Open Planning Tools Group 2014 Keynote Address 

Please join us in Slilver Spring Maryland for the Keynote Address of the 4th Annual Open Planning Tools Group Symposium: "Model People on Model Streetscapes" from Dr. Paul Torrens.

The vagaries of individual behavior amid complex social and built environments have long made simulating pedestrian dynamics challenging. In this talk, Dr. Torrens will introduce new methodologies based around synergies between agent-based modeling, big data, machine-learning, and wearable sensors that offer significant promise in advancing our abilities to model streetscapes and the peoplescapes that give them life, and in turn may significantly expand the range of questions that we can ask of urban design, plans, and policies in computer simulation.

Dr. Paul M. Torrens is an Associate Professor in the Department of Geographical Sciences and the Institute for Advanced Computer Studies at the University of Maryland in College Park, and director of the UMD’s Center for Geospatial Information Science. His research interests are focused on development of GIS technologies for computer modeling and simulation, with applications to spatial behavior and urban geography. He was awarded a Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE) by President George W. Bush in 2008 for his research on computer models of human behavior. 

Program

6:00-6:30pm - Welcome remarks and introduction of keynote speaker, Dr. Paul M. Torrens

6:30-8:00pm - Keynote Address: "Model People on Model Streetscapes"

Getting There:

Silver Spring Civic Building is assessible by Metro Rail from the DC metro area via the Red Line toward Glenmont. Disembark at the Silver Spring station. The SSCB is approximately four blocks from the station. Walking map from station to SSCB.