People of ACM European Chapters - Borut Žalik
January 9, 2018
Can you briefly describe your own line of research and how you became interested in this area?
My research interests include computational geometry, compression of geometric data, graphical information systems (GISs), processing of remote sensing data, and multimedia algorithms. In 1985 I was employed as a teaching assistant at the Faculty. I worked in the Laboratory for Computer Graphics and Artificial Intelligence. I was directed into the field of computer graphics. In 2000, I became the head of the Laboratory for Geometric Modelling and Multimedia Algorithms. Since then, together with my co-workers, I have conducted research in these areas.
In your area of research, what recent advance/emerging subfield will yield important advances in the years ahead?
The information about the locations, the features of the terrain, have been important for society. However, today we can merge a huge amount of data from various sources. To obtain useful information for society, these data have to be processed, optimized, visualized, and compressed, with new algorithms and paradigms.
Can you tell us a little about the ACM Student Chapter at the University of Maribor?
The chapter is relatively young, established in 2014. It is the only ACM Student Chapter in Slovenia, and it currently includes about 25 undergraduate and postgraduate students of computer science. Among the most important activities are organization of workshops on student research work, brainstorming and exchange of ideas, and assistance on ACM programming competitions. Among the more important activities is the organization of the Student Scientific Conference, StuCosRec (the fourth annual conference was held this year). Our chapter also introduces students to ACM TechTalks, the ACM Distinguished Speakers Program, and ACM Student Research Competitions. In the near future our chapter members plan to visit neighboring ACM Student Chapters.
Why do you think participation in an ACM chapter is helpful to students?
Students participate in order to obtain up-to-date information about computer science (including access to the ACM Digital Library, XRDS magazine, and Student Quick Takes) and to facilitate access to mentors who then lead them in the research work. Furthermore, the ACM Student Chapter enables them to participate in international events and to strengthen their affiliation with the wider professional community.
Borut Žalik is a Professor of Computer Science and head of the Laboratory for Geometric Modelling and Multimedia Algorithms at the University of Maribor, Slovenia. Since 2011, he has also been a dean of the faculty. His research interests include processing of geometric data, scientific visualization, data compression, and multimedia algorithms. He has published more than 100 papers in refereed journals and presented almost 100 papers at scientific conferences. Žalik has also written three teaching books (in Slovene) and was awarded 10 patents. He is the Faculty Advisor of the ACM Student Chapter at the University of Maribor.