Conference: NSF:FOCS Conference Student and Postdoc Travel Support

The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Symposium on Foundations of Computer Science (FOCS) is one of the premier annual research conferences that cover the breadth of theoretical computer science. It is a conference of very long standing that has continued to play a formative role in the field; it is also at the leading edge of connections made to other areas. This project aims to increase the impact of this conference on students and postdoctoral researchers, particularly those from under-represented groups, by encouraging and enabling their participation, especially in cases where travel expenses would otherwise preclude their attendance. Concretely, this project assists US-based students and postdoctoral fellows in attending the 2024 Annual FOCS conference, sponsored by the IEEE Computer Society Technical Committee on Mathematical Foundations of Computing (TCMF). The coming FOCS will take place in Chicago, IL, October 27-30, 2024. As computing becomes ubiquitous, it is crucial to expand the participation of young scholars in cutting-edge research. FOCS has served as one of the most important venues for groundbreaking research in theoretical computer science – and, increasingly, as a key ambassador to other areas within and outside computer science. We anticipate the conference presentations and discussions will expose students and postdoctoral researchers to a broad set of fundamental questions and ideas. We expect the community to benefit in turn, as such junior researchers have contributed substantially to the growth of theoretical computer science over the years. With an emphasis on junior scholars in need, supporting the participation of junior researchers from underrepresented populations in the stimulating exchange of ideas benefits all conference attendees. As the tools and techniques from theoretical computer science (such as novel models, algorithms, impossibility results, and unexpected connections in data science and machine learning) are becoming vital to several domains inside and outside computer science, it is anticipated that such broader participation of junior researchers will benefit society at large. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.