From self-driving cars to innovative drug development, artificial intelligence (AI) is going to fundamentally change our lives in a variety of ways.

‘In the field of AI, Leiden is still a relatively unseen university,’ says Thomas Dohmen. The brand-new Director AI Collaboration Center, would like to forge a Leiden AI collaboration network, with sustainable and impactful relationships between the university and civil society organisations. The question…

Jasper Knoester is the dean of the Faculty of Science. How is he doing, what exactly does he do and what does his day look like? In each newsletter, Jasper gives an insight into his life.

A major grant for research into machine learning algorithms for quantum computers. With this ERC Consolidator grant, Vedran Dunjko and his colleagues hope to discover which real-world problems a quantum computer can solve faster than a normal one.

How can you increase the effectiveness of inspectors using responsible artificial intelligence (AI)? This is the question the Innovation Center for Artificial Intelligence (ICAI) Lab AI4Oversight is tackling. By developing algorithms and methods, they try to provide optimal support for, for example,…

Vedran Dunjko appointed to full professor of quantum computing at Leiden University, the Netherlands.

How do you get citizens more involved in energy transition projects? This is the central question of the new transdisciplinary research project EmPowerEd. As a consortium partner, Leiden University is focusing on effective and inclusive collaboration between citizens, municipalities and industry.

How can you ensure that your research hits the headlines? How can you bring your research output, such as PhD research or a publication, to the attention of the public?

After a long run-up, the time has finally come for Frank Takes and Matthijs van Leeuwen. Together, they will become the new directors of education (OD) at the LIACS institute. Takes as OD of the bachelors and Van Leeuwen for the masters. 'We have been working together as colleagues for years,' Van Leeuwen…

Supporting our students’ well-being is a priority for the University. Last week was our Student Well-Being Week, and throughout the year our students have access to mental health support such as buddy programmes, student support groups and study skills workshops. Each faculty is to have its own well-being…

Research on quantum computers and Islamic charities: two Leiden researchers have received a Consolidator Grant from the European Research Council.

How did a fifteen year old paper receive an award? It happened to LIACS professor Todor Stefanov and his colleagues. Their paper was awarded with the Test of Time Award, an international award for papers that had the highest impact over time. This paper in particular is about Daedalus, a framework used…

LIACS scholars Thomas Bäck and Hao Wang will be the new Editors-in-Chief of the Evolutionary Computation Journal from November 1. Published by MIT Press since its foundation in 1993, the journal stands as a keystone in the field, providing a global platform for researchers exploring the workings of…

As of 1 November W&N has a wellbeing officer. Alexandra Blank will commit herself to the wellbeing of our students. Students, but also lecturers and mentors can approach her with ideas and initiatives to support students.

Connecting as the magic word. Seeking new collaborations, presenting ourselves to the outside world with an open attitude and showing what we do. During the opening of the academic year on Tuesday afternoon, Dean Jasper Knoester emphasised that change and connection are necessary for the university…

Thomas Moerland studied medicine and mathematics in Leiden and has a lifelong fascination with the origins and workings of intelligence. He brought all that together in his popular science book Van IQ naar AI (From IQ to AI).

By chance, computer scientist Hans-Dieter Hiep (Leiden Institute of Advanced Computer Science and Centrum Wiskunde & Informatica) discovered a ‘gaping hole’ in a widely used method for evaluating software security. Hiep patched the hole, causing quite a stir in his field. 'It’s not pleasant when a PhD…

Giulio Barbero and Matthias Müller-Brockhausen did their PhD research at the Leiden University Game Research Lab.

Four female computer scientists share a common goal: to showcase the significant contributions of women in computer science and inspire their students. Together, they are organising this year’s Alice & Eve event, a one-day symposium dedicated to celebrating women in computer science. The event, scheduled…

How ethical is research involving humans and robots? And can research on artificial intelligence cause problems when it ends up in the wrong hands? In any research involving humans or their data, the ethics committee assesses where the issues are. Associate professor at LIACS Suzan Verberne chairs the…

Search engines are getting better at answering our questions. And chatbots are increasingly likely to search the internet for relevant sources. ‘Search engines and chatbots will become more closely entwined’, says Professor Suzan Verberne.

Five consortia within the Perspectief programme that include Leiden researchers have received funding to start their research projects. These projects focus on (further) developing technological innovations, with societal and economic impact at their core.

Electrical inner ear prostheses like Cochlear Implants (CIs) help deaf and severely hearing-impaired persons to regain many of their communication abilities. The performance of CI in social environments is, however, not optimal. The new "Machine learning To Enhance teMPoral cOding foR cochleAr impLants“…

Students and researches from all faculties at Leiden University are warmly invited to a lunch meeting on Monday 14 October, discussing the rise of AI and the challenges this poses for various governance structures. The event is hosted by Leiden University’s interdisciplinary programmes GTGC and SAIL…

The interdisciplinary Kiem project ‘Violence as a Population Health Problem’ has resulted in a plan to apply for a large, yet-to-be-decided research grant. The so-called pressure cooker session at the heart of the project proved very effective.

Jaap van den Herik was appointed Officer in the Order of Orange Nassau on 8 October on his retirement as professor of Law and Information Technology.

On April 1, Marco Spruit, Professor of Advanced Data Science in Population Health at the Leiden University Medical Center (LUMC) and the Leiden Institute of Advanced Computer Science (LIACS), will deliver his inaugural lecture ‘Translational Data Science in Population Health’. Spruit will use the opportunity…

The third edition of the Krijn Rietveld Memorial Innovation Award was won by Anne Dirkson, former LIACS PhD student. During her PhD she researched the automatic collection of patient experiences from online forums. ‘With this work, Anne has shown how the exchange of knowledge between medical professionals,…

ICT

Prof. Nele Mentens and her team are going to investigate how we can better secure our electronic and mobile devices connected to the Internet of Things. For this PROACT project she will receive no less than 1.8 million euros from NWO. They will use this money to develop chips that make the Internet…

A programming competition in Minecraft? It really exists! And even better news: this time LIACS’ student team Mike's Angels achieved the first place! The team has been rewarded $500.

Assistant Professor Vedran Dunjko and his team receive a €100,000 gift from Google to support them in their quantum research. The research focuses on whether quantum computers can provide new ways of understanding the mysteries of high-energy physics. Google is committed to supporting ambitious research…

Aske Plaat is the scientific director of LIACS, the Leiden Institute of Advanced Computer Systems. He is also an ambassador for Leiden University's LGBT+ Network. His enthusiasm shines through when he explains why.

In 2022, Leiden will be the European Capital of Science. An enthusiastic team from our Faculty is already busy planning the activities. Today we speak with Marin Visscher. As a project coordinator, he seeks the connection between university and society.