The Alfred P. Sloan Foundation has named Boris Hanin, Chi Jin and Aleksandra Korolova 2024 Sloan Research Fellows.
The fellowships honor creative early-career researchers in the sciences and social sciences. Five Princeton faculty members were awarded Sloan fellowships this year, and 248 Princeton faculty have received Sloan fellowships since they were first awarded in 1955. More than 1000 researchers are nominated each year for 126 fellowship slots.
Hanin, an assistant professor of operations research and financial engineering, was awarded a fellowship in mathematics. His work is on deep learning, probability and spectral asymptotics. In recent work Hanin has applied his background in mathematical physics to begin identifying fundamental principles that govern the behavior of large neural networks, the massive algorithms behind many artificial intelligence systems. Currently such systems are expensive to build, in part because making even small adjustments to design choices can require massive computing power. Hanin aims to provide mathematical tools that allow developers to improve their designs before building the actual systems. Prior to Princeton, he was an assistant professor in mathematics at Texas A&M University. He earned his Ph.D. in mathematics at Northwestern University and joined the Princeton faculty in 2020.
Jin, an assistant professor of electrical and computer engineering, was awarded a fellowship in computer science. He studies the mathematical underpinnings of machine learning and artificial intelligence. His work focuses on theoretical foundations and algorithms in machine learning, optimization, statistics, and game theory, with a particular emphasis on reinforcement learning, a branch of machine learning that guides decision-making through rewards and penalties. These issues are crucial in real-world applications like robotics, autonomous vehicles, medical diagnostics and gaming. Jin is an associated member of the computer science faculty. He earned his Ph.D. in computer science at the University of California-Berkeley and joined the Princeton faculty in 2019.
Korolova, assistant professor of computer science, was awarded a fellowship in computer science. She researches the impacts of algorithms, AI and data-driven machine learning on society and individuals. All social media platforms use algorithms to curate information, but those algorithms can violate user privacy or be biased in ways that are detrimental to users. Korolova’s research focuses on how to build algorithms and machine learning systems that are fair, preserve privacy and enable data-driven innovations. She holds a joint appointment in the School of Public and International Affairs and is associated faculty in the Center for Information Technology Policy. Prior to Princeton she was professor of computer science at the University of Southern California. Korolova completed her Ph.D. in computer science at Stanford and joined the Princeton faculty in 2022.
Sloan Fellows receive a two-year, $75,000 fellowship that can be used flexibly. Fellowship candidates must be nominated by fellow scientists, and winners are selected based on a candidate’s research accomplishments, creativity and potential to become a leader in their field. Former fellows have gone on to receive some of science’s top honors, including Nobel Prizes and Fields Medals.
