BIOGRAPHY
Dr. Alouini was born in Tunis, Tunisia.
He received the PhD in Electrical Engineering from California Institute of Technology (Caltech) in 1998. He served as a faculty member in the University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA, then in the Texas A&M University at Qatar, Education City, Doha, Qatar before joining King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Thuwal, Makkah Province, Saudi Arabia as a Professor of Electrical Engineering in 2009.
His current research interests include modeling, design, and performance evaluation of emerging and future wireless communication systems and networks.
ABSTRACT: How can 6G respond to pandemics?
The COVID-19 pandemic showed that we are suffering from serious gaps in internet connectivity and it is expected that 5G, in its current initial deployment stages, will further accentuate this connectivity divide. This is particularly disturbing in the context of a pandemic since this divide is very critical for people who are unable to receive health-care advice and recommendations and is deepening the economic and social unbalances between the ‘Haves’ and ‘Have Nots’. It is therefore imperative that 6G, which is currently in a formative phase, offers digital inclusiveness solutions providing low-cost connectivity solutions for rural and underprivileged areas.
In this talk, we will discuss future wireless communication schemes that integrate satellite, airborne, and terrestrial networks and that are aiming to offer global connectivity. More specifically, we are after self-organized networks that rely on terrestrial base stations, drones, balloons, high-altitude platforms, and non-geostationary satellites and that adapt their structure and their resource allocations based on the ground population density and the quality of service requirements by the apps utilized by these populations of users. We will conclude by explaining how democratizing connectivity will help fight future pandemics while saving the economy.
|
