Computers are getting smarter at a rate never imagined. A few decades ago, early computer pioneers were still grappling with the question of whether computers can ever learn or think, while today, both ‘machine learning’ and ‘artificial intelligence’ have become global buzzwords in the tech world.
With a focus on ‘deep learning for big data,’ the Duke-Tsinghua Machine Learning Summer School is designed to provide students with a window into topics at the forefront of technology. From Aug. 1 to Aug. 10, 80 students and professionals from 12 countries gathered on the Duke Kunshan University campus in China to learn from world’s leading experts in machine learning on how to apply deep learning models to large-scale data sets.
‘For many students, this program is a first introduction to machine learning. The wide coverage of the course will give them a fairly complete view of the field, and an opportunity for them to explore where their own interest lies,’ said Lawrence Carin, professor of electrical and computer engineering and vice provost for research at Duke University and co-organizer of the summer school. ‘More importantly, I hope they will be inspired by the fact that several instructors of this program are Chinese scholars who have become professors at top universities at a young age.’
Professor Carin
The Duke-Tsinghua Machine Learning Summer School is spearheaded by Carin and Dr. Jun Zhu, an associate professor at the department of computer science and technology of Tsinghua University, and an adjunct faculty at the machine learning department of Carnegie Mellon University. The inaugural program brought together the academic resources and reputation of Duke University and Tsinghua University, and boasts an impressive faculty lineup of internationally renowned scholars; professors from Duke University, Tsinghua University, Columbia University, Peking University and other world-class universities led students through topics including optimization-based learning and several models of statistical analysis.
‘As a co-organizer, I am happy to see that this Machine Learning Summer School has brought together 9 faculty members to cover various exciting topics in machine learning. We thank all the instructors, TAs and RAs for their excellent job,’ said Dr. Jun Zhu. ‘I hope to see more joint efforts among Duke University, Duke Kunshan University and Tsinghua in the areas of education and research.’
Dr. Jun Zhu
‘Since the inception of Duke Kunshan University, we have aspired to introduce leading-edge educational programs, and the Machine Learning Summer School is an excellent example of our efforts to bring the best educational programs,’ Dr. Haiyan Gao, vice chancellor for academic affairs at Duke Kunshan, said at the opening ceremony of the summer program.
Professor Haiyan Gao
The student body of the Summer School program is diverse in multiple ways. Not only did the 80 students come from 12 countries across the globe, but they also represent different levels of academic study, including undergraduate, graduate and Ph.D. programs. The group also included experienced professionals from various industries, including information technology, biology and finance.
‘I’ve been interacting very closely with these students, and I can tell that they are really motivated to learn. Some students even asked another instructor and me to give additional lectures,’ Carin observed.
In addition to his administration role at Duke University, Carin is a widely-cited expert on deep learning. ‘My interest in deep learning stems from curiosity ‘ deep learning is an emerging technique that appears promising, and I’m always interested in learning about new things,’ he said. Carin began his research on deep learning about two years ago and brought to the summer program the latest developments in the field.
Throughout the summer program, Carin emphasized that technical skills alone are not enough to ensure a successful career. As he noted, ‘the combination of people skills and technical skills’ is what distinguishes the leaders from the others, and Duke Kunshan University should play a role in educating students with such skills.
Students Awarded Program Certificate
Taking pride in the summer program’s great success, he expressed the hope that the program could be held again in a larger scale next year. ‘This is the first time that we held the Duke-Tsinghua Machine Learning Summer School, and we did this with very limited advertising. Yet we were still able to attract so many high-quality students, which is very encouraging.’
