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Events

  • Mar
    17

    CS Seminar: Toward Human-Centered Embodied AI (Ruohan Zhang)

    Department of Computer Science (CS)

    12:00 PM 3512, Mudd Hall ( formerly Seeley G. Mudd Library)

    EVENT DETAILS

    Monday / CS Seminar
    March 17th / 12:00 PM
    Hybrid / Mudd 3514

    Speaker
    Ruohan Zhang, Stanford Vision

    Talk Title
    Toward Human-Centered Embodied AI

    Abstract
    My research focuses on developing human-centered, human-inspired, and human-compatible embodied AI, structured around three pillars: human tasks, human data, and human interfaces. To systematically study intelligent behaviors (both human and artificial) in natural tasks and environments, we develop BEHAVIOR, a comprehensive simulation toolkit that supports 1,000 essential everyday tasks identified through large-scale survey studies. BEHAVIOR instantiates these tasks in interactive and ecologically valid virtual environments utilizing the state-of-the-art physics simulator. My approach to achieving human-level performance in these tasks requires embodied AI systems to learn from multimodal human data, such as body motion, eye movements, language, and reward signals. To enable such learning, we design novel interfaces that capture diverse human behavior data at scale, alongside algorithms that allow embodied agents to learn from such data effectively. To augment human capabilities and overcome their physical limitations (e.g., for patients with motor disabilities), we develop intelligent brain-robot interfaces, leveraging intracortical arrays and electroencephalogram (EEG), that can assist individuals in performing everyday tasks. For future work, we hope the infrastructure we have built can serve as powerful open-source tools that inspire and support a new generation of human-centered AI research, with the goals of understanding human brains and behaviors in natural tasks and environments, developing human-inspired and human-compatible AI solutions, and augmenting human capabilities with embodied AI.

    Biography
    Ruohan Zhang is a postdoctoral researcher at the Stanford Vision and Learning Lab, Institute for Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence (HAI), and Wu Tsai Human Performance Alliance, advised by Fei-Fei Li and Jiajun Wu. His research focuses on embodied AI, human-robot interaction, brain-computer interfaces, and cognitive science. He earned his Ph.D. in Computer Science from the University of Texas at Austin, advised by Dana Ballard and Mary Hayhoe. He has received several paper awards or nominations from robotics conferences and workshops. He has served as a program committee member, reviewer, or editor for conferences and journals in machine learning, robotics, and cognitive science, including NeurIPS, ICCV, ECCV, CoRL, RSS, ICRA, IROS, CogSci, Frontiers, and the Journal of Vision.

    Research/Interest Areas
    robotics; human-robot interaction; cognitive science; neuroscience

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    TIME Monday, March 17, 2025 at 12:00 PM - 1:00 PM

    LOCATION 3512, Mudd Hall ( formerly Seeley G. Mudd Library)    map it

    ADD TO CALENDAR

    CONTACT Wynante R Charles    wynante.charles@northwestern.edu EMAIL

    CALENDAR Department of Computer Science (CS)

  • Mar
    17

    Winter exams begin

    University Academic Calendar

    All Day

    EVENT DETAILS

    TIME Monday, March 17, 2025

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    CONTACT Office of the Registrar    nu-registrar@northwestern.edu EMAIL

    CALENDAR University Academic Calendar

  • Mar
    22

    Spring Break Begins

    University Academic Calendar

    All Day

    EVENT DETAILS

    TIME Saturday, March 22, 2025

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    CONTACT Office of the Registrar    nu-registrar@northwestern.edu EMAIL

    CALENDAR University Academic Calendar

  • Mar
    31

    Spring Break Ends

    University Academic Calendar

    All Day

    EVENT DETAILS

    TIME Monday, March 31, 2025

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    CONTACT Office of the Registrar    nu-registrar@northwestern.edu EMAIL

    CALENDAR University Academic Calendar

  • Apr
    3

    CS Research Track Program Showcase

    Department of Computer Science (CS)

    4:00 PM 3514, Mudd Hall ( formerly Seeley G. Mudd Library)

    EVENT DETAILS

    TIME Thursday, April 3, 2025 at 4:00 PM - 6:00 PM

    LOCATION 3514, Mudd Hall ( formerly Seeley G. Mudd Library)    map it

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    CONTACT Bella Barrios    marbella.barrios@northwestern.edu EMAIL

    CALENDAR Department of Computer Science (CS)

  • Jun
    15

    2024-2025 Commencement Ceremony

    University Academic Calendar

    All Day

    EVENT DETAILSmore info

    TIME Sunday, June 15, 2025

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    CONTACT Office of the Registrar    nu-registrar@northwestern.edu EMAIL

    CALENDAR University Academic Calendar

  • Jun
    16

    Northwestern Engineering PhD Hooding and Master's Degree Recognition Ceremony

    McCormick School of Engineering and Applied Science

    9:00 AM 2705 Ashland Ave

    EVENT DETAILS

    TIME Monday, June 16, 2025 at 9:00 AM - 11:00 AM

    LOCATION 2705 Ashland Ave   

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    CONTACT Northwestern Engineering Events    northwestern-engineering-events@northwestern.edu EMAIL

    CALENDAR McCormick School of Engineering and Applied Science

  • Jun
    16

    Northwestern Engineering Undergraduate Convocation

    McCormick School of Engineering and Applied Science

    2:00 PM 2705 Ashland Ave

    EVENT DETAILSmore info

    TIME Monday, June 16, 2025 at 2:00 PM - 4:00 PM

    LOCATION 2705 Ashland Ave   

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    CONTACT Northwestern Engineering Events    northwestern-engineering-events@northwestern.edu EMAIL

    CALENDAR McCormick School of Engineering and Applied Science