Michael
EDUCATION
PhD, Computer Science 1980
University of California, Los Angeles
Dissertation Title: Computer Aided Design and Reliability of a General Logic Structure for Custom VLSI
Chair: Prof. Algirdas Avizienis
MS, Computer Science 1975
University of California, Los Angeles
Thesis Title: The Design of a Microcomputer Based I/O Processor
Chair: Prof. Gerald Estrin
BS, Electrical Engineering 1973
University of California, Los Angeles
Teaching and Advising
University of Southern California 2012 – present
· SAE Adjunct Lecturer.
· Co-developed and teach classes in model-based systems engineering, systems and systems of systems integration, and systems architecture.
· Technical advisor and research collaborator to Professor Madni on modeling and resiliency.
UCLA Computer Science Academic Advisory Board 2010 – present
· Review and make recommendations regarding courses and programs in the UCLA Computer Science Department.
University of California at Los Angeles 1981 to 1995
· Visiting Lecturer in Computer Science
· Taught upper division, undergraduate classes in computer architecture and logic design
· Also taught classes in logic design and fault-tolerance in UCLA’s Engineering Extension program.
· Contributed to first edition of class textbook by Ercegovac and Lang, Introduction to Digital Systems
Research Experience
Resiliency and Fault-Tolerance Research
· Currently supporting Professor Madni and his students doing research on resilient networks.
· Developed concept of Flexible Resiliency Contracts
· Developed modeling methods for resilient systems
· Performed research into fault risk analysis
· Researched integrated circuit failure models and impacts on self-checking check circuits
Bioinformatics Research
· Developed gene finding and resequencing algorithms
· Developed mass spectrometer data filtering algorithms
· Investigated high-performance, special-purpose processors for correlating gene mutations with disease
Additional Experience
Jet Propulsion Lab, California Institute of Technology 2007 – present
· Senior Systems Engineer
· Co-PI on quantum computing study
· Developed processing and controls architectures
· High-performance computing architect for electro-optical systems
· End-to-end information systems architect
· Software and hardware requirements modeling
· Fault protection architect and analyst
· Project Software Systems Engineer (PSSE) on several high impact spacecraft missions
· Perform research in the area of model-based systems engineering and validation & verification.
Active Motif – Carlsbad, CA 2004-2006
· Sr. Director R&D for TimeLogic Bioinformatics
· Managed the software development team and lead the development and support of high performance computer-based bioinformatics applications.
· Set department goals, budgets, and schedules
· Developed new bioinformatics products
· Developed new genomics and proteomics applications
· Designed complex client/server applications
· Wrote grant proposals
Incyte Corporation – Palo Alto, CA 2003-2004
· Technologist
· Market analysis of genomics and proteomics product features
· Explored new market areas and business opportunities
Paracel, A Celera Corporation – Pasadena, CA 1996-2003
· Director, Bioinformatics Science
· Set department goals, budgets and schedules.
· Built engineering team.
· Lead specification, design and test of company’s bioinformatics products.
· Supervised the application science and support groups.
· Wrote successful proposals.
· Developed new bioinformatics algorithms and software.
Science Applications International Corporation 1992-1996
· Senior Scientist, Advanced Programs Division
· Program Manager and technical lead for the development of the computer architecture for a high availability, distributed, medical record database application.
· Developed methodologies for designing highly dependable spacecraft computer systems.
· Wrote telemetry and control software for a satellite payload.
· Designed the overall fault-tolerance strategy and evaluation methodology for a distributed ground and space-based surveillance system.
· Implemented an advanced planning system.
Fail-Safe Technology Corporation 1981 to 1992
· Director (1981-1992).
· Managed software modeling efforts
· Developing the dependability requirements and design
· Reviewing the designs of the subsystems and payloads for compatibility with the fault-tolerance requirements.
· Technical lead and architect for payload control software on the Combined Release and Radiation Effects Satellite (CRRES).
· Performed the research and wrote proposals that successfully won Phase I and Phase II SBIR awards for work in fault-tolerant computing.
Awards
INCOSE 2014 Achievement award for work as Conference on Systems Engineering Research (CSER) Technical Committee Co-Chair
JPL/NASA Mariner (cash award) 2016
Exceptional leadership in support of critical government spacecraft architectures
JPL/NASA Mariner (cash award) 2012
Provided exceptional electronic and computer systems leadership to multiple tasks/projects in the Advanced Optical Systems Program. Developed avionics systems architecture, end-to-end information system, and software architecture for a critical government spacecraft system
JPL/NASA Team Award (cash award) 2010
Exceptional contributions leading to a successful, 3-day reimbursable program review involving multiple government and industry organizations. Presented spacecraft avionics, software, and fault-protection designs
JPL/NASA Team Award (cash award) 2010
Delivered Metrology and Optical Scalable Testbed (MOST) to I&T for a major U.S. government space-based telescope research project.
JPL/NASA Team Award (cash award) 2009
For the development of highly complex computational systems for high throughput spacecraft processing.
JPL/NASA Team Award (cash award) 2009
For leading avionics development of a critical government project.
JPL/NASA Mariner (cash award) 2008
For leading development of avionics architecture.
NASA Monetary Award (cash award) 1989
For contribution to the National Space Program – A High Speed Data Link for Moderate Distances and Noisy Environments
NASA Monetary Award (cash award) 1980
For contribution to the National Space Program - General Logic Structgure for Custome LSI Circuits
NASA Monetary Award (cash award) 1979
For contribution to the National Space Program - Noise-Tolerant Computer Link
Patents:
Noise-tolerant communications link.
Professional Societies
· Associate Fellow AIAA
· Sr. Member IEEE
· Member INCOSE
· Member Upsilon Pi Epsilon (National Computer Science Honor Society)
· Member Sigma Xi, (National Research Honor Society).
· Session Chair for CSER 2017
· Co-Technical Chair for CSER 2014
· Participated in the establishment of a life sciences special interest group in the Object Management Group (OMG).
· Member of the Planning Committee for the IEEE International Fault-Tolerant Computing Symposium-12, where I was also invited to speak on "New Directions in Fault-Tolerant Computing."
· Invited Chairman of a session on Applications of Fault-Tolerant Computing at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory's workshop on Overcoming Obstacles to Autonomy Implementation, and was a member of the Academic Assessment Committee for a joint Aerospace Corp. - JPL autonomy workshop.
· Technical reviewer for IEEE, AIAA, INCOSE, and other professional societies
Publications and Presentations
Michael Sievers and Azad Madni, “Contract-Based Spacecraft Swarm Byzantine Resilience,” SciTech 2017
Azad Madni, Michael Sievers, James Humann, Edwin Ordoukhanian, Joseph D’Ambrosio, Padma Sundaram, “Model-Based Approach for Engineering Resilient System-of-Systems: Application to Autonomous Vehicle Networks,” CSER 2017
Azad Madni and Michael Sievers, “System of Systems Integration: Fundamental Concepts, Challenges, and Opportunities,” Advances in Systems Engineering, John Hsu and Richard Curran, eds., AIAA, 2016
Michael Sievers and Azad Madni, “Agent-Based Flexible Design Contracts for Resilient Spacecraft Swarms,” AIAA SciTech, San Diego California, January 2016
Azad Madni and Michael Sievers, “A Flexible Contract-Based Design Framework for Evaluating System Resilience Approaches and Mechanisms, ISERC 2015, Nashville, TN, May 2015
Michael Sievers and Azad Madni, “Defining Credible Faults, A Risk-Based Approach,” AIAA Space, Pasadena California, August 2015
Michael Sievers and Azad Madni, “A Flexible Contracts Approach to System Resiliency,” IEEE SMC Conference, San Diego California, October 2014
Azad Madni and Michael Sievers, “Model-Based Systems Engineering: Motivation, Current Status and Needed Advances, INCOSE Journal of Systems Engineering, in press.
Azad Madni and Michael Sievers, “System of Systems Integration: Key Considerations and Challenges,” INCOSE Journal of Systems Engineering, July 2013
Azad Madni and Michael Sievers, “Systems Integration: Key Perspectives, Experiences, and Challenges, INCOSE Journal of Systems Engineering, May 2013
M. Omair Khan, Michael Sievers, and Shaun Standley, “Model-Based Verification and Validation of Spacecraft Avionics,” AIAA Infotech Conference 2012, June 2012
D. Redding, E. Sidick, G. Agnes, E. Blaze, B. Cameron, K. Coste, T. Cunningham, J. Green, R. Holm, A. Moussessian, O. Polanco, M. Sievers, B. Williams, “Seismic Imager Space Telescope,” NASA New Tech Report 48469, November 2011
D. Redding, E. Sidick, G. Agnes, E. Blaze, B. Cameron, K. Coste, T. Cunningham, J. Green, R. Holm, A. Moussessian, O. Polanco, M. Sievers, B. Williams, “Geostationary Optical Telescope for Seismic Wave Imaging,” R&TD/DRDF/SURP poster session, JPL, November 2011
Boysen, Cecilia, Jun Qian, Tristan Gill, Richard J. Messenger, Yi Mo, Michael Sievers, Lingyan Zhu, Joseph A. Borkowski, Paracel TranscriptAssembler: Identification of Alternative Splice Forms and polyA Sites from EST and mRNA Data, European Conference on Computational Biology 2002, Saarbrücken, Germany, October, 2002
Mo, Yi, Moira Regelson, Michael Sievers, A Study of Genewise with the Drosophila ADH Region, 9th Annual Intelligent Systems in Molecular Biology (ISMB), Copenhagen, Denmark, July 21-25, 2001
Michael Sievers and Yi Mo, An Evaluation of Homology-Based Algorithms for Gene Structure Prediction, 13th International Sequencing and Analysis Conference, San Diego, California, October, 2001
Sievers, M.W., G. Gilley, Fault-Tolerant Computing: An Architectural Approach to Tolerating Radiation Effects,” Nuclear Science and Radiation Effects Conference, Short Course, July, 1985
Sievers, M.W., “MOS Integrated Circuit Fault Modeling,” in Product Assurance Technology for Custom LSI/VLSI Electronic, JPL Publication 85-76, June 1985
Sievers, M.W., A Low Cost, Highly Available Digital Control Computer, EPRI Seminar: Power Plant Digital Control and Fault-Tolerant Microcomputers, April 1985
Sievers, M.W., The MEP Computer System: A Single Event Effect Tolerant Architecture, DNA-DARPA Symposium on Single Event Effects, April 5, 1984
Sievers, M.W., Diagnostics for a Reliable Plant Controller, Proc. IEEE Total Systems Reliability Symp., Gaithersburg, MD, Dec. 12-14 1983, pp. 137-140
Gilley, G and M.W. Sievers, Single Event Upset Correction Through Fault-Tolerance, DNA-DARPA Symposium on Singe Event Effects, April 20, 1983
Sievers, M.W., A Low Cost Fault-Tolerant Computer System, presented at the Los Angeles IEEE Computer Society Seminar on Improving Availability of Hardware-Software Systems, Redondo Beach, CA, November, 1982
Sievers, M.W. and D.A. Rennels, “An LSI Self-Checking Interface for a Hamming Coded Memory, GOMAC-82, November, 1982, Orlando, Florida, pp. 205-208
Buehler, M.G., and M.W. Sievers, Offline Built-In Test Techniques for VLSI, Computer, vol. 15, no. 6, June 1982, pp. 69-82
Sievers, M.W., Implementation of Digital Circuits, in Digital Systems and Hardware/Firmware Algorithms by M.D. Ercegovac and T. Lang, UCLA Computer Science Department Class Notes
Sievers, M.W. and D.A. Rennels, An LSI Totally Self-Checking Hamming Coded Memory Interface, IEEE International Symp. On Circuits and Systems, Rome, Italy, May 1982, pp. 1176-1179
1