High Performance Computing Expert Dr. Fedor Pikus Speaks at AUA

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YEREVAN, Armenia — On October 18, the American University of Armenia (AUA) Akian College of Science and Engineering (CSE) hosted Dr. Fedor G. Pikus, head of the Advanced Projects Team and technical fellow at Siemens Digital Industries Software. He gave an enlightening talk on “Branchless Computing: Why are conditions bad for your code, and what can you do about it?” organized in the context of the extended collaboration between AUA and Siemens Digital Industries Software. 

Dr. Pikus has worked as a senior software engineer at Google and chief scientist at Mentor Graphics (later acquired by Siemens Software). As a technical fellow at Siemens, he has been responsible for planning the long-term technical direction of Calibre products, coaching and training engineers who work on those products, designing and architecting the software, and exploring new design bundles and software technologies. He holds over 25 registered patents, over 100 research papers and conference presentations in physics, Electronic design automation (EDA), software design, and C++ language.

The speaker began his presentation with a detailed explanation of performance and efficiency, from the fundamentals of computer hardware to the peculiarities of optimizing conditional codes and exploring branchless programming. Dr. Pikus also covered how modern Central Processing Units (CPU) handle computing resources to ensure that the hardware is used efficiently. He concluded his presentation with a summary of the key points covered and fielded questions from participants, subsequently commenting, “I was very impressed with the technical level of the audience and the attention they paid. This was evident from the questions many asked.”

On October 21, Dr. Pikus gave another presentation on “Performance: You don’t know Jack” within the scope of the C++ Community Meetup. This time, he discussed the deceptive situation which arises when a code may appear conventional in form, but suffers from very low performance, and how this has led to “performance surprises” in his career.

As a thought-leader in computer science, CSE is committed to inviting world-renowned experts to bring new insights and advanced technical knowhow to its students and to the community at large.

Founded in 1991, the American University of Armenia (AUA) is a private, independent university located in Yerevan, Armenia, affiliated with the University of California, and accredited by the WASC Senior College and University Commission in the United States. AUA provides local and international students with Western-style education through top-quality undergraduate, graduate, and certificate programs, promotes research and innovation, encourages civic engagement and community service, and fosters democratic values.