The Max Planck Institute for Informatics (German: ''Max-Planck-Institut für Informatik'', abbreviated ''MPI-INF'' or ''MPII'') is a research institute in
computer science
Computer science is the study of computation, information, and automation. Computer science spans Theoretical computer science, theoretical disciplines (such as algorithms, theory of computation, and information theory) to Applied science, ...
with a focus on algorithms and their applications in a broad sense. It hosts fundamental research (
algorithms
In mathematics and computer science, an algorithm () is a finite sequence of mathematically rigorous instructions, typically used to solve a class of specific problems or to perform a computation. Algorithms are used as specifications for per ...
and
complexity
Complexity characterizes the behavior of a system or model whose components interact in multiple ways and follow local rules, leading to non-linearity, randomness, collective dynamics, hierarchy, and emergence.
The term is generally used to c ...
,
programming logics) as well a research for various application domains (
computer graphics
Computer graphics deals with generating images and art with the aid of computers. Computer graphics is a core technology in digital photography, film, video games, digital art, cell phone and computer displays, and many specialized applications. ...
,
geometric computation,
constraint solving,
computational biology
Computational biology refers to the use of techniques in computer science, data analysis, mathematical modeling and Computer simulation, computational simulations to understand biological systems and relationships. An intersection of computer sci ...
).
Founded November 1988 by the
Max Planck Society
The Max Planck Society for the Advancement of Science (; abbreviated MPG) is a formally independent non-governmental and non-profit association of German research institutes. Founded in 1911 as the Kaiser Wilhelm Society, it was renamed to the M ...
, Germany's largest publicly funded body for foundation research, MPII is located on the campus of
Saarland University
Saarland University (, ) is a public research university located in Saarbrücken, the capital of the German state of Saarland. It was founded in 1948 in Homburg in co-operation with France and is organized in six faculties that cover all major ...
.
Research departments
The institute promotes six departments and three independent research groups on its website. The six departments are Algorithms and Complexity; Computer Vision and Machine Learning; Internet Architecture; Computer Graphics; Databases and Information Systems; and Visual Computing and Artificial Intelligence. The three research groups are Automation of Logic; Network and Cloud Systems; and Multimodal Language Processing.
The institute, along with the
Max Planck Institute for Software Systems (MPI-SWS), the
German Research Centre for Artificial Intelligence (DFKI) and the entire Computer Science department of
Saarland University
Saarland University (, ) is a public research university located in Saarbrücken, the capital of the German state of Saarland. It was founded in 1948 in Homburg in co-operation with France and is organized in six faculties that cover all major ...
, is involved in the
Internationales Begegnungs- und Forschungszentrum für Informatik.
The International Max Planck Research School for Computer Science (IMPRS-CS) is the graduate school of the MPII and the MPI-SWS. It was founded in 2000 and offers a fully funded PhD-Program in cooperation with
Saarland University
Saarland University (, ) is a public research university located in Saarbrücken, the capital of the German state of Saarland. It was founded in 1948 in Homburg in co-operation with France and is organized in six faculties that cover all major ...
. Dean is
Gerhard Weikum.
Awards and recognition
Institute faculty members have received numerous awards, including The
Leibniz Prize awarded to Kurt Mehlhorn (1987),
Hans-Peter Seidel (2003), and
Anja Feldmann (2011); the
Konrad Zuse Medal granted to Kurt Mehlhorn (1995),
Thomas Lengauer (2003), and
Gerhard Weikum (2021); and the Karl Heinz Beckurts-Preis given to Kurt Mehlhorn (1994) and Christian Theobalt (2017);
as well as
ACM Fellowships given to
Kurt Mehlhorn
Kurt Mehlhorn (born 29 August 1949) is a German theoretical computer scientist. He has been a vice president of the Max Planck Society and is director of the Max Planck Institute for Computer Science.
Education and career
Mehlhorn graduated in ...
(1999),
Gerhard Weikum (2006),
Thomas Lengauer (2021), and
Bernt Schiele (2021).
See also
*
Max Planck Institute for Software Systems
*
YAGO (database) (developed at the Max Planck Institute for Computer Science)
References
External links
Max Planck Institute for Informatics HomepageInternational Meeting Place and Research Centre for Computer Science in Dagstuhl CastleInternational Max Planck Research School on Trustworthy Computing (IMPRS-TRUST)
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