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By Maria Lironi
Malka. Photo: UVic Photo Services It was the lure of the ocean and the mountains that brought Lior Malka—an avid rock climber and runner—from Israel to UVic in 2004. Fast forward four years and this computer science student has earned his PhD and made a huge impression on campus.
Upon arrival, Malka quickly made the most of every experience. In an effort to meet people, Malka became a peer helper for the campus libraries and learning programs. He has also been a Graduate Students’ Society representative, and is the founder of the Computer Science Coffee House—a social mixer for graduate students and faculty. The coffee house is so successful that it is now part of the department’s culture. Malka is also founder of the Computer Science Volunteer Program, which offers free computer courses for seniors.
When not improving the fabric of the university, Malka studies the interplay between cryptography (addressing various security issues in networks) and complexity (the limitations of computers).
“I was drawn to computer science because of its technical challenges,” says Malka. “I was also interested in the process of designing a system, thinking about how it can be hacked and then redesigning it to make it more robust.
“The research portion of my degree was very difficult at times,” recalls Malka. “I was working on theoretical problems that are hard to explain to other people, even other computer scientists. But my supervisors—Bruce Kapron and Venkatesh Srinivasan—did all they could to help me either financially, through advice, or their experience. My friends also provided a lot of support and it made a huge difference.”
“Lior was my first graduate student, a fact I will always be proud of,” says Srinivasan, “and I am thrilled by the progress he has made in the last four years, academically and otherwise. I am impressed by his enthusiasm and energy to contribute to the university and the community in any way he can. As his supervisor, I have always been impressed by his confidence in his technical abilities while working hard on challenging problems in cryptography and complexity.”
Despite the difficult topic, and his busy life as a volunteer, Malka managed to stay on top academically. For this he has garnered a UVic Blue and Gold Award. He was also a winner in the Innovation and Development Corporation’s 2007 Inventor Competition.
Now that he’s earned his PhD, Malka is planning a road trip to the Arctic Ocean and starting a high-tech company focused on Internet security with his friends from the department.
“I enjoyed academia, but now I feel that it’s time to put all this knowledge to a good use,” says Malka. “I want to contribute to the well-being of Canadians, and to BC in particular.”
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