Faculty Recruiting Colloquium
Computer Science Department
Mario Badr
ABSTRACT
In this talk I will deliver a shortened lecture on a topic from computer architecture, branch prediction, and then discuss my approach to the lecture. Correctly predicting branch instructions has been important for achieving high performance in modern processors. Recently, however, researchers have discovered security vulnerabilities that exploit branch predictors. The purpose of the lecture is to introduce undergraduate computer science students (typically in their second or third year) to the basics of branch prediction. I will use a combination of slides, worksheets, and an online student response system to promote active engagement in the classroom. After the lecture, I will discuss my approach for delivering and designing the material, how that approach scales, and why connecting it to broader social impact (i.e., security) is important for student motivation and engagement.
BIO
Mario Badr is a Postdoctoral Fellow in the Department of Computer Science at the University of Toronto. Badr's MASc and PhD were advised by Dr. Natalie Enright Jerger in the Electrical and Computer Engineering department at the University of Toronto. He researched evaluation methodologies of future computer architectures. Badr recently began a Teaching Postdoctoral Fellowship in the Department of Computer Science at the University of Toronto under the supervision of Michelle Craig. In addition to teaching first-year Computer Science, he is interested in pedagogical research in computer science education.
