ITR/SY+IM+AP: Center for Applied Algorithms

算法是计算机解决问题的基本程序。随着计算机的使用和连接的爆炸式增长，以及所使用的数据集的规模，算法的性能变得越来越重要。例如，能够以10倍的速度解决问题，可能意味着明年而不是几年之后设计出一种药物，或者通过允许更快、更广泛的计算机模拟来降低开发新空间结构的成本。在过去的30年里，算法的基本理论取得了重大进展。这些进步导致了关于算法和算法技术的“核心知识”，这些知识现在已经应用于惊人的领域和应用——肯定比现在的微积分应用更广泛。然而，问题是，在正在进行的理论研究和目前在应用中的算法使用之间存在很大差距。一种新算法的核心思想往往需要十年以上的时间才能转化为应用，而正在进行的理论研究往往不能很好地满足应用的需求。该中心的目的是弥合这一差距，以便更快地部署高效和有效的算法。这将通过(1)一套面向问题的探索（PROBEs），(2)开发一套关于算法的广泛网络资源，以及(3)教育活动，包括为教育教师举办研讨会来实现。探针将把算法设计师和领域专家聚集在一起，在特定领域快速部署新的算法思想。

Algorithms are the basic procedures by which computers solve problems. With the explosion in the use and connectivity of computers, and in the sizes of the data sets being used, the performance of algorithms is becoming increasingly important. Being able to solve a problem ten times faster, for example, could mean designing a drug next year instead of several years later, or reducing the cost of developing a new space structure by allowing faster and more extensive computer simulations. Over the past 30 years there have been significant advances in the basic theory of algorithms. These advances have led to a "core knowledge" concerning algorithms and algorithmic techniques that has now been applied across an amazing diversity of fields and applications---surely more broadly than calculus is now applied. The problem, however, is that there is a large gap between ongoing theoretical research, and the current use of algorithms in applications. It often takes more than ten years for the core ideas in a new algorithm to make it into an application, and ongoing theoretical research often does not properly address the needs of the applications. The purpose of the Center is to bridge this gap so that efficient and effective algorithms can be deployed more rapidly. This will be achieved through (1) a set of Problem Oriented Explorations (PROBEs), (2) developing an extensive set of web resources on algorithms, and (3) educational activities including holding workshops for educating teachers. The PROBEs will bring together algorithm designers and domain experts to rapidly deploy new algorithmic ideas within a specific domain.