Web Science and Digital Libraries Research Group

  On December 17, 2022, I walked in ODU's commencement ceremony as Dr. Michele Weigle 's 10th Ph.D. graduate. The number 10 is some what fitting as 10 years have passed since I started taking doctoral level courses at ODU, first as a non-degree student, before officially enrolling in the Computer Science program. If you search mythology, numerology, literature, or religion you will find various meanings and themes around the number 10. The one I find most fitting for the doctoral degree is completion of a cycle, endings and beginnings where knowledge gained during the journey is now available to you. On November 16, 2022, I defended my dissertation research " A Relevance Model for Threat-Centric Ranking of Cybersecurity Vulnerabilities  ( video )."  I sincerely appreciate the willingness of Dr. Weigle, Dr. Nelson , and the Web Science and Digital Libraries ( WS-DL ) research group to join me in tackling a cybersecurity challenge. My dissertation committee members, Dr...

It was a fine afternoon and I had just finished my weekly meeting with my advisor Michael L. Nelson in which we discussed a few potential topics for my doctoral research after completing my masters degree . I dropped my meeting notes on the desk of my cubicle and went downstairs for a walk in the Old Dominion University (ODU) campus. It was a pleasant sunny weather outside, so I sat on a bench near a small pond behind the Computer Science building to enjoy the fountain in the pond and to observe turtles taking sun bath, of which, a few small ones were stacked on the backs of the big ones. I noticed a long-stem grass around the edge of the pond that reminded me of a grass we used to use for crafting in my village in India during my childhood. I picked a few stems, took them upstairs, washed them, weaved them into a bird, and hanged the bird from the wall of my cubicle. Later, it was moved to the Web Science and Digital Libraries (WSDL) Research Group 's PhD Crush board where it dr...