Intelligent approach to meeting technology needs of Gulf region

The launch marks the latest phase of a process designed to complement the Dubai government's objectives of transforming the Emirate's knowledge economy within the next decade. It will include a series of lectures and dedicated research workshops for IT professionals.

In a programme of teaching and activity designed to reach out to those sectors of the economy using computers, BUiD aims to draw experienced individuals and vocational leaders into a dialogue regarding the theory and practice of their specific vocations and industries.

This ambitious programme begins with a public lecture from Henry S. Thompson, a leading expert on Artificial Intelligence (AI) and cognitive science from the University of Edinburgh in Scotland.

The talk is entitled "Artificial Minds, Natural Computation: How computers have changed the way we think about ourselves". The lecture takes place at the British University in Dubai on Monday 29 October 2007, commencing at 18:00 hours.

"When humans try to understand how our minds work, they have always appealed to the most sophisticated technology of their age. My talk will explore the way in which the use of computers as models for the human mind has evolved over the last forty years or so," said Thompson.

The public lecture, informed by the particular use of computer models of human language, will be followed by a major event open to IT professionals from across the region. The Dubai Agents and Multi-Agent Systems (DAMAS) School will be held at The British University in Dubai from 27-30 January 2008, organized by BUiD's Autonomous and Adaptive Systems research group.

Agent-based Systems are computer systems comprised of several autonomous, intelligent, communicating systems (or agents). Researchers build on techniques and inspirations from such diverse arenas as game theory, economics, logic, and complex systems, in order to design efficient multi-agent systems.

The range of practical applications of multi-agent systems include automated trading in electronic markets, robotic football (soccer), distributed sensor networks, grid computing and intelligent workflow scheduling.

"In an unprecedented move, BUiD is bypassing conventional academic structures by inviting all employees from the information technology sector to participate in lectures and workshops," said Dr. Abdullah Alshamsi, University Vice-Chancellor, The British University in Dubai.

"This initiative provides compelling evidence of the University creating an intellectual environment that can meet the needs of enterprise in the region," he added.

The DAMAS School will cover the latest techniques on distributed artificial intelligence and its applications, with a major focus on electronic commerce (including auction design and automated trading). Course delivery will be provided by international experts from leading research teams, drawn from Duke University, the University of Edinburgh and the University of Michigan, among others.