About Me

I am in my fourth year as a PhD student at Florida State University in the Computer Science Department, under the guidance of Dr. David Whalley and Dr. Gary Tyson. I obtained a Masters Degree in Computer Science from Florida State University in August 2004. My thesis dealt with the translation, de-optimization, and re-optimization of ARM assembly code. You can read about it here. I received my Bachelors Degree in Computer Engineering from Illinois Institute of Technology. In Spring 2003, I taught Introduction to Internet Technology. It was my third semester of teaching (having taught C++ Data Structures and Algorithms, as well as Computer Organization before). I had been a Teaching Assistant for the previous 4 years for a variety of Computer Science classes. I have always strived to teach not only how something is done, but how to do it well, and why it is done that way.

My interests are in Compilers, Computer Architecture, Cryptography, Network Security, and Operating Systems, so it is fair to say that I like some pretty diverse things. I currently have two machines set up at home (an Athlon-XP 2100+ and a Dual-Xeon-PIII 600), both running Gentoo Linux. I even have a screenshot of my newest setup. Setting it up was not the easiest install I have done, but the Gentoo Forums and mailing lists were extremely helpful (especially for pesky hardware problems like trying to configure X with a GeForce4 and a DVI connection to an LCD panel).

I have been running Linux for about 8 years now. I even have some experience with modifying the Linux kernel for obtaining more precise timing measurements. One day, when I get some free time, I will actually update the newest kernel with my modifications, and then I will make the patch available on this site. I enjoy programming for fun and profit especially in Python.

I have been using Vim exclusively for almost 7 years now. It is by far one of my favorite pieces of software due to its sheer utility. Because of the abundance of advocates for "That Other Editor" at FSU, I have been slowly trying to show my fellow graduate students the wonders of Vim. I even took a quiz once that had questions about it. So far in my quest, I have at least 2 converts ;) For the past 5 years I have been using LaTeX for all my text processing needs. Papers and homework just look so much nicer when they are typeset with LaTeX. Plus it makes it easier for TA's and Professors to grade, so they usually appreciate that extra little bit of effort.

5 years ago I set some goals to improve my well-being. In addition to losing weight by eating healthier, I also started lifting weights at the gym. I am still going to the gym 3 days a week to maintain a healthy lifestyle.

I was born and grew up mostly in Staten Island, New York. I also lived for a short time in Manalapan, New Jersey, and I went to high school while living in Fruitland Park, Florida. I have also lived in Chicago, Illinois and Ames, Iowa while in college. Right now I live in Tallahassee while I am busy working on my PhD at Florida State.

In the little spare time that I get (I am a graduate student after all), I enjoy reading for fun. I particularly like the works of Larry Niven (Ringworld series, Destiny's Road, Lucifer's Hammer, ...), and Neal Stephenson (Cryptonomicon, Snow Crash, The Diamond Age). I would recommend these books to just about anyone who enjoys the Science Fiction and Fantasy genres. Another interesting book is Douglas Hofstadter's "Godel, Escher, Bach: An Eternal Golden Braid". It is an older book, and is also quite lengthy, but it is very thought-provoking, especially to anyone who enjoys thinking about "thinking". The book is full of many interesting and diverse topics plus a lot of philosophy and math, but it is good reading for anyone going into the Computer Science field. Of course I am a big Tolkien fan, and now that there are such excellent film versions, I hope more people will actually read and enjoy his books.