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  • Nov
    11

    Statistical Foundation of Long-Horizon Reinforcement Learning

    Department of Industrial Engineering and Management Sciences (IEMS)

    11:00 AM L440, Technological Institute

    EVENT DETAILSmore info

    Abstract: Reinforcement learning (RL) in the infinite-horizon average-reward setting is essential for optimizing long-term, continuous tasks. In contrast to its finite-horizon or discounted counterparts, this setting presents unique challenges due to the genuinely unbounded planning horizon and arbitrarily large statistical complexity of suboptimal policies. This talk explores the statistical foundation of average-reward RL. Using the optimal bias span as a sharp, instance-dependent complexity measure, we examine learning guarantees across the batch, offline and online settings. We establish the first set of results on span-based optimal sample complexity without prior knowledge of the complexity parameters. We also characterize the fundamental limits of natural algorithm classes in both the weakly communicating and the general (multichain) settings. Our results highlight the crucial role of the communicating structures of the underlying MDP, and as a by-product lead to improvements in the discounted setting.

    Bio: Yudong Chen is currently an Associate Professor in the Department of Computer Sciences, University of Wisconsin-Madison. Previously he was an Associate Professor in the School of Operations Research and Information Engineering, Cornell University. He received the B.S. and M.S. degrees in control science and engineering from Tsinghua University and the Ph.D. degree in electrical and computer engineering from The University of Texas at Austin. His research works lie in machine learning, reinforcement learning, high-dimensional statistics, and optimization. His research has been recognized by the National Science Foundation CAREER Award, the Best Student Paper Award from ACM SIGMETRICS, the Best Student Paper Prize from the INFORMS Applied Probability Society, and the 2nd Place in the INFORMS George Nicholson Student Paper Competition.

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    TIME Tuesday, November 11, 2025 at 11:00 AM - 12:00 PM

    LOCATION L440, Technological Institute    map it

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    CONTACT Kendall Minta    kendall.minta@gmail.com EMAIL

    CALENDAR Department of Industrial Engineering and Management Sciences (IEMS)

  • Dec
    11

    MLDS Online Information Session

    Master of Science in Machine Learning and Data Science (MLDS)

    10:00 AM

    EVENT DETAILSmore info

    TIME Thursday, December 11, 2025 at 10:00 AM - 11:00 AM

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    CONTACT Master of Science in Machine Learning and Data Science Program    mlds@northwestern.edu EMAIL

    CALENDAR Master of Science in Machine Learning and Data Science (MLDS)

  • Dec
    13

    Northwestern Engineering PhD Hooding and Master's Recognition Ceremony

    McCormick School of Engineering and Applied Science

    4:00 PM Pick-Staiger Concert Hall

    EVENT DETAILS

    TIME Saturday, December 13, 2025 at 4:00 PM - 6:00 PM

    LOCATION Pick-Staiger Concert Hall    map it

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    CONTACT Andi Joppie    andi.joppie@northwestern.edu EMAIL

    CALENDAR McCormick School of Engineering and Applied Science

  • Jan
    27

    IEMS Seminar 1/27 Bryon Aragam Winter 2026

    Department of Industrial Engineering and Management Sciences (IEMS)

    11:00 AM TBD, Technological Institute

    EVENT DETAILSmore info

    TIME Tuesday, January 27, 2026 at 11:00 AM - 12:00 PM

    LOCATION TBD, Technological Institute    map it

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    CONTACT Kendall Minta    kendall.minta@gmail.com EMAIL

    CALENDAR Department of Industrial Engineering and Management Sciences (IEMS)

  • Feb
    3

    IEMS Seminar 02/03 Kibaek Kim Winter 2026

    Department of Industrial Engineering and Management Sciences (IEMS)

    11:00 AM TBD, Technological Institute

    EVENT DETAILSmore info

    TIME Tuesday, February 3, 2026 at 11:00 AM - 12:00 PM

    LOCATION TBD, Technological Institute    map it

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    CONTACT Kendall Minta    kendall.minta@gmail.com EMAIL

    CALENDAR Department of Industrial Engineering and Management Sciences (IEMS)

  • Feb
    10

    IEMS Seminar 2/10 Feng Ruan Winter 2026

    Department of Industrial Engineering and Management Sciences (IEMS)

    11:00 AM TBD, Technological Institute

    EVENT DETAILSmore info

    TIME Tuesday, February 10, 2026 at 11:00 AM - 12:00 PM

    LOCATION TBD, Technological Institute    map it

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    CONTACT Kendall Minta    kendall.minta@gmail.com EMAIL

    CALENDAR Department of Industrial Engineering and Management Sciences (IEMS)

  • Mar
    3

    IEMS Seminar 03/03 Shane Henderson Winter 2026

    Department of Industrial Engineering and Management Sciences (IEMS)

    11:00 AM TBD, Technological Institute

    EVENT DETAILSmore info

    TIME Tuesday, March 3, 2026 at 11:00 AM - 12:00 PM

    LOCATION TBD, Technological Institute    map it

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    CONTACT Kendall Minta    kendall.minta@gmail.com EMAIL

    CALENDAR Department of Industrial Engineering and Management Sciences (IEMS)

  • Mar
    10

    IEMS Seminar 3/10 Nabarun Deb Winter 2026

    Department of Industrial Engineering and Management Sciences (IEMS)

    11:00 AM TBD, Technological Institute

    EVENT DETAILSmore info

    TIME Tuesday, March 10, 2026 at 11:00 AM - 12:00 PM

    LOCATION TBD, Technological Institute    map it

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    CONTACT Kendall Minta    kendall.minta@gmail.com EMAIL

    CALENDAR Department of Industrial Engineering and Management Sciences (IEMS)