Marist/IBM Joint Study students (l-r) Chris Byrnes ’19, Katerina Tzannes ’20, Phaelan Koock ’19, Tyler Rimaldi ’21, Michael Gutierrez ’19, Taylor Dunn ’19, Ali Sytsma ’20, Daniel Gisolfi ’20, and William Kluge ’21. Not pictured: Brandi Coon ’19

November 9, 2018—If you walk through the lower level of Marist’s Hancock Center, you might notice a group of students behind large windows. Along with the big room of big computers next to it, that is the School of Computer Science and Mathematics’ Enterprise Computing Research Laboratory, where students work on projects for the Marist-IBM Joint Study, National Science Foundation-funded SecureCloud grant, New York State Cloud Computing and Analytics Center, and the College’s Department of Information Technology. Greg Lacey of IBM manages the whole operation, while faculty from the School of Computer Science and Mathematics organize student-centered research groups. After a particularly productive summer, Marist students have been sharing their work at conferences all around the Northeast this fall.

Several students are presenting peer-reviewed papers at conferences sponsored by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), the world’s largest technical professional organization, which is dedicated to fostering technological innovation and excellence. In October, computer science majors Daniel Gisolfi ’20, Michael Gutierrez ’19, and Tyler Rimaldi ’21 of Mahopac, New York traveled to MIT to present their paper, “A HoneyNet Environment for Analyzing Malicious Actors,” at the 2018 IEEE Undergraduate Research Technology Conference. This conference brings together undergraduates from around the world to present, discuss, and develop solutions to advance technology for humanity. In addition, Tyler and Chris Byrnes ’19 will be presenting their accepted paper, “Implementing a Mobile Identity Application in a Ubiquitous Computing Environment” at the 9th IEEE Annual Ubiquitous Computing Conference, Electronics & Mobile Communication Conference at Columbia University this month. Finally, software development major Brandi Coon ’19, computer science major Ali Sytsma ’20, and information technology and systems major Katerina Tzannes ’20 will give a presentation on “Female Leadership and its Effect on Sexism” at the IEEE Women In Engineering (WIE) Forum USA East in White Plains, New York in December. WIE’s mission is to inspire and empower women as leaders in engineering and technology.

(l-r) Michael Gutierrez ’19, Daniel Gisolfi ’20, and Tyler Rimaldi ’21 at MIT

According to Roger Norton, Dean of the School of Computer Science and Mathematics, it is not unusual for so many students to be presenting at conferences. He says, “One of School’s most distinctive features is the abundance of faculty/student research activity. Students present their research regionally, nationally and even around the world. Not only do they present at these prestigious conferences on a variety of topics, but they frequently receive the top awards for student presentations.” 

Other students recently presented posters at the 9th Annual New York Institute of Technology (NYIT) Cybersecurity Conference, presented by NYIT’s College of Engineering and Computer Sciences. Marist participants included Daniel Gisolfi and Michael Gutierrez, who shared their work, “LCARS: a Lightweight Cloud Application for Realtime Security;” computer science major William Kluge ’21, who presented “Security Exploits for IEEE 1588 Precision Time Protocol;” and Daniel Gisolfi, Michael Gutierrez, and Tyler Rimaldi, whose work, “A HoneyNet Environment for Analyzing Malicious Actors,” won the second place prize for the conference. NYIT’s Cybersecurity Conference brings together cyber experts from academia, business, and government to address multiple topics related to cybersecurity, including challenges in the banking, energy, and healthcare sectors; Blockchain and its vulnerabilities; and data analytics, artificial intelligence, and security.

Still more computer science students had the opportunity to present posters at IBM TechConnect.  Daniel Gisolfi, Michael Gutierrez, and Tyler Rimaldi presented their work, “A HoneyNet Environment for Analyzing Malicious Actors,” while William Kluge presented “Security Exploits for IEEE 1588 Precision Time Protocol.” Chris Byrnes and Tyler Rimaldi also presented a poster, entitled “Marist Mobile Identity: Digital Identification and Facility Access,” which won first place in the “Software - Early Tenure” category. Joining them at IBM TechConnect were Katerina Tzannes and information technology and systems major Phaelan Koock ’19, both from the Marist-IBM Joint Study, who attended both to support their fellow students and gain conference experience to better prepare them for future presentations.

Congratulations to all of these students, all of whom are conducting high-level research, gaining real-world skills, and representing Marist well!