How LLMs Are Revolutionizing Computer Science Research
Professor Juliana Freire (New York University, USA)
To celebrate the achievements of IPN in the past 25 years, IPN is organising a special, online series of colloquia in which world-renowned computer scientists give their view on the progress in, and future of the field of computer science. These colloquia will feature thought-provoking presentations that are of interest to a broad (academic) computer science audience. Although these colloquia are initially aimed at the Dutch computer science community, they are open to interested people around the world!
Abstract
Large Language Models have fundamentally transformed computer science research, from unlocking previously intractable problems to expanding our research methodology beyond traditional algorithmic approaches to include empirical exploration—designing experiments to observe model behavior, measuring performance across diverse tasks, and grappling with non-deterministic outcomes. This transformation is evident in data discovery and integration, where LLMs demonstrate remarkable capabilities in contextualizing datasets, understanding semantic relationships across diverse datasets, and streamlining data harmonization. Yet these advances come with significant challenges: hallucinations that generate plausible but incorrect information, the urgent need for new human-in-the-loop interfaces, and environmental concerns about energy-intensive computations.
This lecture uses data discovery and integration as a lens to examine these fundamental questions, exploring how we can harness LLMs’ unprecedented capabilities and develop new methodologies that enhance rather than replace human expertise while preserving scientific rigor.
Date, Time, Location
The colloquium will take place on June 19, 2025, 16:00 – 17:00 (CEST).
The colloquium will be hosted as a Teams webinar. You can find the connection details on the IPN website: https://ict-research.nl/ipn-colloquia/ or join the colloquium directly here.
We are looking forward to seeing you on June 19th!