Department of Computer Science and Applied Mathematics 

Tamar Flash, Head


The principal interests of the department lie in the areas of computer science and applied mathematics. Research in computer science includes the study of computational complexity, the development and analysis of algorithms, cryptography, proof theory, parallel and distributed computing, logic of programs, specification methodologies, the formal study of hybrid systems, combinatorial games, biological applications, brain modeling, visual perception and recognition, robotics and motion control. Research in applied mathematics includes dynamical systems, combinatorics, numerical analysis, the use of mathematical techniques to elucidate phenomena of interest in the natural sciences, such as biology and geophysics, and on the development of new numerical tools for solving differential equations, computing integrals, providing efficient approximations to complex continuous models, and solving other mathematical problems.

The departmental computer facilities include a multiple-CPU server, SGI, Sun and DEC workstations, and NCD X-terminals. The vision and robotics laboratories contain state-of-the-art equipment, including an Adept four-axis SCARA manipulator, an Eshed Robotec Scorbot ER IVV manipulator, Optotrak system for three-dimensional motion tracking, and a variety of input and output devices.


R. Basri 

Developing new methods for object recognition and classification.

Designing algorithms for perceptual grouping and segmentation.

Applying methods from computer vision to visual robot navigation.


A. Brandt 

Multi-level computational methods, scientific computation.


U. Feige 

NP-hard combinatorial optimization problems, computational complexity, algorithms, cryptography, random walks, combinatorial optimization.


T. Flash 

Robotics, motor control and learning, movement disorders, computational neuroscience, virtual reality.


O. Goldreich 

Probabilistic proof systems, Pseudorandomness, Foundations of Cryptography, Complexity theory.


S. Goldwasser 

Probabilistic proofs, cryptography, computational number theory, complexity theory.


D. Harel 

Visual formalisms, software engineering, biological modeling, graph drawing and visualization, odor communication and synthesis


M. Irani 

Video information analysis and applications, Computer Vision, Image Processing.


D. Michelson 

Numerical analysis, differential equations, dynamical systems.


M. Naor 

Cryptography and Complexity

Distributed Computing

Concrete Complexity


D. Peleg 

Graph algorithms, approximation algorithms, distributed computing, fault tolerance, communication networks


A. Pnueli 

Temporal logic, specification, verification (deductive and algorithmic), development and synthesis of reactive, real-time and hybrid systems, verification of hardware designs, and optimizing compilers, translation validation.


R. Raz 

Boolean circuit complexity, arithmetic circuit complexity, communication complexity, propositional proof theory, probabilistic checkable proofs, quantum computation and communication, derandomization.


V. Rom-Kedar 

Transport and mixing in fluid flows.

Structure of highly chaotic systems (smooth billiard potentials).

Structure of near-integrable Hamiltonian systems.


A. Shamir

Cryptography, cryptanalysis, electronic money, smartcard security, internet security, complexity theory, the design and analysis of algorithms.


E. Shapiro 

Biomolecular computing, computing with protein machines, biochemical and computational theories related to the origin of life.


E. Titi

Nonlinear Partial Differential Equations

  1.  Infinite-dimensional dynamical systems

  2.  Numerical analysis of dissipative PDEs

  3.  Control theory for dissipative systems

Fluid Dynamics

  1.  Navier-Stokes and related equations

  2.  Turbulence theory

  3.  Geophysical models of aceanic and atmospheric dynamics


S. Ullman 

Vision, image understanding, brain theory, artificial intelligence.