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All Staff Meeting Zoom Option: https://wpi.zoom.us/j/98300202919On December 16th, from 9:00 am to 10:30 am, we will be hosting our B/C-Term All Staff Meeting in Olin Hall 107. The goal of this meeting is to share updates and initiatives relevant to staff and give staff members an opportunity to provide us with feedback on topics that are important to you.Meeting Agenda:Staff Council Updates – Current initiatives, upcoming events, and engagement opportunitiesRecognition Efforts – New programs in development to celebrate our staff communitySpring Professional Development Conference – Save the date for March 12th! We're now accepting program proposals. Have a professional skill, interest, or topic to share? Please fill out this form to submit. Campus Leadership Presentations – Updates on upcoming initiatives from leaders across campusYour Questions, Answered:We want to dedicate time to the topics that matter most to you. What questions would you like addressed? Please submit questions here. We'll do our best to answer them during the meeting or follow up afterward.Please note: Depending on the topic and availability of the appropriate personnel, we may not be able to address every question during the meeting itself.We encourage all staff members to attend and participate. This is a valuable opportunity to stay informed and have your voice heard. We look forward to seeing you there!

Xiaokun XuPhD Candidate WPI – Computer Science Department Tuesday, December 16, 2025Time: 10:00 a.m. – 11:00 a.m.Zoom: https://wpi.zoom.us/j/3180706458 Committee members: Prof. Mark Claypool - Computer Science (Advisor)Prof. Tian Guo - Computer ScienceProf. Lane Harrison - Computer ScienceProf. Carsten Griwodz, University of Oslo(External Member)Abstract:Cloud game streaming enables players to enjoy high-quality games without powerful local hardware by rendering content in the cloud and streaming it to lightweight clients. However, this approach is highly sensitive to network performance. Latency, jitter, and bandwidth variation can reduce responsiveness and visual smoothness, leading to degraded Quality of Experience (QoE).This research systematically investigates how these factors influence cloud gaming QoE through controlled laboratory experiments and real-world in-home studies. By isolating the effects of delay, jitter, and visual degradation, the work identifies key predictors of player experience and develops mathematical models for accurately estimating QoE.Beyond measurement and modeling, the dissertation also explores techniques for improving QoE across the system. At the network layer, it evaluates Active Queue Management (AQM) to stabilize delay and reduce jitter. At the client side, it analyzes playout buffer strategies to balance latency and smoothness. At the server side, it examines latency compensation techniques that help maintain fair and responsive gameplay when network delays cannot be avoided.Together, these studies provide an integrated understanding of how QoE is shaped and offer practical guidance for improving cloud gaming performance across network, client, and server components.

Development and Prototyping of a Series-Elastic-Actuator-Driven Lower Body Exoskeleton Abstract: This thesis presentation documents the design, development, construction, and testing of a prototype rigid-frame lower-body exoskeleton with 2 powered degrees of freedom. The design is parametric and can be adapted to different users via a fitment process before the exoskeleton is manufactured. A brief review of existing literature on exoskeletons and series elastic actuators will be performed. The design requirements of the prototype will be described, and an overview of the process of hardware selection will be provided. The mechanical design of the exoskeleton prototype will be described. Particular emphasis is placed on the development of a rotary elastic element for series elastic actuators. The control laws used by the exoskeleton will be described. Finally, the design flaws identified in the prototype will be discussed, and a series of proposed design changes incorporating the lessons learned from development of the prototype will be discussed.Advisor: Professor Mehul BhatiaCommittee: Professor Bashima Islam (Electrical and Computer Engineering), Professor Pradeep Radhakrishnan (Mechanical and Materials Engineering, Professor Ted Clancy (Electrical and Computer Engineering)Zoom link: https://wpi.zoom.us/j/99547597858

Balancing the demands of work and family can be a difficult job. Most of us juggle a number of important jobs that all require our time and energy. Your roles might include being a spouse, parent, child, sibling, employee, organization member and neighbor. All of these roles carry responsibilities and rewards. But, if we aren’t careful, the stresses and demands of all of these roles can engulf and drain us. In this presentation, attendees will learn how to balance their work life with their personal life, in an effort to avoid burnout.

Looking for a way to make your day less stressful and more mindful...take some much-needed time for yourself and join us for Mindful Wednesdays! Drop-in meditation sessions are open to the entire WPI community, and no experience is necessary. A certified meditation teacher will offer guided meditations appropriate for both beginners as well as experienced meditators. People can join in person or via zoom.