Skip to content
View nelabdiel's full-sized avatar
11 followers · 10 following

Achievements

Achievement: Arctic Code Vault ContributorAchievement: Pull Shark

Achievements

Achievement: Arctic Code Vault ContributorAchievement: Pull Shark

Organizations

@gerrymandr

Block or report nelabdiel

Block user

Prevent this user from interacting with your repositories and sending you notifications. Learn more about blocking users.

You must be logged in to block users.

Please don't include any personal information such as legal names or email addresses. Maximum 100 characters, markdown supported. This note will be visible to only you.
Report abuse

Contact GitHub support about this user’s behavior. Learn more about reporting abuse.

Report abuse
nelabdiel/README.md

Nelson A. Colón Vargas, Ph.D.

Miami, FL, 33127
LinkedIn: nelabdiel
OrcID Record | arXiv | Google Scholar
Spotify: Nel Abdiel | http://nel.world
n a c o l o n (at) g m a i l (dot) c o m

Academic Appointments

Columbia University - School of International and Public Affairs

Adjunct Faculty - Lecturer
Sept 2022 - Present

Teaching graduate policy students Data Science techniques and the Ethics of developing socially impactful products. Responsible for curriculum development, lab creation, and supervision of 5 Graduate Teaching Assistants.

Public Sector Experience

Department of Veterans Affairs - Office of the Chief AI Officer, DC

Applied Scientist - AI Policy Lead
Dec 2023 - Present

Lead AI Policy and Governance for the largest civilian agency, driving the development and implementation of comprehensive AI policy, governance, and guidance. Oversee the multidisciplinary AI Policy Workstream, which establishes standards for safe and responsible AI use across the VA. Manage the safety and rights impact review process for AI applications, ensuring robust oversight and alignment with the agency’s mission to protect Veterans and uphold public trust.

U.S. Food & Drug Administration - Office of the Commissioner, DC

Artificial Intelligence Lead - Responsible AI Official
June 2023 - Dec 2023

Chaired the AI Governance and Advisory Board, guiding AI development and responsible use at the FDA. Advised on AI policies for HHS and the White House, and served as an AI expert for initiatives like the White House Cancer Moonshot.

U.S. Digital Service, Executive Office of the President, The White House

AI & Cybersecurity Lead - Digital Service Expert
Nov 2021 - June 2023

Worked with the Department of Veterans Affairs on AI strategies and practices, ensuring alignment with White House ethical principles. Developed AI-driven cybersecurity products at the Department of Defense, promoted responsible AI development.

White House Presidential Innovation Fellows, Washington, DC

AI Lead - Entrepreneur in Residence
Jan 2019 - Oct 2021

Led development and deployment of AI-driven solutions, including a Claims Attributes API that reduced VA benefit claims wait times and saved $10 million annually. Crafted AI and Cybersecurity research funding evaluations for ITS-JPO at DOT.

Private Sector Experience

Microsoft, Redmond, WA / Humacao, P.R.

Data & Applied Scientist II - Intellectual Property Protection & Solutions
Feb 2018 - Jan 2019

Developed advanced algorithms for time series anomaly and ML-driven intrusion detection, enhancing the security of Microsoft products and cloud services. Led collaborative efforts to address emerging cyber threats.

Soteria - Tailored Cybersecurity Solutions, Charleston, S.C.

Lead Data Scientist
June 2016 - Jan 2018

Led a cross-functional team through the development and deployment of Soteria's proprietary NLP/NLU phishing detection solution.

Education

University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA
Ph.D., Mathematics
Thesis: Localized Skein Algebras as Frobenius Extensions. DOI: 10.17077/etd.lxsp43cp
M.Sc Mathematics

University of Texas, Austin, TX
M.Sc., Artificial Intelligence

University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
M.St., Artificial Intelligence Ethics and Society
Expected June 2025

University of Northern Iowa, Cedar Falls, IA
M.A. Mathamatics
Dissertation: Discrete Subgroups of SL(2, R)

University of Puerto Rico, Rio Piedras, San Juan, PR
B.Sc., Mathematics

Selected Publications

The Traveling Mailman: Topological Optimization Methods for User-Centric Redistricting

Under Review. DOI: 10.48550/arXiv.2407.19535

The Localized Skein Algebra is Frobenius

w/Charles Frohman, Algebraic and Geometric Topology, Volume 17, Issue 6, October 2017. DOI: 10.2140/agt.2017.17.3341

Frobenius Algebras Derived From The Kauffman Bracket Skein Algebras

w/Charles Frohman, Journal of Knot Theory and its Ramification Volume 25, Issue 04, April 2016. DOI: 10.1142/S0218216516500164

Letters and Commentaries

Exploiting The Margin: How Capitalism Fuels AI at the Expense of Minoritized Groups

AI & Ethics, Springer Journal, 2024. DOI: 10.1007/s43681-024-00502-w

Generative AI as a Tool for Enhancing ESL Students' Understanding

w/Marcos Ramos-Benitez, Ponce Health Sciences University Scientific Journal, 2024. Accepted.

Pinned Loading

  1. TDARedistricting TDARedistricting Public

    Jupyter Notebook

  2. caire caire Public

    Clustered AI Review Engine (CAIRE)

    Python 1

  3. redactedGPT redactedGPT Public

    A web interface for ChatGPT that removes PII and detect confidential information before sending the inquiry outside your network

    Python 5

  4. claims-attributes-api claims-attributes-api Public

    API that predict classification, flashes and special issues of benefit claims.

    Python 8 2

  5. gerrymandr/adjacency-graphs gerrymandr/adjacency-graphs Public

    Tools for obtaining adjacency graphs from polygon shapefile data

    Python 10 8

  6. EtDSofSDE EtDSofSDE Public

    Exploring the Data Space of the Space Data Explorers

    Jupyter Notebook