Last week the University of Rhode Island hosted two especially noteworthy events that attracted substantial attention on- and off-campus. These were the Cybersecurity Symposium and Discovery Day. Both events presented, in different ways, many of the challenges we face in the 21st century, and highlighted the numerous and important contributions that contribute to overcoming those challenges made by faculty and students at URI.
The Cybersecurity Symposium featured Congressman Jim Langevin and Senator Sheldon Whitehouse who are both widely regarded, as among our nation’s key leaders in understanding and combating the threats posed to America and Rhode Island by breaches, spying, and attacks on the ubiquitous networks now seemingly indispensible to practically every aspect of our lives. Those threats were cogently outlined in a compelling keynote address from General Keith Alexander, who is the Director of the National Security Agency/Chief of the Central Security Service, and Commander of the U.S. Cyber Command.
The magnitude of the damage already done to the U.S. economy and to citizens is much larger than many people realize, and the threats are diverse and growing. As sobering as that information is, it was also clear that faculty, students, and alumni of the University of Rhode Island are among the leaders in developing solutions to the challenges and problems posed by security breaches in our information networks. The URI Center for Digital Forensics, and the research and education activities of several faculty and students in the Department of Computer Science and Statistics and the Department of Electrical, Computer, and Bioengineering already contribute in important ways. I got the sense that many who attended the Symposium discovered this fact about URI while they were here. It is clear, I think, that URI can play a much more substantial role in assisting both government and the private sector. New collaborations and partnerships are in the works, which will provide additional opportunities for students and faculty, which, somewhat ironically, may actually provide an economic boost to Rhode Island.
Discovery Day at the University of Rhode Island also emphasized the contributions of students and faculty at URI across the entire range of research and scholarship characteristic of a research university. Students and faculty from every college participated. It was frankly inspiring to see the contributions URI is making to understanding and finding solutions to problems in education, health, science and technology, business, and the environment. URI’s scholarship and creative work in the humanities and the arts was also well represented.
I would like to personally thank our speakers for Discovery Day as well. Keith Stokes, Executive Director of the RI Economic Development Corporation, Leslie Taito, CEO of the RI Manufacturing Extension Service, Umberto Crenca, Founding Artistic Director of AS220, and Paul Hastings, President and CEO of OncoMed Pharmaceuticals, all provided insightful and illuminating talks that illustrated the close relationships between research and creative work and economic and community development. Thanks also to Vice President Peter Alfonso and Den Nasser Zawia (and their staffs) for organizing these events. Dean Dave Maslyn and the Library staff did an excellent job in hosting both the Cybersecurity Symposium and Discovery Day.
