The Challenges Facing Computer Science for the Next Ten Years

SCI 110

December 2, 2002

Dr. H.E. DunsmoreDepartment of Computer Science

Ubiquitous Computing

"Ubiquitous" -- Existing or being everywhere, in all places at thesame time

We used to design software to run only on computers

Now software used in cell phones, microwave ovens, tv sets,automobiles, photocopy machines, cameras, satellites, ....

Software for ubiquitous computing must be small, quick, robust,error-free

Mobile Computing

Internet connectivity via Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs), laptops, palmtops, fingertops, cell phones, hearing aids, "glasses", ....

Challenges --

Handling traffic of information flow in ether

Handling volume of information to servers

Providing up-to-date information

Data Compression, Bandwidth Expansion

Every time we increase processing speeds and transfer speeds, demand increases

Must find ways to do astounding job of...

Data compression -- Can I get a 75 MByte file down to 150 bytes?

Bandwidth expansion -- Can I move data at 1,000,000 times today's speeds?

Programming vs. Creating Systems

With volume of software necessary in future, there will not be enough programmers

Analogy - telephone system made us all telephone operators

We can all become programmers via high-level software creation systems ... that will require brilliant computer scientists to develop

Human-Computer Interaction

Windows, icons represent significant step forward in human-computer interaction

Much more needs to be done -- natural language commands, decision support systems, expert systems, learning systems

Visualization and Graphics

Visualization systems are outgrowth of computer games

Visualization systems can be used for training pilots, doctors, dentists, large equipment operators, ....

Visualization systems can also be used to slow down fast time and speed up slow time

Bioinformatics, Computational Biology

Progress has been made in this area (human genome project, cloning) using sophisticated software systems

Future progress will depend on databases, blazing fast processors, better algorithms, ....

Databases -- Massive Data Handling, Data Mining

Now possible to collect massive databases

Store and retrieve information

Correlate information

Sophisticated data mining

What have you done every minute of today? Where are you now? What are you doing?

Security

Information in files and in transit must be secure

Must develop better encryption systems

Must be very careful whenever data is not encrypted

Terrorism, VandalismNeed better mechanisms than accounts, passwords for access control

Biometric access control (fingerprints, hand readers, facial biometrics) shows promise

Terrorists might shut down Internet, interrupt e-commerce, corrupt information (like account balances, charges), ....

What about turning off security mechanisms via network, shutting down hospital monitoring devices, opening prison gates,....?

Must make it impossible to deliver and execute viruses

Computer Science Educators

Computer Science been around since approximately 1970

30 years later many original CS faculty reaching retirement age

Many faculty who started in 80s and 90s will retire in next 5-20 years

Many students have opted for non-academic careers

Pipeline running dry

Educational Paradigm

Old educational paradigm: 16-week semester, classes, labs, recitations, students in lock-step

Maybe this paradigm needs to be modified

Replace classes with digitized "explanations"

Replace labs, recitations with "chat groups"

Dump 16-week semester in favor of topic modules

Educational Paradigm (2)Give students as much time as needed for each module -- 1 week or 10 weeks

How do we give exams in this model?

Purdue CS student could take modules from Stanford, Illinois, Carnegie-Mellon and students from those schools could take Purdue modules

Administrative nightmare

Women in Computer Science In mid-1980s women constituted 30% of the professionals and students in Computer Science

That percentage now down to about 10%

Why?

Nature of the men in CS

Perceived long hours, stress, lifestyle

Women have longer-term, grander-scale perspectives than men

Managing EmailToday's email systems will be remembered as the dinosaurs of the email age

Manage the volume, respond using email triage, delete un-needed messages, file needed messages in retrievable place

Email all sorts of information (including audio, video, documents)

Must get rid of (or control better) spam