Monday, August 24, 2026

• Virtual Event

  August 24, 2026 2:00 pm

  Pawar, M. (CSE) – Understanding Representations, Reasoning, and Decision-Making in Autonomous Driving Models


Virtual Event

August 24 @ 2:00 pm

Pawar, M. (CSE) – Understanding Representations, Reasoning, and Decision-Making in Autonomous Driving Models

Modern autonomous-driving models increasingly rely on learned representations and generated reasoning to interpret complex scenes and produce predictions or actions. However, it remains unclear what information these models encode, how that information is exposed through common interpretation methods, and whether their stated reasoning meaningfully influences their behavior. This research investigates these questions across motion-forecasting and vision-language-action models. Event Host: Manasi Pawar, Ph.D. Student, Computer Science & Engineering  Advisor: Leilani Gilpin Zoom: https://ucsc.zoom.us/j/92653015420?pwd=xEyOcy5ZuTcHN04La9w2KP1cmVY1ao.1 Passcode: 309299

• August 24, 2026 6:00 pm

  Empowering humans through AI


August 24 @ 6:00 pm

Empowering humans through AI

Join us for an inside look at how our AI Application Development courses provide hands‑on experience, industry‑driven projects, and the technical foundation you need to advance your career as an ML Engineer, MLOps Engineer, or Applied AI Researcher. Your speaker Kavitha Velusamy, Ph.D., brings more than 20 years of experience developing cutting-edge technologies at Amazon, NVIDIA, Cisco, Leia Inc., and Robust.AI. Kavitha currently serves as Senior Vice President of Engineering at Robust.AI and teaches Humanoid Robotics (Sept. 19) and Artificial Intelligence for Robotics (Sept. 26). Keep learning See our course page for a closer look at all upcoming offerings. CLAIM YOUR SEAT TODAY. 

Tuesday, August 25, 2026

• Hybrid Event

  August 25, 2026 11:00 am

  Gomez, J. (CSE) – Toward Sustainable and Secure Open Source Software: Discovery, Measurement, and Defense


Hybrid Event

August 25 @ 11:00 am

Gomez, J. (CSE) – Toward Sustainable and Secure Open Source Software: Discovery, Measurement, and Defense

In March 2024, a backdoor was discovered in xz Utils, a widely used open source data compression library present in nearly every major Linux distribution. The attack was discovered days before merging into major distributions, and if this had happened, it would have allowed attackers to execute arbitrary code on millions of systems worldwide via SSH. The success of this backdoor was enabled by two failures. The first was technical: weaknesses in the software supply chain allowed a malicious actor to inject code into a widely trusted release. The second was human: the project’s only maintainer, overwhelmed and burned out after […]

• Virtual Event

  August 25, 2026 2:00 pm

  Getting Involved in Your Campus Community


Virtual Event

August 25 @ 2:00 pm

Getting Involved in Your Campus Community

In this workshop, you will: Learn how to get involved with the campus community and how it supports student success. The Successful Slug Workshop series, hosted by Learning Support Services Peer Coaches, are open to all UCSC undergraduate students and focus on academic skills and tools to support your success as a student. At each workshop, you will be introduced to a topic, engage in active learning, be given resources to begin implementing the same day, and have an opportunity to learn more if you are interested. You Belong Here: The programs and services described here are open to all, consistent with state […]

• August 25, 2026 6:00 pm

  Designing for Today’s Digital World


August 25 @ 6:00 pm

Designing for Today’s Digital World

Design digital experiences people love to use. In today’s rapidly evolving tech landscape, organizations need professionals who can combine empathy, usability, and aesthetics to create interfaces that engage and delight users. Learn how UX and web design specialists use research‑driven methods, prototyping tools, and inclusive design principles to build seamless digital experiences across platforms. Speaker Join Nicole Sharratt, chair of the UCSC Silicon Valley Extension User Experience & Web Design program, for an inside look at how our courses equip you with the skills to lead user‑centered design projects—whether you’re shaping websites, apps or digital products. Keep learning See our course page for a closer look at all […]

Wednesday, August 26, 2026

• August 26, 2026 12:00 pm

  From Idea to Income: How to Validate Your Next Business Idea Before Investing More Time and Money

August 26 @ 12:00 pm
From Idea to Income: How to Validate Your Next Business Idea Before Investing More Time and Money
From Idea to Income: How to Validate Your Next Business Idea Before Investing More Time and Money With Sami Toussi Wednesday, Aug. 26, 2026 | Noon PT Virtual via Zoom Hosted by the UCLA Alumni Association, open to all UC alumni Most entrepreneurs don’t fail because they lack passion. They fail because they build something customers don’t actually want. In this interactive workshop, UCLA alumna and Business Strategist Sami Toussi will introduce the Lean Canvas framework and walk through the key questions every founder should answer to build a stronger business. You’ll learn how to identify your ideal customer, uncover unmet needs, […]
Free
• August 26, 2026 12:00 pm

  Bioinformatics: Lead the next wave of innovation


August 26 @ 12:00 pm

Bioinformatics: Lead the next wave of innovation

Where biology meets Big Data Join us for an inside look at how our Bioinformatics courses can help you strengthen your skills in data analysis, genomics, and software tools—preparing you to contribute to advances in biotech, pharmaceuticals, and healthcare. We’ll provide an overview of the curriculum, discuss current industry trends and workforce demand, highlight career opportunities, and answer your questions about getting started. Your speaker Darryl A. León, Ph.D., director, Software Portfolio Strategy at Agilent Technologies, has over 10 years of experience leading product management teams, launching customer-focused products, and partnering with R&D groups to deliver high-quality software, hardware, and cloud-based […]

• August 26, 2026 12:00 pm

  Bioinformatics: Lead the next wave of innovation


August 26 @ 12:00 pm

Bioinformatics: Lead the next wave of innovation

Where biology meets Big Data Join us for an inside look at how our Bioinformatics courses can help you strengthen your skills in data analysis, genomics, and software tools—preparing you to contribute to advances in biotech, pharmaceuticals, and healthcare. We’ll provide an overview of the curriculum, discuss current industry trends and workforce demand, highlight career opportunities, and answer your questions about getting started. Your speaker Darryl A. León, Ph.D., has over 10 years of experience leading product management teams, launching customer-focused products, and partnering with R&D groups to deliver high-quality software, hardware, and cloud-based solutions that support academic, biopharma, and clinical […]

• August 26, 2026 6:00 pm

  Where Hardware Meets Intelligence


August 26 @ 6:00 pm

Where Hardware Meets Intelligence

Embedded Systems: Build the Intelligence Behind the Hardware Join Juergen Kienhoefer to explore the foundations of embedded systems and how firmware powers the devices we use every day—plus get an introduction to how AI is transforming the field. Learn how our UCSC Silicon Valley Extension Embedded Systems courses prepare you to develop low-level software, interface with hardware components, and build reliable real-time applications for microcontrollers and embedded platforms, while gaining insight into emerging trends like AI at the edge. Discover how the hands-on courses can help advance your career in embedded systems engineering. Your speaker Juergen Kienhoefer, instructor of the AI-Driven Embedded Systems course, also […]

Thursday, August 27, 2026

• August 27, 2026 12:00 pm

  Advance your Career in Medical Device Design & Quality


August 27 @ 12:00 pm

Advance your Career in Medical Device Design & Quality

From discovery to market Join Kiran Gulati, chair of the UCSC Silicon Valley Extension Medical Device Quality and Design program, for an inside look at how our courses provide hands-on training, practical case studies, and industry-relevant skills that prepare you for roles in quality engineering, regulatory compliance, and design assurance. Sponsor This info session is sponsored by the UCSC Silicon Valley Extension Medical Device Quality and Design program. CLAIM YOUR SEAT TODAY. 

• Hybrid Event

  August 27, 2026 3:00 pm

  Kramer, A. (BMEB) – Scalable phylo-pangenomics


Hybrid Event

August 27 @ 3:00 pm

Kramer, A. (BMEB) – Scalable phylo-pangenomics

The COVID-19 pandemic generated genomic data at unprecedented scale, with tens of millions of SARS-CoV-2 genomes deposited in public repositories and thousands of new sequences added each day. This dissertation develops methods for analyzing genomic datasets at this scale, unified by the idea that encoding genomes according to their evolutionary relationships can make otherwise intractable computations practical. First, I evaluate online phylogenetic inference, in which new genomes are continuously added to an existing tree, and compare parsimony-based methods with maximum-likelihood approaches under pandemic time constraints. For densely sampled SARS-CoV-2 genomes, online inference with UShER and matOptimize produces trees comparable to established […]

• August 27, 2026 6:30 pm

  Educational Therapy Program Info Session


August 27 @ 6:30 pm

Educational Therapy Program Info Session

Transform learning Join Diana Black Kennedy, chair of UCSC Silicon Valley’s Educational Therapy program, to learn how this distinctive program prepares educators and professionals to create meaningful, lasting impact. As one of the few programs approved by the Association of Educational Therapists (AET), it equips you with the skills to assess learning differences and implement research-based, effective interventions with confidence. Empower students and build your practice Gain skills to support students with learning differences like dyslexia, ADHD, and autism using therapeutic and educational strategies. Whether you’re working in schools or starting a private practice, this program helps you create individualized plans that foster meaningful […]

Friday, August 28, 2026

• Hybrid Event

  August 28, 2026 10:00 am

  Nag, S. (BMEB) – Personalized Diploid Genome Graphs for Accurate Somatic Variant Discovery


Hybrid Event

August 28 @ 10:00 am

Nag, S. (BMEB) – Personalized Diploid Genome Graphs for Accurate Somatic Variant Discovery

Many somatic variant-calling pipelines begin by aligning tumor and matched-normal sequencing reads to a single linear reference genome, such as GRCh38. Because every individual differs substantially from this reference, this approach can introduce reference bias, causing reads to map incorrectly or not at all and potentially leading to missed somatic variants or germline variants being misclassified as somatic. I propose replacing the generic reference with a personalized diploid genome graph constructed from a donor-specific assembly (DSA), which represents both inherited haplotypes of the individual. I will develop this framework by (1) generating haplotype-resolved, telomere-to-telomere DSAs for cancer reference cell lines, (2) […]

Saturday, August 29, 2026

• August 29, 2026 4:00 pm

  Farm to Fork 2026


August 29 @ 4:00 pm

Farm to Fork 2026

Join the Center for Agroecology for an evening at the Farm Enjoy a reception and benefit dinner on the UCSC Farm followed by dancing in the Hay Barn! This event will feature music, appetizers, tours, and local wine followed by a seasonally-focused, locally-sourced meal featuring produce from the UCSC Farm and local partners. As the sun sets, head down to the Hay Barn for music, dancing, and dessert. The evening’s program: 4:00pm: Reception and farm tours followed by dinner 7:00pm: Dancing in the Hay Barn Individual Registration: $225.00 Table of Six: $1,300.00 Individual Registration Dance Portion Only: $30.00

Sunday, August 30, 2026

No events on this day.