CCIC12 Program

Date

Wednesday 23 May 2012

Place

Anastasios Leventis Building, Room B108
University of Cyprus Campus, University Ave 1, Aglantzia, Cyprus

9:15-9:25	Registration
Morning Session	Coordinator: Vanessa Antoniadou, Microsoft
9:30-10:00	“Welcome and Introduction”       Marios D. Dikaiakos, Professor, Computer Science Department, University Of Cyprus
10:00-10:30	“Cloud Computing Technology”        Evangelos Hadjichristodoulou, Services Engagement Manager, Microsoft [Abstract] [Bio] [Presentation] Cloud Computing is a term used by many vendors but a lot of times they mean different things. During this presentation we will explain what Cloud Computing is in real. Evangelos is a Microsoft Services Engagement Manager in the Microsoft Cyprus Subsidiary. He has been working for Microsoft’s since 2008. Evangelos is responsible for overseeing the entire lifecycle of consulting engagements, from initial scoping and contracting through the closure of the engagement with the customer. He is actively involved in cloud computing work at Microsoft for all pillars of Cloud computing including Private Cloud, Hosters / Telcos, O365, Azure, CRM Online and Intune. He is an active member and one of the founders of Cyprus .NET User Group (CDNUG) and has extensive experience in Software Solution Development with emphasis on integration projects in the banking and telecommunications sector.
10:30-11:00	“Technology-scalable Datacenters”       Yanos Sazeides, Assistant Professor, Computer Science Department, University Of Cyprus [Abstract] [Bio] In this talk we will present the specific research and technology challenges for a European ecosystem of datacenter innovation. This is a summary of the report that has been developed with key European companies and academics covering all layers of datacenter technology during a EU workshop in June 2011. Yiannos Sazeides is an Assistant Professor at the University of Cyprus. He was awarded a PhD from the University of Wisconsin in 1999. He worked at Compaq and Intel towards the development and design of high performance processors. His research interests lie in the area of Computer Architecture with particular emphasis on reliability, memory hierarchy, temperature, and analysis of dynamic program behavior.
11:00-11:30	Coffee Break
Noon Session	Coordinator: Eleni-Tatiani Synodinou, Assistant Professor, Department of Law, University Of Cyprus
11:30-12:15	“A policy environment to build trust in the cloud”       Mark Lange, Senior Policy Counsel, Microsoft [Abstract] [Bio] [Presentation] The potential economic benefits of cloud computing are compelling, but many users first want more confidence before trusting their data to remote data centres. In addition to a reliable, cloud-ready telco infrastructure, customers and providers both need a coherent legal framework, and more certainty regarding data sovereignty as well as privacy and security. In addition, users seek open platforms to ensure they can avoid vendor lock-in. This session will discuss the government policy approach that help build trust and enable Cyprus to get the most out of cloud computing. Mark is Senior Policy Counsel in the Microsoft Law and Corporate Affairs department in Europe. He has been based in Microsoft’s Paris office since 1998. Mark works on legislative and government policy issues relating to cloud computing, interoperability, and intellectual property across Europe. Prior to joining Microsoft, Mark worked for the law firm of Covington & Burling in its Washington, D.C. and Brussels offices from 1989 to 1998. His practice included general litigation and international trade. Mark grew up in Charlottesville, Virginia. He graduated from the University of Virginia in 1981, and from Northwestern University Law School in 1989.
12:15-12:45	“Invest in Data Centers in Cyprus”       Panayiotis Michael, Senior Officer Cyprus Investment Promotion Agency [Abstract] [Bio] The Cyprus Investment Promotion Agency (CIPA) has recently been distinguished by the World Bank Group as one of the top Investment Promotion Intermediaries globally (ranked 5th among 189 IPIs around the world). One of the strategic directions of CIPA is the development of the Information and Communications Technologies sector, through targeted actions. Such strategic action is the development of a Data Center value proposition which will be able to attract Foreign Direct Investment in Cyprus. With the catalytic support of CIPA, Multinational and Local Companies as also Academic Institutions in Cyprus, have joined forces creating a powerful Industry – Academia – Government Cooperation Consortium for the Promotion of Data Centers, their associated value-added services and Cloud Computing, towards attracting Foreign Direct Investment. The presentation will provide a brief outline of the strategic plan of the effort, including its goals and major milestones. A comparison will also be made with other countries such as Luxembourg, which by successfully developing similar frameworks, have become Centers of Excellence in FDI attraction in Data Centers. Mr. Panayiotis Adamos Michael, holds an M.B.A. from the University of California Los Angeles with business interests in Strategy for High-Technology, an M.Sc. in Computer Science from the same University and a B.Sc. in Electrical Eng. from the National Technical University of Athens. He is the scientific author and architect of the Streamonas Data Stream Management System research work, published by IEEE. Mr. Michael is a Senior Officer at the Cyprus Investment Promotion Agency, supervising the Strategic Planning and Information Analysis Unit of the Organisation. CIPA has recently been distinguished by the World Bank as a World Class Organisation for applying Best Practices for Information Analysis and Provision to Prospective Investors, ranked 5th among 189 Investment Promotion Intermediaries around the World. Mr. Michael has also the responsibility for the planning and execution of CIPA’s strategy of the ICT sector. His interests in developing an Industry – University Cooperation framework in Cyprus for the attraction of Foreign Direct Investment were architected based on the experience he received by working closely with his M.B.A. advisor Prof. Hans Schollhammer on similar, mature frameworks in California. He currently actively promotes the “Invest in Data Centers in Cyprus” initiative which receives the interest and support of major Multinational and Local Corporations and Academia. During his two years of efforts for investment attraction in Science and Technology, Cyprus Academia has been a strong and effective supporter acting as a pole for Investment Attraction through Excellence.
12:45-13:15	“Cloud Computing and Start-ups”       Panos Markopoulos, Lecturer, Department of Public and Business Administration, University of Cyprus [Abstract] [Bio] [Presentation] The benefits of cloud technologies to large enterprises are well document as they usually translate to well defined cost and productivity metrics. The benefits to start-ups, while more difficult to measure, are arguably much more important as they often determine the difference between failure and spectacular economic success. We will briefly look into recent start-up success stories and the role that cloud technology played in their success. We will see that cloud technologies not only help start-ups control capital costs and maintain maximum flexibility regarding their final business model, but that they are also crucial during the critical expansion phase that successful start-ups eventually undergo. Dr. Markopoulos completed his PhD in the University of Pennsylvania in 2004 studying the mechanism by which consumers receive information about products and services in electronic markets. His professional experience includes the Athens Stock Exchange, IBM Research, and the elite management consulting firm McKinsey & Co, where he consulted for the top management of leading corporations in Europe, USA and Canada. As an academic, he has taught in Cornell University and the Wharton Business School, where he was a visiting Lecturer in 2005. He was a co-founder of Media Society, a technology development firm for electronic media, and holds patents in the field of targeted advertising.
13:15-13:45	Panel Discussion: Establishing a Cloud Computing Strategy for Cyprus Members: P. Michael (CIPA), M. Lange (Microsoft), M. Dikaiakos (UCY), K. Fiakkas (Exelsys), A. Christoforou (Wadja.com)
13:45-14:30	Lunch Break
Afternoon Session	Cloud Computing Projects in Cyprus Coordinator: Panayiotis Michael, CIPA
14:30-15:30	“EuroCloud Project”       Damien Hardy, Research Associate, Computer Science Department, University Of Cyprus [Abstract] [Bio] In this talk we overview the currently running FP7 project Eurocloud that aims to deliver processors that will populate the future data center running cloud applications. We will also overview the a tool developed in the context of the project that aims to explore the implications of various data center design decisions on the total cost of ownership. Damien Hardy is currently post-doc at the University of Cyprus. He received his PhD degree in computer science from the University of Rennes in 2010. His research interests include real-time systems, compilers, and computer architecture. His current research focuses on data center scale modeling, reliability and, timing analysis of real-time software. “Accounting Cloud Solution available in Cyprus”        George Malekkos, Software Innovation Architect, CEO, PowerSoft Ltd [Abstract][Bio] Utilizing the cloud technology to develop the first innovative accounting solution in Cyprus Some additional modules of this application is the stock control system and the first HYBRID Cloud Pos solution. George Malekkos is the CEO & Software Innovation Architect of Powersoft, member of the European Office in Cyprus, professor of Computerized Accounting at the European University and the University of Nicosia. He was a vice president of the Cyprus Information Technology Association CITEA and he is an expert in European projects about innovation in IT. He is the founder of the European project e-powercard, which is under success stories in Europe. George is an active member for the Cyprus national platform for e-invoicing. “ICCloud: exploiting the VENUS-C platform to provide near real-time diagnosis-aided systems in ICU”       Nicholas Stylianides, Research Associate, Department of Computer Science, University Of Cyprus [Abstract] [Bio] [Presentation] Intensive Care Cloud, is based on previous efforts that led in the design and development of Intensive Care Window, ICW software application. ICW is an open-source solution composed of a middleware framework (medical device bedside controller) and an end-user application. The middleware enables communication with intensive care unit bedside-installed medical devices over standard and proprietary communication protocol stacks. The ICW application facilitates the acquisition of vital signs and physiological parameters exported from patient-attached medical devices and sensors. Moreover, ICW provides runtime and post-analysis procedures for data annotation, data visualization, data query, and analysis. The ICW application can be deployed as a stand-alone solution or in conjunction with existing clinical information systems providing a holistic solution to inpatient medical condition monitoring, early diagnosis, and prognosis. Venus-C project represent a promising venue for addressing the computational challenges and provide a scalable on demand solution in regards to data storage, data analysis and data mining. Nikolas Stylianides received his Dipl.-Ing. degree (1997) and Ph.D. degree (2006) from the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, National Technical University of Athens, Athens, Greece. Currently he is a Visiting Academic (Assistant Professor) at the Computer Science Department, University of Cyprus where he teaches Object Oriented Programming (using Java as a programming language example) and Operating Systems. During the years 2006 and 2009 he served as the Technical & Operations Manager of the CyGrid, the Cyprus Grid Initiative.His Ph.D. thesis was on broadband telecommunication system design, which focused on the methodologies and architectures for the design of telecommunication devices, monitoring tools, and load and stress equipments. His research interests include system design and implementation methodologies with application paradigms in telecommunications and biomedical information systems.Recent work includes the design, development and field test of the Intensive Care Window, a multimodal clinical information system used in acute environments such as Intensive Care Units to retrieve patient vital signs from bedside attached medical devices (using standard and proprietary communication paths). The information retrieved is used in diagnosis and early prognosis. “Cloud Elasticity: CELAR Project Overview”       George Pallis, Lecturer, Computer Science Department, University Of Cyprus [Abstract] [Bio] [Presentation] With the rapidly growing number of applications running over Cloud infrastructures and the amount of storage, compute and networking resources they require, an over-provisioning or manual, coarse- grained resource allocation approach is a highly unsatisfying solution wrt. application performance and incurred costs. The vision of the CELAR project is to provide automatic, multi-grained resource allocation for cloud applications. This enables the commitment of just the right amount of resources based on application demand, performance and requirements, results in optimal use of infrastructure resources and significant reductions in administrative costs. The goal of the project is to develop methods and tools for applying and controlling multi-grained, elastic resource provisioning for Cloud applications in an automated manner. This intelligent resource allocation will be based on: (a) cloud and application performance metrics collected and cost-evaluated through a scalable monitoring system and exposed to the user. (b) qualitative and quantitative characterization of the application’s performance through modelling of its elastic properties. Together with an Eclipse-based cloud application management platform and a cloudification framework that performs single-step installation of any application integrated with CELAR, the project outcomes will be provided in the form of open-source tools, enabling fast research and industrial uptake. The project performs a thorough study of the properties of elasticity, mechanisms for achieving it and its incurred costs over applications and individual cloud resources. CELAR contributes to the “Cloud Computing, Internet of Services and Advanced Software Engineering” call objectives focusing on target outcome a – Cloud Computing. Two elasticity-demanding applications, in the areas of large-scale scientific computing and on-line social gaming will be deployed over CELAR to validate and showcase the project results. Dr. George Pallis received his BSc (2001) and Ph.D. (2006) degree in Department of Informatics of Aristotle University of Thessaloniki (Greece). Currently, he is lecturer at the Computer Science Department, University of Cyprus. His research interests include Web data caching, content distribution networks, Grid and Cloud computing, information retrieval. He has published several papers in International journals (e.g., CACM, IC, TKDE, TOIT, TOMACS etc.) and conferences (WI, IDEAS, CCGrid, MASCOTS etc.). Dr. Pallis has participated in several EU-funded projects. He is member of the editorial board in IEEE Internet Computing (editor in Cloud Computing department) and member of IEEE CS Cloud Computing Initiative.