Computer Science

(From Eagle Drive magazine, December 2023) 
 
Opportunities for exceptional careers in computer science are enhanced when graduate students earn a Ph.D. at Tennessee Tech. Here’s what some recent recipients had to say about their experiences in the Department of Computer Science – and how they are now distinguishing themselves in the field. 
 
Rima Asmar, Ph.D. (Summer 2023) of Knoxville is a cybersecurity researcher at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, where she works to secure the nation’s critical infrastructure.  

 
Asmar, who is from Palestine but was born and lived most of her life in Puerto Rico, said Tech opened doors for her to embark on a challenging journey while juggling the responsibilities of being a single mother and working a full-time job.  
  
“The traditional educational path eluded me as circumstances led me to become a young mother before graduating high school,” she said. “Despite this, my passion for education propelled me forward. I embarked on my academic journey by obtaining a GED, followed by pursuing a fully online bachelor’s degree. Later, I seized the opportunity to complete a master’s degree. The dream of attaining a Ph.D. seemed distant and improbable. However, today, I stand proud as I have completed the final chapter of my remarkable journey from GED to Ph.D. Along the way, I have set a powerful example for my two daughters, who have consistently been my greatest source of strength and motivation.”  
  
Asmar immersed herself in a vibrant community of fellow students and professors.  
 
“Every moment spent at Tennessee Tech became a source of joy and fulfillment,” she said. “Whether it was collaborating on group projects, forging meaningful connections or proudly representing the school at conferences, I cherished every opportunity that made me feel truly connected to the Tennessee Tech community.” 
 
DISSERTATION: Automated Memory Forensics for Programmable Logic Controllers 
 
Katie Brown, Ph.D. (Summer 2023) is a research fellow trainee in Vanderbilt University Medical Center’s Department of Biomedical Informatics. A Cookeville native, she plans to continue using and developing artificial intelligence for medical tasks such as clinical decision support.  
 

Brown’s greatest research accomplishment at Tech was developing QUEST, a model assessment tool that is guided by uncertainty to find high-performing and low-performing subgroups of data.  
 
“Our first paper about QUEST was accepted for publication at one of the top biomedical informatics conferences in the country, and there are interesting ways we can expand QUEST,” she said. 
  
Tech made it possible for Brown to remain close to home while pursuing a research-based degree.  
 
“Tennessee Tech is special because it provides opportunities for countless people in the Upper Cumberland to receive a high-quality, affordable education,” she said, adding that her best memories at the university are of the people she met, who became some of her closest friends.  
      
Brown plans to remain in the biomedical informatics field.  
 
“I’m excited to learn about the opportunities to apply my computer science and AI skills and choose a career path that mixes research and development with doing something that can benefit people,” she said. 
 
DISSERTATION: Evaluating, Explaining and Utilizing Model Uncertainty in High-Performing, Opaque Machine Learning Models 
 
M Rayhan Ahmed Mithu, Ph.D. (Summer 2023) is a lead engineer at GAFFL Inc., where he develops AI-driven solutions to help the company grow. A native of Dhaka, Bangladesh, he resides in Cookeville while his wife pursues her Ph.D. at Tech.  

 

Mithu chose Tennessee Tech “because of its great academic reputation and diverse research opportunities in computer science. The cultural diversity and support for international students was also very appealing.” He developed independence and resilience at Tech, and the university’s state-of-the-art resources were instrumental in enhancing the depth and quality of his research and paving his career path.  
  
“I was privileged to be a part of a vibrant academic community that fostered networking with accomplished faculty,” he said. “The rigorous curriculum sharpened my analytical and problem-solving abilities, and the array of research opportunities allowed me to make meaningful contributions to the field.” 
 
DISSERTATION: Incorporating a Knowledge Base into Machine Learning Techniques for Forensic Analysis of Control Systems 
 
MD Aminul Islam, Ph.D. (Spring 2023) is an assistant professor in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering at Jagannath University in Dhaka, Bangladesh. 

 

Islam began his computer science graduate studies at Tennessee Tech in 2019. His research interests are in the field of machine learning applied to smart power grid routing.  
 
He enjoyed many things while a student in Tech’s College of Engineering, including Cookeville’s nice weather and being part of a technical and specialized university. 
 
“The people of Tennessee are very cordial and just awesome,” he said. 
 
DISSERTATION: Proactive Routing in Smart Power Grids 
 
Ahsan Ayub, Ph.D. (Spring 2023) is a security data scientist at Enzym AI, based in Seattle, Wash. Working remotely, Ayub, a native of Dhaka, Bangladesh, contributes to the development of an AI co-pilot for cybersecurity operation.  

 

He served as a graduate research assistant at Tech’s Cybersecurity Education, Research and Outreach Center (CEROC); instructed undergraduate courses (Programming in C++ and Introduction to Problem Solving); was president of the Computer Science Graduate Student Club; and did an internship as a security engineer at AllianceBernstein.  
 
Ayub was also a competitive programming coach: “I delivered lectures and organized practice contests to teach mathematics, data structure and algorithms-related problem-solving topics to undergraduate students.”  
 
His research interests include computer security, machine learning and malware analysis. 
 
DISSERTATION: A Data-Driven Approach for Early Detection of Cryptographic Windows Ransomware 
 
PRABIN LAMICHHANE, Ph.D. (Fall 2022) is a senior data scientist at MasterCard. A native of Nepal, he resides in St. Louis, Mo.  
 

Lamichhane chose Tech because of its specialized programs and cutting-edge research in computer science.  
 
“Tennessee Tech offers a structured curriculum and diverse courses that provide the required breadth and depth of knowledge, allowing me to explore my interests and develop expertise in my chosen area,” he said. 
 
Lamichhane said those “aha” moments, “like when you suddenly get clicks on research problems that lead you to better ideas,” are special memories from his studies at Tech. 
 
DISSERTATION: Anomaly Detection, Clustering and Visualization on Dynamic Graphs