Team
Yasin Yilmaz, PI, Assistant Professor, Electrical Engineering Department, USF
http://www.eng.usf.edu/~yasiny/
Dr. Yilmaz is responsible for developing computational models for SLR scenarios (see Thrust 1), as well as reaching out to stakeholders to produce stakeholder-specific reports and to improve the computational models. He will also lead the efforts for DCPR and data privacy (see Thrust 3), in which PIs Bush, Hafen and Carney will help with data collection from community and stakeholders, and the Senior Personnel Chang will help in ensuring privacy of collected data.
His research expertise covers the broad areas of statistical data analysis and machine learning. Specifically, he has developed algorithms with theoretical performance guarantees for sequential decision making (including reinforcement learning), multimodal data fusion, and anomaly/intrusion detection systems with applications in social networks, transportation systems, smart grid, nuclear fuel cycle, wireless communications, and cybersecurity. Dr. Yilmaz is the recipient of the 2015 Collaborative Research Award from Columbia University.
Alan Bush, co-PI, Lecturer, Honors College, USF
http://www.usf.edu/honors/prospective-students/faculty-bush.aspx
http://www.usf.edu/honors/prospective-students/dr-bush-faculty-spotlight.aspx
Dr. Bush leads the social sciences research, in which he receives help from PI Hafen, and other potential collaborators within the Anthropocene Working Group. He will also supervise undergraduate students for effective community engagement. He is already supervising an undergraduate student to identify the SLR stakeholder map in Tampa Bay through social network analysis (Figure in Community Engagement). He also guides the project management structure based on dynamic governance and complexity leadership theory.
He has worked for more than ten years on projects fostering community resilience. His work has spanned four continents, and allowed him to work with the social sector, corporations, and in higher education. His current research focuses on leadership as an emergent property of relationships, and the leadership practices that foster resilience for organizations and large-scale urban systems. Dr. Bush’s research interests include complex systems, urban agriculture, ensemble leadership, resilience, innovation in business model and organizational form, affordable housing, and bio-adaptive urban infrastructure.
Mark Hafen, co-PI, Assistant Director & Master Instructor, School of Public Affairs, USF
http://www.usf.edu/arts-sciences/departments/public-affairs/about-us/faculty.aspx
Dr. Hafen leads the gaming thrust with support from the other PIs. He is also the point of contact in the core team for most of the stakeholders thanks to his strong ties with the community over 30 years. Through his expertise on SLR and his collaborations with the professors at the USF College of Marine Science, including Dr. Gary Mitchum, Dr. Albert Hine, Dr. Don Chambers, and Dr. Mark Luther, who are leading experts on climate change and SLR, he also helps in the development of computational models in Thrust 1.
He is the Director of the Master of Urban & Regional Planning (MURP) program at USF, focusing on climate change adaptation, and urban environmental policy and planning. He has professional experience in land use planning, and has lived in the Tampa Bay region since 1986. He has co-authored a book, "Sea Level Rise in Florida: Science, Impacts and Options" (Hine et al., 2016, University Press of Florida), and actively serves as a member of the Tampa Bay Climate Science Advisory Panel, the Tampa Bay Regional Resiliency Coalition, and the Florida Water and Climate Alliance.
Salman Sadiq Shuvo, PhD student, Electrical Engineering Department, USF
Mr. Shuvo is responsible for designing and implementing the Markov decision process (MDP) models and deep reinforcement learning (RL) algorithms for the agent-based scenario planning. His research interests include RL, climate analytics, power system analytics, and the interplay between them through renewable energy and electric vehicles.
Ryan Carney, Collaborator, Assistant Professor of Digital Science, USF & National Geographic Emerging Explorer
http://biology.usf.edu/ib/faculty/rcarney/
Dr. Carney is responsible for developing visualization tools for possible SLR scenarios (see Thrust 2). He will get help from PI Yilmaz for analyzing data from computational models, from PI Hafen for deployment of developed tools within community, and from a postdoc for GIS analysis and visualization.
His two main research foci involve visualization and analysis of paleontological (dinosaurs) and epidemiological (diseases) data. He has 15 years of experience using each of Maya 3D modeling/animation software and ArcGIS geographic information systems (GIS) software, and previously interned at Google where he developed a visualization dashboard for corporate planning. His ongoing work involves developing interactive content – fossil animations, digital elevation maps – in virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) systems for research and teaching. This work is also integrated into a course that he pioneered at USF, called "Digital Dinosaurs", which provides students with training in these and other next-generation technologies. Dr. Carney recently received the 2018 Outstanding Faculty Award from USF.