Esmail Abdul Fattah
I am currently serving as a Postdoctoral Researcher at the Extreme Computing Research Center at KAUST, where I have the privilege of working under the leadership of the center's director, Professor David Keyes. My research journey here is further enriched by the close collaboration and guidance I receive from Dr. Hatem Ltaief, whose expertise significantly contributes to my professional growth and research endeavors in this dynamic field. My academic journey led me to earn a Ph.D. in Statistics under the mentorship of Professor Håvard Rue, working within his esteemed research group at KAUST. My research is deeply interdisciplinary, blending my foundational knowledge in computer and computational science, as well as mathematics, into my present focus on computational Bayesian statistics and modeling. In this domain, I am dedicated to developing high-performance computing (HPC) tools to enhance Bayesian inference methods, bridging the gap between complex statistical theories and practical, efficient computational applications.
Education
Postdoctoral Researcher in High Performance Computing, King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, Saudi Arabia.
Ph.D. in Statistics, King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, Saudi Arabia.
Masters in Computational Science, American University of Beirut, Lebanon with GPA = 4.
Completed 12 credits towards Teaching Diploma, Lebanese International University, Khyara, Bekaa, Lebanon.
B.S. in Mathematics, Haigazian University, Beirut, Lebanon with GPA = 3.93.
Minor in Computer Sciences, Haigazian University, Beirut Lebanon.
Awards
The 2023 Al-Kindi Research Award for demonstrating outstanding research during my PhD from Statistics Department, KAUST.
Best presentation award for the 8th KAUST-NVIDIA Workshop on Accelerating Scientific Applications using GPUs, KAUST, Saudi Arabia
Winner for a poster award in the Bayesian Computation category at ISBA22, Montreal, Canada, for my project “Approximate Bayesian Inference for the Interaction Types 1, 2, 3 and 4 with Application in Disease Mapping”
Honored with a full merit-based graduate fellowship and assistant program for my Masters studies funded by the American University of Beirut
Awarded with a full merit-based scholarship program funded by USAID (United States Agency of International Development) for my undergraduate studies at Haigazian University
Winner of the “Outstanding Marketing Campaign Award” and second place in the “Social Entrepreneurship Competition”
Chosen as one of the top-rated students in demonstrating true Leadership by “Beyond Reform and Development”
News
𝐔𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐖𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐆𝐢𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐬!
𝟐𝟎𝟏𝟎 was tough. Bullied for loving to learn, I faced taunts and fear, but I stayed strong, not letting it stop my academic dreams.
𝟐𝟎𝟏𝟏 brought a big scholarship for my undergrad studies, a reward for hard work but with the pressure to keep high grades. I also had to take an extra English course, which was frustrating but ended up being a good turn. This was the year I moved from quiet Bekaa Valley to lively Beirut.
Read more.
Winner of the 2023 - Al Kindi Research Award!!!
Dec 23
Being honored with the 2023 Al Kindi Student Research Award during my tenure at KAUST is a moment of great pride and a significant milestone in my academic journey. This accolade not only fuels my passion for deeper exploration but also validates the importance of my contributions to the fields of optimization, spatial and Bayesian statistics, and high-performance computing. It serves as a powerful motivator, encouraging me to delve further into these captivating areas of research and continue making impactful discoveries.
Teaching Assistant at KAUST Academy for AI Program!
Jan - March 23
Teaching experience is always a cherished experience. You go as a teacher but you come back as a student with gained valuable insights and learning perspectives. A recent teaching experience was at KAUST Academy, a wonderful program that prepares students for a Master's in AI.
Learning is in itself an incredibly enjoyable experience and an endless opportunity for improvement!
Special thanks to Dr. Sultan Barakati, Dr. David Pugh and Angela Baranski!
Another remarkable experience!
If you are thirst to knowledge, enthusiasm to learn new skills, eager to unleash the inner power you have, and you want to improve your communication skills skills, build a professional network and learn more about design_thinking then entrepreneruship is what you are looking for! You can transform challenges to opportunities for change and development. AND HERE WHAT I WAS PART OF:
Entrepreneurship for All program - special edition - Summer 2021 at KAUST and it was in partnership with UC Berkeley, Stanford and Cornell University.
Thanks for the great three teams! AND FOR THE AMAZING KAUST INNOVATION TEAM!!!!
Yessss! Internationally certified coach !
Extremely excited to be a part of the upcoming peer coaching initiative at KAUST.
Special thanks to the awesome coach Luke Salway, Timothy Grubbs, MBA, PCC, and the professional development office at KAUST.
Program lead by Coachology !
Teaching is really fun!
Teaching assistant is assisting this fun!
I have been doing this type of assistant for four years now. I believe that you can't MASTER the knowledge you have without being able to explain it. AND when you learn it and keep practicing it, no one can take it from you!
To be honest I used to be that diligent student who always wants that "A"! This is how many educational systems are set to be or want us to be. However, the teacher plays a big role in changing this. I like curious students who keep asking to learn and to understand! SO BE CURIOUS! AND LET OTHERS BE CURIOUS OF HOW CURIOUS YOU ARE!
It is a very enlightening experience when you decide to assist in a different course each semester! It expands your knowledge, empowers your mind, and prepares you well for any future challenging research. AND you understand the teacher's perspective, styles, and some teaching tricks 😉.
Here are the courses I was part of as assistant so far:
1. Bayesian Statistics
2. c++
3. Numerical Linear Algebra
4. Linear Models
5. Numerical Computing
6. Discrete Models for Differential Equations
That's wonderful! Isn't it? 😉
You can assist YES !!! but you should have some impact and positive influence on how the course is taught.
In the photo, a new screen to assist me in assisting the above type of assistance 😁 and currently for cooking McMC questions for the Bayesian class 😋.
Poster Award!
My first visit to Canada is memorable and notable not for its fascinating nature only 😃 but because I have been selected for the poster award winner 🎉 in the Bayesian Computation category 💪🏻 in the International Society for Bayesian Analaysis, Montreal, 2️⃣0️⃣2️⃣2️⃣. See some stunning photos in the city here.
Today in Montréal I proved excellence in my research 💪🏻 I did it 🥳 Alhamdulillah!
Here is an arxiv paper:
My PhD Proposal, Feb 2022
The "crazy" technology has been changing the way we think! My PhD. proposal went fantastic today, and it has impressed the committee!
It tackles 4 fields:
1. Bayesian Statistics
2. Dense linear algebra
3. Unconstrained Optimization
4. High Performance Computing
INLA+ is on the way! (Integrated Nested Laplace Approximation Plus)
Adam is Smart!
Be like Adam.
(The Smart Gradient Project)
Adam, who is blind, wants to reach his fiance, Sarah, at the top of the mountain. He wants to compute the gradient at each point.
Sarah becomes nervous so quickly, so an accurate smart gradient is needed.
Adam can't see the top, but he can move steps around him and he can get the gradient numerically using his talking calculator.
(Let's say it is in an unconstrained optimization framework where the mode of the function is the top of the mountain and a gradient needed to be computed at each point.)
Luckly, Adam uses my Smart Gradient technique to reach Sarah. Instead of using the default directions to compute gradients: (1,0,0) - (0,1,0) - (0,0,1)
He uses different directions: (d11,d12,d13) - (d21,d22,d33) - (d31,d32,d33)
As simple as that! It is more efficient! more robust! more accurate!
Sarah is happy now. See the photo.
Here is my recent online published paper about Smart Gradient! It exploits coordinate transformation and previous descent directions to improve the accuracy of the gradient with essentially not much cost.
Adam is Smart!
Be like Adam.
PADILEIA Project!
My experience at PADILEIA has had an impact on my career, as it was the first station in the field of education. The project has been implemented by AUB and funded by King's College London in collaboration with Kayani organization.
This picture was the end of a busy fruitful year with students full of hope, energy and enthusiasm. I am confident enough that they are having plans that meet their aspirations.
Then I completed as a coordinator of the Math subject in the program lasted until this year, and resulted in the booklet (attached) starting with the first version 2018 and continues with more versions and development.
AND this for me will always keep teaching as career to be the career of passion, challenge and persistence!!!
Heroes Not Patients!
(Summer 2016)
Volunteering at Children Cancer Center of Lebanon was a unique rewarding experience in my life. It was one year ago when I heard about the chance to volunteer at CCCL. I grabbed this opportunity, attended the orientation workshop and began volunteering. As my role was to directly impact the survival of children fighting tragic illnesses and provide a family atmosphere full of love, hope, faith and fun. The children and teenagers were of various ages, backgrounds and interests. We performed many activities in the benefit of entertainment which they all seemed to enjoy, to name some: UNO, Babyfoot matches, building puzzles and many others. We watched TV Cartoons, sang music, and colored beautiful pictures together. At their rooms, we chatted, talked and laughed about funny stories that happened in our lives. They were as new sisters and brothers to me, with their cheerful smiles and joyful behavior. I often end my day with reading an interesting story to a child or playing against each other GTA on the computer. I was very sorry to see that children from one to eighteen years should have a chemotherapy every two weeks. One of the children was unable to talk, I became speechless in front of her. I tried to read a story to her and make some movements in my hands and face. With the cooperation of other volunteers, we tried to keep the children blissful by spreading love and ... Read more.