BEGIN:VCALENDAR
VERSION:2.0
PRODID:-//CMSA - ECPv6.15.18//NONSGML v1.0//EN
CALSCALE:GREGORIAN
METHOD:PUBLISH
X-WR-CALNAME:CMSA
X-ORIGINAL-URL:https://cmsa.fas.harvard.edu
X-WR-CALDESC:Events for CMSA
REFRESH-INTERVAL;VALUE=DURATION:PT1H
X-Robots-Tag:noindex
X-PUBLISHED-TTL:PT1H
BEGIN:VTIMEZONE
TZID:America/New_York
BEGIN:DAYLIGHT
TZOFFSETFROM:-0500
TZOFFSETTO:-0400
TZNAME:EDT
DTSTART:20220313T070000
END:DAYLIGHT
BEGIN:STANDARD
TZOFFSETFROM:-0400
TZOFFSETTO:-0500
TZNAME:EST
DTSTART:20221106T060000
END:STANDARD
BEGIN:DAYLIGHT
TZOFFSETFROM:-0500
TZOFFSETTO:-0400
TZNAME:EDT
DTSTART:20230312T070000
END:DAYLIGHT
BEGIN:STANDARD
TZOFFSETFROM:-0400
TZOFFSETTO:-0500
TZNAME:EST
DTSTART:20231105T060000
END:STANDARD
BEGIN:DAYLIGHT
TZOFFSETFROM:-0500
TZOFFSETTO:-0400
TZNAME:EDT
DTSTART:20240310T070000
END:DAYLIGHT
BEGIN:STANDARD
TZOFFSETFROM:-0400
TZOFFSETTO:-0500
TZNAME:EST
DTSTART:20241103T060000
END:STANDARD
END:VTIMEZONE
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20230321T120000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20230321T130000
DTSTAMP:20260408T221110
CREATED:20230817T170644Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20240118T070105Z
UID:10001238-1679400000-1679403600@cmsa.fas.harvard.edu
SUMMARY:Quantum Gravity constraints beyond asymptotic regimes
DESCRIPTION:Member Seminar \nSpeaker: Max Wiesner \nTitle: Quantum Gravity constraints beyond asymptotic regimes \nAbstract: Not every effective field theory that is consistent in the absence of gravity can be completed to a consistent theory of quantum gravity. The goal of the Swampland program is to find general criteria that distinguish effective field theories\, that can be obtained as a low-energy approximation of quantum gravity\, from those that are inconsistent in the presence of gravity. These criteria are oftentimes motivated by patterns observed in explicit compactifications of perturbative string theory and have passed many non-trivial tests in asymptotic regions of the field space such as\, e.g.\, weak coupling limits. Still\, the Swampland criteria should equally apply to effective theories that do not arise in asymptotic regions of the field space of string theory compactifications. In this talk I will summarize some of my recent works that studies the interior of regions of the field space of string theory in the context of the Swampland program.
URL:https://cmsa.fas.harvard.edu/event/member-seminar-32123/
LOCATION:CMSA Room G10\, CMSA\, 20 Garden Street\, Cambridge\, MA\, 02138\, United States
CATEGORIES:Member Seminar
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20230321T170000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20230321T180000
DTSTAMP:20260408T221110
CREATED:20230705T053409Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250409T192224Z
UID:10000065-1679418000-1679421600@cmsa.fas.harvard.edu
SUMMARY:2023 Ding Shum Lecture
DESCRIPTION:On March 21\, 2023\, the CMSA hosted the fourth annual Ding Shum Lecture\, given by Cynthia Dwork (Harvard SEAS and Microsoft Research). \n\n\nTime: 5:00-6:00 pm ET \nLocation: Harvard University Science Center Hall D \nThis event was be held in person and via Zoom webinar. \n\n  \n\nTitle: Measuring Our Chances: Risk Prediction in This World and its Betters \nAbstract: Prediction algorithms score individuals\, assigning a number between zero and one that is often interpreted as an individual probability: a 0.7 “chance” that this child is in danger in the home; an 80% “probability” that this woman will succeed if hired; a 1/3 “likelihood” that they will graduate within 4 years of admission. But what do words like “chance\,” “probability\,” and “likelihood” actually mean for a non-repeatable activity like going to college? This is a deep and unresolved problem in the philosophy of probability. Without a compelling mathematical definition we cannot specify what an (imagined) perfect risk prediction algorithm should produce\, nor even how an existing algorithm should be evaluated. Undaunted\, AI and machine learned algorithms churn these numbers out in droves\, sometimes with life-altering consequences. \nAn explosion of recent research deploys insights from the theory of pseudo-random numbers – sequences of 0’s and 1’s that “look random” but in fact have structure – to yield a tantalizing answer to the evaluation problem\, together with a supporting algorithmic framework with roots in the theory of algorithmic fairness. \nWe can aim even higher. Both (1) our qualifications\, health\, and skills\, which form the inputs to a prediction algorithm\, and (2) our chances of future success\, which are the desired outputs from the ideal risk prediction algorithm\, are products of our interactions with the real world. But the real world is systematically inequitable. How\, and when\, can we hope to approximate probabilities not in this world\, but in a better world\, one for which\, unfortunately\, we have no data at all? Surprisingly\, this novel question is inextricably bound with the very existence of nondeterminism. \n\n\nProfessor Cynthia Dwork is Gordon McKay Professor of Computer Science at the Harvard University John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences\, Affiliated Faculty at Harvard Law School\, and Distinguished Scientist at Microsoft. She uses theoretical computer science to place societal problems on a firm mathematical foundation. \nHer recent awards and honors include the 2020 ACM SIGACT and IEEE TCMF Knuth Prize\, the 2020 IEEE Hamming Medal\, and the 2017 Gödel Prize. \n\n\n\n\nTalk Chair: Horng-Tzer Yau (Harvard Mathematics & CMSA)\n\nModerator: Faidra Monachou (Harvard CMSA)\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nThe 2020-2022 Ding Shum lectures were postponed due to Covid-19. \n\n\n\nThe 2019 Ding Shum Lecture featured Ronald Rivest on “Election Security.”\n\n\nThis event is made possible by the generous funding of Ding Lei and Harry Shum. \n\n\nWatch the Lecture on Youtube:
URL:https://cmsa.fas.harvard.edu/event/2023-ding-shum-lecture/
LOCATION:Harvard Science Center\, 1 Oxford Street\, Cambridge\, MA\, 02138
CATEGORIES:Ding Shum Lecture,Event,Special Lectures
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://cmsa.fas.harvard.edu/media/Cynthia-Dwork.jpg
END:VEVENT
END:VCALENDAR