Bio
Dr. Chad Mello is an endowed AI researcher and Assistant Professor in the Department of Computer and Cyber Sciences at the United States Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Dr. Mello created and directs CS 472 Autonomous Systems Integration, an advanced applied machine learning course that blends autonomous systems (drones) with machine learning, where cadets learn how to merge ML with autonomous drones and ground vehicles to create applied solutions to real-world problems.
Dr. Mello manages AI-focused research projects that complement cadet capstone projects. This setup exposes cadets to a variety of AI applications across contemporary computer science subjects. Research topics range from behavioral cloning with reinforcement learning for robotics to applied brain-computer interface (BCI) and assistive technologies.
Dr. Mello also investigates how to offset telephoto atmospheric turbulence and related effects in facial and object recognition algorithms. Additionally, he utilizes data mining techniques to study phenomena in astronomical datasets.
Education
University of Colorado Colorado Springs
Doctor of Philosophy, Computer Science, 2020
Thesis: Towards the Amelioration of Classification Models for Evoked Potentials in Brain-Computer Interface
Master of Science, Computer Science, 2014
Thesis: Machine Learning and Training System for Epileptiform Oscillations in Electroencephalograms
College of Santa Fe
Bachelor of Science, Computer Science, 2009