Article

On April 13-14, 2012 approximately 245 women computer science / computer engineering graduate students descended upon beautiful Bellevue, WA for the 2012 CRA-W Graduate Cohort Workshop. There they were joined by over 25 senior technical women representing academia, government, and industry.   The Graduate Cohort Workshop, with significant support from Microsoft Research, along with support from Google, IBM, Yahoo!, and many University Departments, aims to increase the ranks of senior women in computing by building and mentoring communities of women through their graduate studies.

Staff Changes

By CRA Staff Full Article

With this issue CRA bids a fond farewell to Jean Smith who has been editing CRA publications for 15 years. In addition to handling our various communication channels, Jean handle both the Board and the awards committees. She will be sorely missed as she makes the most of her retirement by traveling to new and exotic locations.

2010 Habermann Awardee Anne Condon elected Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada

By CRA Staff Full Article

The Royal Society of Canada, founded in 1882, celebrates the nation’s leading scholars in the Arts, Humanities and Sciences through election as Fellows

Grace Hopper Celebration of Women in Computing

By CRA Staff Full Article

THEME: “Are We There Yet?”

Note to Department Chairs

By CRA Staff Full Article

Taulbee Survey 2011-12

December 14 Deadline for CRA Service Award Nominations

By CRA Staff Full Article

The Computing Research Association invites nominations for the CRA Distinguished Service Award and the A. Nico Habermann Award for 2013.

The Computing Community Consortium: Research Visioning – And How You Can Get Involved

By Erwin P. Gianchandani Director, CCC. Kenneth D. Hines Program Associate, CCC Full Article

Established six years ago through a Cooperative Agreement between CRA and the National Science Foundation (NSF), the Computing Community Consortium (CCC) has sought to serve as a catalyst and enabler for the computing research community, providing mechanisms to encourage the community to identify compelling research visions for the future of the field, all the while attracting bright young talent and fostering development of the next generation of leaders. During this time, the CCC itself has evolved – from a startup-like organization into a much more stable, long-term enterprise that empowers the field broadly. This past spring, the CCC received a positive review from an independent peer review panel commissioned by NSF, and it is anticipated that a new Cooperative Agreement with support for another four years will be signed early this fall. So as we embark upon a new period, we would like to revisit our core activity – community-wide visioning exercises that bring together members of our community to coalesce around research visions – and describe ways in which you can get involved.

CRA Hosts 2012 Tisdale Fellows Lunch

By CRA Staff Full Article

CRA was pleased to welcome a 2012 Tisdale Fellow as a summer intern. TJ Kaplan, a recent graduate of Georgia Tech in Electrical Engineering, spent eight weeks learning about science and technology policy in Washington through his work with the CRA Government Affairs staff and the Computing Community Consortium, and from other Tisdale Fellows.

Taulbee In-Depth: PhD Specialty Areas

By Betsy Bizot, CRA Director of Statistics and Evaluation Full Article

The CRA Taulbee Survey reports new PhDs and their employment by specialty area each year. This article is an in-depth look at these numbers for data gathered in 2008 – 2011 including a total of 7,178 PhDs. Results by specialty area are presented only for those with specialty areas that are not “other” or “unknown,” which is a total of 5,666 PhDs (78.9%). Similarly, percentages by gender, ethnicity, and citizenship are only for those who were not reported as “unknown.”

CCC Launches New CIFellows Project Website

By Erwin P. Gianchandani Director, Computing Community Consortium Full Article

In early 2009, the Computing Community Consortium (CCC), with the support of the National Science Foundation (NSF), launched the Computing Innovation Fellows Project, a short-term initiative providing recent Ph.D.s with one- to two-year postdoctoral positions at academic institutions and industrial organizations with fundamental computing research and education programs. Three years later, we have developed a new website: http://cra.org/ccc/cifellows to establish a permanent record for the program.

Nominees Sought for CRA Board

By CRA Staff Full Article

The Computing Research Association seeks your help in suggesting nominations for its Board of Directors.  We seek individuals who have time, energy, initiative, and resources to work on CRA issues on behalf of the entire CRA community.  Ours is a working board, and all members are expected to do a fair share of the work.

Academic Career Workshops for Underrepresented Groups

By Ann Q. Gates, Richard Ladner, Valerie Taylor, Bryant W. York Full Article

The first ACW was conducted in the fall of 2005 on a shoestring budget and the beneficence of Texas A&M University. There were 16 attendees (mostly assistant professors and late-term graduate students) and four senior computer science/computational mathematics faculty. The panels included navigating the tenure process, starting a research program, and managing work/life balance; in addition, a major component involved research proposal development. The latter component consisted of a presentation on proposal development by a former NSF program officer, as well as a mock review panel. We obtained permission from proposers to use their awarded and declined NSF proposals in a mock NSF proposal review panel.

With Elections Pending, Big Question on Science Budgets Remain

By Peter Harsha, CRA’s Director of Government Affairs Full Article

With both parties having wrapped up their presidential nominating conventions, Congress returns to Washington with much of the Federal budget process unfinished. The congressional leadership has already conceded that they will not finish FY 2013 appropriations before the end of this session, leaving the 12 unfinished annual appropriations bills for the next Congress to resolve. Congress also remains unresolved about what to do with pending across-the-board cuts to federal agencies and programs that are scheduled for January, 2, 2013. Those cuts, called for in the Budget Control Act of 2011 and triggered because Congress failed to agree on a plan to cut the Federal budget deficit, will happen unless Congress agrees to do something to stop them.

North American Computing Leadership Convenes in Snowbird

By CRA Staff Full Article

CRA celebrated the 40th anniversary of its founding in July with the 20th instance of its biennial Chairs Conference at Snowbird. The two-day conference, held at the Snowbird Ski and Summer Resort in Little Cottonwood Canyon, Utah, is an opportunity for the leadership of the North American computing research community to gather and discuss issues of importance to the community.

Also in this Issue

Professional Job Opportunities

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