ICLP-DC 2008

Introduction

The ICLP Doctoral Consortium (DC) is the fourth doctoral consortium to be offered as part of the 24th International Conference on Logic Programming. The DC follows the very positive experience of the previous events held held in Sitges (Spain) on October 3rd, 2005, in Seattle (WA) on August 21st, 2006, and in Porto (Portugal) on September 8th, 2007.

The DC will take place during ICLP 2008 in Udine, Italy. The Doctoral Consortium is designed for doctoral students working in areas related to logic and constraint programming, with a particular emphasis to students interested in pursuing a career in academia. The Consortium is also open to exceptional Master's students developing MS Theses in Logic Programming. The Doctoral Consortium aims to provide students with an opportunity to present and discuss their research directions and to obtain feedbacks from peers as well as world-renown experts in the field. The Doctoral Consortium will also offer invited speakers and panels discussions.

Important Dates

Submission Deadline:	August 25, 2008 (strict)
Acceptance Notification:	September 5, 2008
Last Date to Update Research Summary:	September 15, 2008 (strict)
Doctoral Consortium:	December 9-13, 2008 (TBA)
ICLP 2008 Conference:	December 9-13, 2008

General Information

The Doctoral Consortium is held the during the regular activities of the ICLP 2008 Conference. The aims of the Doctoral Consortium are:

• To provide doctoral students working in the field of logic and constraint programming with a friendly and open forum to present their research ideas, listen to ongoing work from peer students, and receive constructive feedback.
• To provide students with relevant information about important issues for doctoral candidates and future academics.
• To develop a supportive community of scholars and a spirit of collaborative research.
• To support a new generation of researchers with information and advice on academic, research, industrial, and non-traditional career paths.

The Consortium is designed for students currently enrolled in a Ph.D. program, though we are also open to exceptions (e.g., students currently in a Masters program and interested in doctoral studies). Students at any stage in their doctoral studies are encouraged to apply. Applicants are expected to be conducting research in the field of Logic Programming; topics of interest include (but are not limited to):

• Theoretical Foundations of Logic and Constraint Logic Programming
• Sequential and Parallel Implementation Technology
• Static and Dynamic Analysis, Abstract Interpretation, Compilation Technology, Verification
• Logic-based Paradigms (e.g., Answer Set Programming, Concurrent Logic Programming, Inductive Logic Programming)
• Innovative Applications of Logic Programming

The Consortium allows participants to interact with established researchers and with other students, through presentations, question- answer sessions, panel discussions, and invited presentations. The Doctoral Consortium will provide the possibility to reflect - through short activities, information sessions, and discussions - on the process and lessons of research and life in academia. Each participant will give a short, critiqued, research presentation.

The Doctoral Consortium will be held on a date to be determined, in parallel with the regular activities of the ICLP 2008 conference; the ICLP conference will run from December 9th to December 9th, 2008. Doctoral Consortium participants will be offered the opportunity to have their abstracts published in the ICLP 2008 conference proceedings.

Discussants:

Several renowned faculty members and researchers in the field of Logic Programming will join in evaluating the submission packets and will participate in the Doctoral Consortium, providing feedback to the presenters. The list of the discussants will be published at a later date.

Submission Process

Application Process:

To apply for participation to the ICLP 2008 Doctoral Consortium, prepare a submission package consisting of a cover letter, a research summary, a letter of recommendation (e.g., from your supervisor), and a personal background document (i.e., a short CV). The material should be submitted (electronically, in PDF format by TBA, 2008, 17:00 (5:00pm), GMT. This should be considered a hard deadline.

Review Criteria:

The ICLP Doctoral Consortium review committee will select participants based on their anticipated contribution to the Consortium objectives. Participants typically have settled on their thesis directions and had their research proposal accepted by their thesis committee. Students will be selected based on clarity and completeness of the submission packet, relevance of their research area w.r.t. the focus of the ICLP Conference, stage of research, advisor's letter, and evidence of promise towards a successful research and academic career, such as published papers or technical reports.

Award:

The ICLP Doctoral Consortium Discussants will review the submissions to select the ones to be presented. The organizing committee is actively seeking support to offer scholarship packages to accepted participants. We will update the web site as soon as we have more information regarding this.

Submission Package

Send the submission package by e-mail to tom.schrijvers _a_t_ cs.kuleuven.be. Include the four documents as separate pdf files in attachment.

All submissions must be in English. Submissions will not be considered if they arrive after the deadline. Your submission should not contain any proprietary or confidential material.

Detailed instructions for each of the documents follow below.

Cover Page:

Please include the following information in the cover page:

1. Statement of interest in participating in the Doctoral Consortium
2. Full name and School and Department in which you are earning your doctorate degree
3. Contact information - address, telephone number, fax number, and email address
4. Title of your research and keywords pertinent to your research
5. The URL of your web page (if any)
6. Name of your supervising professor

Research Summary:

Prepare your research summary as a PDF document, using the same format style as for the regular submissions to ICLP 2008 (Springer Verlag LNCS Conference Publication Format). For details on the conference publications format, please refer to: (http://www.springeronline.com/sgw/cda/frontpage/0,11855,4-164-2-72376-0,00.html). Keep the length of your research summary to no more than three pages, including figures, tables, and the bibliography.

Please, prepend the statement "ICLP 2008 DC" to the title of your research summary. Make sure to include your complete name, address and affiliation.

The body of you research summary should provide a clear overview of the research, its potential impact, and its current status. You are encouraged to include the following sections:

1. Introduction and problem description
2. Background and overview of the existing literature
3. Goal of the research
4. Current status of the research
5. Preliminary results accomplished
6. Open issues and expected achievements

The following sections are required:

1. Current stage in your program of study
2. What do you hope to gain from this Doctoral Consortium
3. Bibliographical references

Background Information:

Provide a 2-page summary of your background and relevant experience. This should include information typically found in a curriculum vitae, plus additional information that may indicate your potential contribution to this Doctoral Consortium.

Letter of Recommendation:

Include a letter of recommendation written by your Graduate Advisor or Thesis Advisor. Please, invite your advisor to include an assessment of the current status of your thesis research and an indication of the expected deadline for thesis submission. In addition, your advisor should indicate what she/he hopes you would gain from participation in the Doctoral Consortium.

Chairs

David S. Warren Department of Computer Science State University of New York at Stony Brook

Tom Schrijvers (contact person) Department of Computer Science K.U.Leuven

Last update: 29-05-2008