Richard Spence

I completed my Ph.D. from the Department of Computer Science at the University of Arizona, under Stephen Kobourov. My research interests include analysis of algorithms, graph theory, and theory of computation. I received the B.S. in Mathematics with Computer Science (Course 18C) from MIT in 2016. As of March 2022, I will be starting a postdoc at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev under Michael Elkin and Ofer Neiman. My hobbies include Scrabble (cross-tables profile), other board/video games, and bowling.

Selected publications:

• F. D. Sahneh, S. Kobourov, and R. Spence. Approximation algorithms for the priority Steiner tree problem. 27th Intl. Computing and Combinatorics Conference (COCOON), 2021.
• R. Ahmed, G. Bodwin, S. Kobourov, and R. Spence. On additive spanners in weighted graphs with local error. 47th Intl. Workshop on Graph-Theoretic Concepts in Computer Science (WG), 2021.
• R. Ahmed, G. Bodwin, S. Kobourov, F. D. Sahneh, and R. Spence. Weighted additive Spanners. 46th Intl. Workshop on Graph-Theoretic Concepts in Computer Science, 2020.
• R. Ahmed, G. Bodwin, K. Hamm, M. J. Latifi Jebelli, S. Kobourov, F. D. Sahneh, and R. Spence, Graph Spanners: A Tutorial Review, in Computer Science Review, 2019.

Selected presentations:

• 27th Intl. Computing and Combinatorics Conference (COCOON), virtual.
  • Topic: Approximation algorithms for the priority Steiner tree problem..
• 47th Intl. Workshop on Graph-Theoretic Concepts in Computer Science (WG 2021), virtual.
  • Topic: Sparse and lightweight spanners in weighted graphs with local additive error. (link)
• 28th European Symposium on Algorithms (ESA 2020), virtual.
  • Topic: Kruskal-based approximation algorithm for the multi-level Steiner tree problem. (link)
• 17th Symposium on Experimental Algorithms (SEA 2018), GSSI, L'Aquila, Italy.
  • Topic: Multi-level Steiner trees.

Teaching:

• TA for CSC 245 (Discrete Structures), Summer 2021.
• TA for CSC 345 (Data Structures), Spring 2017.
• TA for CSC 445 (Algorithms), Fall 2016, Summer 2021.
• TA for CSC 573 (Theory of Computation), Fall 2021.
• Lab assistant for MIT 6.042 (Mathematics for Computer Science), Spring 2016.
• Instructor for AlphaStar Academy winter/summer math camps, 2012-present.
• MathCON Editorial Board member, 2020-present.

Contact/CV

• Office: Building 37 (Alon Building) Room 214, Beersheva, Israel.
• Email: X at bgu.ac.il where X = spencer
• CV