The Center for Astrostatistics and Astroinformtatics is hosting lunch seminars for the fall 2026 semester. The first seminar, "Millions of Spectra, Many Surveys, One Inference Problem: Statistical Learning at Survey Scale," will take place Thursday, Oct. 8, from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. in Pollock Dining Commons Room 204A. Aarya Patil, assistant professor of statistics, will be presenting.
The Institute for Computational and Data Sciences (ICDS) Symposium will be held on Wednesday, Oct. 14, from 8:45 a.m. to 5:20 p.m. in Alumni Hall, HUB-Robeson Center at Penn State University Park. This annual event will feature: Remarks from ICDS and Penn State leadership A keynote speaker: Mark Salvador, program manager in the Biological Technologies Office at the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) Panels and breakout sessions focused on building research collaborations, integrating AI into physical sciences and using AI for accelerating science and discovery Student Poster Session Registration for the ICDS Symposium is required by Sunday, Oct. 4 at 11:59 p.m. Register here: ICDS Symposium Registration Student Poster Session Details: Deadline to submit: Wednesday, Sept. 30 by 11:59 p.m. EST. Submit your poster here: Qualtrics Survey | Qualtrics Experience Management One author must be available to present their posters in person Must have an AI, data sciences or computational sciences component to be considered Poster must be 36 by 48 inches or 48 by 36 inches Must be registered for the ICDS Symposium Student Poster Session details can be found on the ICDS website.
The Quantum Scientific Computing Workshop will be held on Thursday, Oct. 15, from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. in MSC W201. This workshop will introduce emerging approaches in quantum scientific computing and explore how quantum computing can advance mathematical modeling, scientific computing, and data-driven discovery. The workshop is intended for faculty, researchers, graduate students, and others interested in quantum computing and its applications to scientific and engineering problems. The event is supported by ICDS Quantum Hub, Huck Center for AI and Mathematical Biology and the Center for Computational Mathematics and Applications. Find more details on the ICDS website. Questions? Email Wenrui Hao, professor of mathematics and event coordinator, at wxh64@psu.edu.
The Huck Institutes of the Life Sciences and the Institute for Computational and Data Sciences (ICDS) are hosting the Huck/ICDS AI Symposium on Thursday, Oct. 15, in Alumni Hall in the HUB-Robeson Center at Penn State University Park. The event will take place from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Registration is required by Oct. 1. Register via the Microsoft Form. The Symposium will bring together researchers across the life sciences, AI, data science and computational modeling to explore emerging opportunities for AI-driven discovery and innovation. Attendees can listen to research talks across three themes: AI for Molecular and Cellular Biology, AI for Food and Environment and AI for Health. Find the full list of speakers on Huck's website.
Artificial and biological intelligence can both be viewed as open systems that organize information through the exchange of energy under environmental and boundary constraints. Understanding how complex structures, functions and behaviors emerge from heterogeneous components across multiple scales remains a fundamental challenge spanning science and AI. The Zentropy theory provides a rigorous framework for understanding emergence across scales through the integration of quantum mechanics and statistical mechanics. Building upon that foundation, Zentropy-Enhanced Neural Network (ZENN) extends thermodynamic principles to AI and scientific machine learning. ZENN provides a framework for modeling complex multimodal and heterogeneous systems while preserving physical interpretability. The framework has demonstrated strong predictive performance, robustness and generalization in scientific modeling, classification and free-energy landscape reconstruction. ZENN introduces architectural principles that support interpretability, controllability and stability through configuration-based decomposition and thermodynamic constraints. These features provide a foundation for studying trustworthy and physically grounded AI systems whose behavior can be analyzed across different domains and for different reasons. Learn more by attending this workshop where presentations will be given based on topics like using ZENN for geography, modeling brain states and pollen identification, as well as how to integrate this framework into your own projects. This workshop will be held on Thursday, Oct. 15, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. in Pollock Dining Commons Room 204AB. Registration is required. Register here: ZENN AI Framework Workshop Find complete details on the ICDS website.
The TRAnscendIng Natural hazards forecasting (TRAIN) Center Initiative serves as EMS hub for natural hazards excellence by integrating cutting-edge computational research and student mentorship to advance the state-of-the-science and protect people, property, and the environment. TRAIN is organizing a hybrid seminar series this Fall 2026 leading up to AGU 2026 at the nexus of natural hazards and computation/forecasting focusing on the theme of “Computational Frontiers in Multi-Hazard Forecasting and Risk Assessment.” Seminars will be held on Fridays from 2 to 3 p.m. in person in 117 EESI and virtually via Zoom. Coffee and tea will be provided. On Friday, Oct. 16, Mirna Kassem, incoming assistant professor of civil and environmental engineering at Stanford and postdoc at UC Berkley, will present, "Regional-Scale Coupled Hydrological and Hillslope Stability Modeling of Rainfall-Induced Landslides." Find a full list of speakers on the EESI website.
Registration is required for the "Convergence Seminar Series: Digital Twins and Data Assimilation for Human Health and Well-Being" on Friday, Oct. 23, from noon to 1:30 p.m. in E215 Westgate Building. Join the Digital Twins Hub for a series of lightning talks and discussions exploring opportunities at the intersection of digital twins, data assimilation, prevention science, and computational modeling of human systems. The goal of the seminar is to identify new research collaborations and seed future interdisciplinary proposals across Penn State. Lunch will be provided. Register here: Convergence Seminar Series: Digital Twins and Data Assimilation for Human Health and Well-Being
The Institute for Computational and Data Sciences is co-coordinating with the Penn State Clinical and Translational Science Institute (CTSI) to host a research matchmaking workshop on Oct. 30 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the University Conference Center in Hershey. The event aims to identify priority research areas that will directly serve rural communities in Pennsylvania. Registration is required to attend and space is limited. The event will have five-minute flash talks, breakout sessions and opportunities to collaborate, with the goal of explicitly matching the healthcare needs and clinical challenges faced by Penn State Health and College of Medicine professionals with the AI and data science expertise of researchers from Penn State Harrisburg and University Park. Learn more