Laura M. Grabowski

Papers

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About

Laura M. Grabowski is a computer scientist whose research spans broadening participation in computing, digital evolution, and self-adaptive software systems. Her most influential work, "Robots, recruitment, and retention: Broadening participation through CS0" (13 citations), addresses the critical challenge of declining interest in computing careers by introducing an innovative CS0 course designed to recruit and retain a diverse range of undergraduate majors. This work directly tackles the persistent underrepresentation in computing fields, offering a practical, evidence-based intervention. In parallel, Grabowski has made significant contributions to evolutionary computation through her study "Cockroaches, drunkards, and climbers: Modeling the evolution of simple movement strategies using digital organisms" (9 citations), where she used the Avida platform to explore how even primitive organisms evolve intelligent foraging behaviors. She further extended this digital evolution methodology to software engineering in "Applying digital evolution to the design of self-adaptive software" (3 citations), proposing a novel approach for creating robust, biologically-inspired systems that can autonomously optimize their behavior. Grabowski’s work uniquely bridges educational innovation with computational evolution, demonstrating how principles from nature can inform both inclusive pedagogy and adaptive technology design.