The concept of graph has been around since Euler brought up the Seven Bridges of Konigsberg problem in 1736. Recent years have seen graph computing regain its momentum because of many emerging graph relevant applications, e.g., Blockchain networks, World-Wide-Web (WWW) links, social and computer networks, metabolic interactions and chemical compound design graphs. Its significance is remarkably manifested by the fact that Graph 500, a super computer ranking organization, uses graph algorithm – Breadth-First Search (BFS) – to rank the world’s most powerful supercomputers, e.g., Sunway TaihuLight, MilkWay-2 and K computer.
Despite the wave of efforts that have surged around this popular area, graph computing still faces looming challenges. Dr. Hang Liu’s dissertation, entitled “Novel Techniques for Graph Algorithm Acceleration”, extracts the holistic bottlenecks facing graph computing applications. His translational research achievements manage to achieve extremely fast graph computing with the assistance of modern Graphics Processing Units (GPUs) and Solid-State Disks (SSDs). In particular, his graph traversal systems are ranked highly in both Graph500 and Green Graph500 benchmarks, which measure the performance and energy efficiency of the most powerful supercomputers in the world. He is also the Champion of 2018 Graph Challenge.
After graduation, Dr. Hang Liu became a tenure-track assistant professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering of University of Massachusetts Lowell where he directs the high-performance data analytics (HPDA) lab. Dr. Hang Liu’s research has resulted in a series of top tier publications — SC ’18, FAST ’18, FAST ’17, SIGMOD ’16, SC ’15 and SC ’12.