Events
Past Event
WED@NICO WEBINAR: Maksim Kitsak, Delft University of Technology
Northwestern Institute on Complex Systems (NICO)
12:00 PM
Details
Speaker:
Maksim Kitsak, Assistant Professor, Electrical Engineering, Mathematics and Computer Science, Delft University of Technology
Title:
Geometric Representations of Complementarity-Driven Networks
Abstract:
Similarity is one of the key principles underlying the formation of social networks: the more similar individuals are the higher is the chance for a social interaction between them. Latent geometry provides an elegant way to model similarity in social networks. Network nodes are viewed as points in underlying latent or hidden space, such that distances between them quantify node similarities: the smaller the distance between the two nodes the more similar they are. It is the similarity interpretation of latent distances that lies at the origin of many applications of network embeddings, including link prediction, soft community detection and clustering, network navigation, and search.
In my talk, however, I will focus on another class of networks that are shaped not only by similarity but also by the complementarity principle. Examples of complementarity-driven networks include interdisciplinary collaboration networks, networks of interacting proteins, and, possibly, food webs. Indeed, individuals with complementary expertise are more likely to solve an interdisciplinary problem of interest, and interactions often take place between proteins with complementary chemical properties and/or complementary binding interfaces. One of the most popular food web network models, the niche model, is based not on the similarity but on the complementarity principle, as I will demonstrate.
I will argue that existing network embedding methods are not readily applicable to complementarity-driven networks. I will then deduce a proper framework for the representations of complementarity-driven networks and demonstrate its efficiency in network reconstruction tasks.
Speaker Bio:
Maksim Kitsak is an assistant professor in the faculty of Electrical Engineering, Mathematics and Computer Science at the Delft University of Technology. Dr. Kitsak earned his Ph.D. in theoretical physics from Boston University. Dr. Kitsak has held postdoctoral positions at the Center for Applied Internet Data Analysis (CAIDA), UC San Diego; and the Center for Complex Network Research (CCNR), Northeastern University. His research focuses on the development of theoretical and computational approaches to networked systems, with diverse applications ranging from systems biology to civil infrastructure. Results of his research have been published in top cross-disciplinary journals, such as Nature, Nature Physics, Science, and Science Advances, and have received broad media coverage.
Webinar:
Webinar link: https://northwestern.zoom.us/j/91064172482
Passcode: nico
ID: 910 6417 2482
About the Speaker Series:
Wednesdays@NICO is a vibrant weekly seminar series focusing broadly on the topics of complex systems and data science. It brings together attendees ranging from graduate students to senior faculty who span all of the schools across Northwestern, from applied math to sociology to biology and every discipline in-between. Please visit: https://bit.ly/WedatNICO for information on future speakers.
Time
Wednesday, January 20, 2021 at 12:00 PM - 1:00 PM
Contact
Calendar
Northwestern Institute on Complex Systems (NICO)
WED@NICO SEMINAR: Lightning Talks w/ Northwestern Scholars!
Northwestern Institute on Complex Systems (NICO)
12:00 PM
//
Lower Level, Chambers Hall
Details
Speakers:
Yessica Herrera, Visiting Scholar, Northwestern Institute on Complex Systems
Talk Title: The Body Speaks: Visual Patterns of Psychological Stress
Aakriti Kumar, Post-Doctoral Fellow, Northwestern Institute on Complex Systems
Talk Title: Evaluating Elements of Empathic Communication with Experts, Crowds, and Large Language Models
Tingyu "Mark" Zhao, PhD Student, Industrial Engineering and Management Sciences
Talk Title: Noise Filtering in Complex Networks
Sign Up:
Sign up to present at a future Lightning Talk session. NICO Lightning Talks are open to graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, and visiting scholars.
Location:
In person: Chambers Hall, 600 Foster Street, Lower Level
Remote option: https://northwestern.zoom.us/j/95387714084
Passcode: NICO25
About the Speaker Series:
Wednesdays@NICO is a vibrant weekly seminar series focusing broadly on the topics of complex systems, data science and network science. It brings together attendees ranging from graduate students to senior faculty who span all of the schools across Northwestern, from applied math to sociology to biology and every discipline in-between. Please visit: https://bit.ly/WedatNICO for information on future speakers.
Time
Wednesday, May 14, 2025 at 12:00 PM - 1:00 PM
Location
Lower Level, Chambers Hall Map
Contact
Calendar
Northwestern Institute on Complex Systems (NICO)
WED@NICO SEMINAR: Rosemary Braun, Northwestern University "The Scale of Life"
Northwestern Institute on Complex Systems (NICO)
12:00 PM
//
Lower Level, Chambers Hall
Details
Speaker:
Rosemary Braun, Associate Professor, Department of Molecular Biosciences, Northwestern University
Title:
The Scale of Life
Abstract:
Living systems exhibit surprising and beautiful self-organization at all scales. At the atomic level, proteins self-assemble into macromolecular complexes. The function of these machines is orchestrated within the cell by regulatory networks, whose activity is in turn dictated by, and coordinated with, the cells environment. This coordination takes place across large spans of space and time: the size and lifetime of organisms as large as the blue whale. Populations and ecosystems of many organisms in turn exhibit remarkable emergent dynamics. Today, advances in single-cell assays enable us to probe the molecular state of every cell in a sample in high-dimensional detail. But is this the correct scale at which to probe living systems? What can we learn from this data, and how can we abstract from the microscopic details to macroscopic phenotypes? In this talk, I will discuss some of our recent work bridging the cell and tissue/organism scales, and discuss some challenges and opportunities for the future.
Speaker Bio:
Rosemary Braun is an Associate Professor of Molecular Biosciences, Applied Mathematics [ESAM], and Physics at Northwestern University. A theoretical physicist by training, she earned her PhD in Physics from the University of Illinois, followed by a Masters in Biostatistics from Johns Hopkins University. She completed her postdoctoral training at the National Cancer Institute (NIH) before joining Northwestern as a faculty member. Today, she works at the intersection of statistics, mathematics, and biology to develop computational tools for analyzing high-dimensional data. In addition to her Northwestern affiliations, she is also Associate Director of the National Institute for Theory and Mathematics in Biology, as well as external faculty of the Santa Fe Institute.
Location:
In person: Chambers Hall, 600 Foster Street, Lower Level
Remote option: https://northwestern.zoom.us/j/97015976754
Passcode: NICO25
About the Speaker Series:
Wednesdays@NICO is a vibrant weekly seminar series focusing broadly on the topics of complex systems, data science and network science. It brings together attendees ranging from graduate students to senior faculty who span all of the schools across Northwestern, from applied math to sociology to biology and every discipline in-between. Please visit: https://bit.ly/WedatNICO for information on future speakers.
Time
Wednesday, May 21, 2025 at 12:00 PM - 1:00 PM
Location
Lower Level, Chambers Hall Map
Contact
Calendar
Northwestern Institute on Complex Systems (NICO)