Hello, I'm
Stephen Fickas
Professor Emeritus of Computer Science at the University of Oregon — now spending my days studying the health of New England's salt marshes, bringing old film photographs to life, playing sax, or chasing a ball.
Professor Emeritus of Computer Science at the University of Oregon — now spending my days studying the health of New England's salt marshes, bringing old film photographs to life, playing sax, or chasing a ball.
My long and twisting academic path. So many alumni associations, so little money.
My current work focuses on assessing and monitoring the health of salt marshes and their habitat along the New England coast. These vital ecosystems sit at the intersection of land and sea, supporting biodiversity and protecting shorelines.
I work with a fabulous team both at the University of Massachusetts as well as those in state departments that focus on the environment.
My expertise: I contribute to the team by working with a variety of remote sensing images, including those captured by UAS/drone, Aerial and satellite. I use a variety of AI-based modeling tools with a particular emphasis on pre-trained models as a base (transfer learning). My most recent work has been in both image classification and object detection. The image on the right shows my model's output of identifying Diamondback Terrapins (labeled 1) and turtle-like landscape (labeled 5). This project allows us to use drones to track turtle populations, rather than the logistically challenging task of counting them through field visits.
I enjoy working with my analog photos, following in my father's footsteps who colorized (by hand) black and white prints. I suppose I am a mixture of old school and new school: middle school? I work with my film photographs but then use digital tools to bring out the atmosphere I remember at that place and time. You can see some of my work in that Gallery link below.
I also enjoy playing jazz, but am most an intermediate tenor sax player. My pride and joy is an SML revD circa 1956 Paris.
Gosh, I've been at it 15 years or more, mostly on tenor sax. I have a fondness for R&B: Saint James Infirmary, Lean on Me. I also like working with anything by Jobim and recently Latin Jazz ala Pink Martini and Gipsy Kings. And sometimes Holiday music :)
Soccer for 30+ years with the same crew. Mountain biking red rock trails. Surfing (hey, I grew up in San Diego), pickleball, hockey (I learned when UMASS pond froze over) — if it gets me moving and outside, I'm in.
Interested in salt marsh research, art, or just want to say hello? I'd love to hear from you.
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