Theory of Computation
at Harvard

People | Research | Positions | Courses

Harvard Theory of Computation Seminar (Calendar for 2006-2007)

Faculty and students in the Theory of Computation (Theoretical Computer Science) group aim to

• Understand the mathematical laws governing efficient computation, and
• Apply this understanding to address problems arising in other parts of computer science and mathematics, and in other fields such as neuroscience and physics.

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Faculty	PhD Students
Harry R. Lewis Michael Mitzenmacher David Parkes Michael O. Rabin Salil Vadhan Leslie G. Valiant Noam D. Elkies (Math Dept)	Kai-Min Chung Shaili Jain Adam Kirsch Zhenming Liu Loizos Michael

Recent Alumni and Visitors
Jin-Yi Cai (Visiting Faculty ’08) Alex Healy (Ph.D. ’07) Dan Gutfreund (Postdoc & AM Lecturer ’05-’07) Vitaly Feldman (Ph.D. ’06) Emanuele Viola (Ph.D. ’06) Omer Reingold (CRCS Visiting Scholar, ’05) David Zuckerman (Radcliffe Fellow, ’04-’05) Dana Ron (Radcliffe Fellow, ’03-’04) Madhu Sudan (Radcliffe Fellow, ’03-’04) Adam Klivans (Postdoc ’02-’03) Yan Zhong Ding (Ph.D. ’01)	Yevgeniy Dodis (Visiting Faculty ’08) Shien Jin Ong (Ph.D. ’07) Alon Rosen (CRCS Postdoc ’05-’07) Minh-Huyen Nguyen (Ph.D. ’06) Eleni Drinea (Ph.D. ’05) Amir Shpilka (Postdoc ’04-’05, joint w/MIT) Oded Goldreich (Radcliffe fellow, ’03-’04) Ronitt Rubinfeld (Radcliffe fellow, ’04) Eli Ben-Sasson (Postdoc ’01-’03) Rocco Servedio (Ph.D. ’01, Postdoc ’01-’02)

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Research Areas

• Design and Analysis of Algorithms: Mitzenmacher, Rabin, Valiant
• Computational Complexity: Vadhan, Valiant
• Logic in Computer Science: Lewis
• Error-Correcting Codes: Elkies, Mitzenmacher
• Cryptography: Rabin, Vadhan
• Learning Theory & Cognitive Computation: Valiant
• Randomness in Computation: Mitzenmacher, Rabin, Vadhan
• Quantum Computation: Valiant
• Computational Algebra & Number Theory: Elkies, Rabin
• Parallel Computation: Rabin, Valiant
• Computational Mechanism Design & Game Theory: Parkes

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Positions at Harvard

• Computer Science Faculty Positions: http://www.eecs.harvard.edu/index/eecs_jobs.php.
• Graduate study (S.M. and Ph.D.)
• Theory Group Postdocs: Occasionally, we have postdoc positions available. If you are interested in such a position, e-mail theory-postdoc-app@eecs.harvard.edu with a CV, research statement, and a list of three references.
• Postdocs & Visiting Scholar Positions at the Center for Research on Computation and Society: Current foci include "Privacy & Security".
• Applied Math Lectureships: TBD
• Computer Science Faculty Positions: TBD
• Faculty-level Fellowships at the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study
• Benjamin Peirce Lectureships in the Math Dept

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Courses Related to TOC

Fall 2008

• CS 121: Introduction to Formal Systems and Computation
• CS 226r: Efficient Algorithms

Spring 2009

• CS 124: Data Structures and Algorithms
• CS 221: Computational Complexity
• CS 225: Pseudorandomness
• CS 228: Computational Learning Theory
• AM 107: Graph Theory and Combinatorics

Past Courses

• CS 124: Data Structures and Algorithms (Spring 2008)
• CS 221: Computational Complexity (Spring 2007)
• CS 120: Introduction to Cryptography
• CS 220r: Cryptography: Trust and Adversity (Fall 2006)
• CS 222: Algorithms at the Ends of the Wire (Fall 2006)
• AM 106: Applied Algebra and Combinatorics (Fall 2006)
• CS 127: Computational Geometry (Spring 2005)

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Harvard Theory of Computation Seminar