Conference: Symposium on Combinatorial Search (SoCS) 2023

This grant supports student travel for select students participating in the Doctoral Mentoring Consortium (DMC) at the Sixteenth Symposium on Combinatorial Search (SOCS 2023) being held in Prague, Czech Republic, July 14-16, 2023. This is the premier international workshop for researchers in heuristic and combinatorial search across a fully international research community.

This consortium is oriented on research and career development for PhD students at every stage of their education. The central activities for the DMC include opportunities for students to present and discuss their work with their peers, interact with senior researchers for advice on Ph.D. research, small group activities, and a great opportunities for interactions with the international research community, which might lead to future collaborative activity.

Sponsoring student travel to SOCS conveys many benefits beyond the DMC program. The sponsored students have full access to a well-developed program covering a diverse range of research areas in this community. This is an opportunity for students to engage in discussion with scientists from around the world and to explore new research directions and topics.

SOCS is an international symposium that will figure prominently in the research careers of students who remain involved in heuristic and combinatorial search. Students gain valuable research insights from the exchange of technical ideas in this broader venue. In the process, they make valuable connections with potential collaborators from around the world.

As intelligent software and embodies systems become more prevalent, it is clear that advances derived from this community will continue to have significant impact in virtually any domain imaginable, including such national priorities as health and well-being, e-commerce, and national defense.

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.