Amirhossein Abaskohi

Amirhossein Abaskohi

Computer Science MSc Student at UBC

About me

Greetings! I’m Amir, short for Amirhossein Abaskohi (امیرحسین عباسکوهی). Feel free to call me Amir 😄.

I am currently embarking on my journey as a first-year MSc student at the University of British Columbia, under the supervision of Prof. Giuseppe Carenini and Prof. Issam H. Laradji. I am part of UBC natural language processing group. My academic pursuit follows the successful completion of my BSc degree in Computer Engineering from the esteemed University of Tehran. During my undergraduate studies, I had the privilege of collaborating with Prof. Azadeh Shakeri, Prof. Yadollah Yaghoobzadeh, and Prof. Behnam Bahrak, enriching my academic experience.

My research interests span across natural language processing, machine learning, linguistics, and human-centered artificial intelligence. Specifically, I am fascinated by natural language inference and reasoning, multimodal reasoning, controller generation, and information retrieval. My research journey commenced during my second year of undergraduate studies, and since then, I have passionately delved into various research problems. This endeavor has resulted in several published papers across diverse areas, reflecting my commitment to exploring new frontiers of knowledge.

Beyond academia, I am enthusiastic about knowledge dissemination and community engagement. I actively share insights and discoveries through platforms like Medium and YouTube, fostering dialogue and knowledge exchange. In addition to my academic pursuits, I have honed my skills in software engineering through practical experiences. I have contributed to back-end development projects at reputable companies in Iran and Canada, including System Group in Summer 2022 and MateMachine for one year since November 2022.

Outside of my academic and professional endeavors, I find solace in the pages of novels and comics 📚, where imagination knows no bounds 🌟. This passion for literature fuels my creativity and provides a welcomed escape from the rigors of academia. Although I don’t venture into nature regularly, I find moments to immerse myself in its beauty from time to time. Being in Vancouver, a city renowned for its breathtaking natural landscapes, offers ample opportunities for nature lovers like me to reconnect with the outdoors. There’s a serene allure to the great outdoors that captivates me—a sense of tranquility that’s hard to replicate elsewhere. Whether it’s a leisurely hike through the woods, a peaceful stroll along a secluded beach, or simply pausing to admire the vibrant colors of a sunset, these experiences rejuvenate my spirit and remind me of the inherent wonders of the natural world. Despite life’s busyness, I cherish these intermittent encounters with nature, each one leaving an indelible mark on my soul.

I am happy to answer any questions anmd chat about research/collboration! Reach me at aabaskoh@ubc.ca.

News

  • 2024.03: Our paper entitled “BCAmirs at SemEval-2024 Task 4: Beyond Words: A Multimodal and Multilingual Exploration of Persuasion in Memes” has been accepted by SemEval@NAACL2024.
  • 2024.03: Our paper entitled “uTeBC-NLP at SemEval-2024 Task 9: Can LLMs be Lateral Thinkers?” has been accepted by SemEval@NAACL2024.
  • 2024.02: Our paper titled “Benchmarking Large Language Models for Persian: A Preliminary Study Focusing on ChatGPT” has been accepted for presentation at LREC-CoLing 2024.
  • 2023.09: I started my Master’s Degree at UBC’s CS Department 🥳🥳.
  • 2023.05: Out paper with the title “LM-CPPF: Paraphrasing-Guided Data Augmentation for Contrastive Prompt-Based Few-Shot Fine-Tuning” has been accepted for ACL 2023.
  • 2023.03: Our paper with the title “PEACH: Pre-Training Sequence-to-Sequence Multilingual Models for Translation with Semi-Supervised Pseudo-Parallel Document Generation” has been accepted for LoResMT@EACL 2023.
  • 2023.02: I completed my B.Sc. from the University of Tehran’s ECE department.
  • 2022.09: My project with title “Presenting A Multilingual Sequence-to-Sequence Language Model For Machine Translation Using Supervised Parallel Document Generation” has been awarded as the best undergraduate project.
  • 2022.03: Our paper entitled “UTNLP at SemEval-2022 Task 6: A Comparative Analysis of Sarcasm Detection Using Generative-based and Mutation-based Data Augmentation” has been accepted by SemEval@NAACL2022.
  • 2021.09: I have been accepted for 1-year internship under supervision of Prof. Pedram Rooshenas.
  • 2021.07: I have been accepted for summer internship at World Data Science Institute.
  • 2020.11: I have been selected as a Iran’s Elites Foundation member.
  • 2019.09: I was awarded the Scholarship 2018-2019 by the University of Tehran.
  • 2018.09: Started my B.Sc. at the University of Tehran.

Misc

  • I have a deep-seated fascination with languages and a genuine passion for learning new ones. Exploring the intricacies of different linguistic structures and cultural nuances has always captivated me. This love for languages naturally led me to delve into the field of natural language processing. Understanding how computers can comprehend and generate human language, despite its complexities and variations, has become a driving force behind my academic pursuits. The intersection of linguistics, computer science, and artificial intelligence in NLP offers a unique opportunity to bridge my interests and contribute to groundbreaking research in a field that continues to push the boundaries of what’s possible.

  • In my downtime, you’ll often find me experimenting in the kitchen, exploring new recipes, and indulging my culinary curiosity. Cooking allows me to express my creativity while also satisfying my love for good food. From homemade pasta dishes to decadent desserts, I enjoy the process of combining flavors and ingredients to create delicious meals that bring joy to those around me.