LSU Division of Computer Science & Engineering

🎓 It’s official: Dr. Taha Gharaibeh! 🎉

We’re excited to celebrate Dr. Gharaibeh, who successfully defended his PhD dissertation yesterday and officially earned that new title! 💜💛

His dissertation, “Volatile Evidence at Scale: Forensically Sound Preservation and High-Performance Memory Forensics for Containers and ROS-Based Robots,” tackles challenges at the intersection of digital forensics, high-performance computing, containers, and robotics, exploring how valuable evidence that can disappear when systems change or shut down can be preserved and analyzed.

Through his research, Dr. Gharaibeh developed new tools and approaches to make memory forensics faster and more effective at scale, from container environments to ROS-based robots. His work included accelerating memory analysis, reconstructing thousands of robot poses from memory alone, and demonstrating why forensic readiness matters as robotic systems become increasingly complex.

A PhD represents years of research, persistence, problem-solving, and probably more than a few moments of “one more experiment.” We’re incredibly proud to see all of Dr. Gharaibeh’s hard work lead to this moment.

A special thank you to his advisor and committee chair, Dr. Ibrahim (Abe) Baggili, for his mentorship and guidance throughout this journey, and to committee members Dr. Golden George Richard III, Dr. Joseph Khoury, Dr. Andrew Webb, and Dean’s Representative Dr. Frederick D. Weil for their time, expertise, and support.

Please join us in congratulating Dr. Taha Gharaibeh on successfully defending his dissertation and earning his PhD! 🎉🎓

LSU LSU College of Engineering LSU Graduate School

🎉 We’re growing, Tigers! Meet the newest member of our faculty, Dr. Ibrahem AlJabea!

Dr. Aljabea joins the LSU Division of Computer Science & Engineering as our new Professional in Residence in Artificial Intelligence, bringing together mathematics, machine learning, and real-world applications in both his research and teaching.

His research explores areas including topological deep learning, higher-order neural networks, and dynamical systems, with applications ranging from cybersecurity and industrial control systems to traffic prediction and other complex, real-world problems.

And while Dr. Aljabea may be new to our faculty, he’s no stranger to LSU. He earned his Ph.D. in Applied Mathematics here and completed a graduate minor in Computer Science & Engineering before joining us in his new role.

He also brings a strong passion for teaching and student success. Dr. Aljabea’s approach focuses on creating an engaging and supportive classroom where students are encouraged to ask questions, think critically, collaborate, and build confidence along the way. His commitment to teaching has already earned him multiple honors at LSU, including the University College Alumni Association Teaching Assistant Award and the David Oxley Graduate Student Teaching Award.

We’re excited to have Dr. Aljabea bring his experience, curiosity, and enthusiasm for AI and teaching to our students and our growing faculty.

Please join us in giving Dr. Aljabea a warm welcome to LSU CSE! 💜💛

🔗 Get to know Dr. Aljabea and his work: https://ialjab2.wixsite.com/ibrahemaljabea

LSU College of Engineering

🎉 Celebrating 25 years of service!

On Monday, we had the opportunity to recognize Dr. Bijaya Karki for an incredible 25 years of service to LSU and the Division of Computer Science & Engineering. 💜💛

For more than two decades, Dr. Karki has been an important part of our division and its story. From serving as our Division Chair for 13 years to advancing research in high-performance computing and computational materials science, his contributions have helped shape our division while making an impact well beyond LSU.

Over the years, Dr. Karki’s work has earned both national and university recognition, including an National Science Foundation (NSF) CAREER Award and the LSU Rainmaker Award. His research has also received support from NASA - National Aeronautics and Space Administration and other federal agencies.

A 25-year milestone is a special one, and we are grateful for the years Dr. Karki has dedicated to our students, faculty, research, and the continued growth of our division.

Please join us in congratulating Dr. Karki on 25 years of service and this well-deserved recognition! 🎉

LSU College of Engineering LSU Center for Computation & Technology

Professor A. Bubu has a friendly beginning-of-semester reminder: sometimes the answer really is in the syllabus. 😉

Of course, new classes come with new schedules, deadlines, expectations, and plenty of questions. So check the syllabus, ask questions, come to office hours, and reach out when you need help. Our faculty and staff are here to help you along the way. 💜 💛

And if the answer happens to be in the syllabus? Well...Professor A. Bubu promises not to say “I told you so.” Probably. 👀

Here’s to a great semester, Tigers!

LSU LSU College of Engineering

How can we make social media safer for children and teens?

LSU CSE Assistant Professor Dr. Reza Ghaiumy Anaraky recently spoke with WBRZ Channel 2 about changes coming to Facebook and Instagram aimed at protecting younger users.

The changes follow a settlement between Meta and 47 states and include new limits on daily use and notifications, nighttime restrictions, stronger parental controls, and additional age verification measures.

Reza shared his expertise on what these changes could mean for families and why safeguards built into social media platforms are only part of the equation. While these tools can help, he also emphasized the important role parents play in helping children safely navigate social media and the online world.

We’re proud to see Dr. Anaraky’s expertise helping bring context to an issue that affects so many families and young people.

Thank you to WBRZ Channel 2 for speaking with Reza and helping bring attention to this important topic.

📺 Watch the interview and read the full story: https://www.wbrz.com/news/meta-settlement-brings-changes-to-children-s-social-media-usage-rules-on-facebook-and-instagram/

LSU LSU College of Engineering

🎉 Two LSU computer science faculty members. More than $770,000 in new NSF funding.

Congratulations to Assistant Professors Dr. Umar Farooq and Dr. Phani Vadrevu, who have received a combined $771,822 from the National Science Foundation (NSF) to support research in software reliability and cybersecurity.

Dr. Farooq received a $300,000 NSF FutureCore award for his project, “Documentation-Guided Adaptable Static Analysis.” His research looks at how complex software documentation can be translated into rules that analysis tools can understand, helping developers catch errors earlier and build more reliable and secure software. The project will also create opportunities for students to gain experience at the intersection of program analysis and AI.

Dr. Vadrevu received $471,822 for his project, “Understanding Bot Farms to Measure and Mitigate Internet Bot Attacks.” His research will take a closer look at human-operated bot farms and how they carry out malicious online campaigns, with the goal of developing better ways to identify and defend against these attacks. The work could help protect online services we use every day, including retail, ticketing, travel, and government websites.

We’re proud to see Dr. Farooq and Dr. Vadrevu continue to grow their research at LSU while creating new opportunities for our students. We can’t wait to see where this work leads.

Please join us in congratulating them both on this exciting NSF funding! 💜💛

🔗 Read more about their research: https://www.lsu.edu/eng/news-stories/2026/08/lsu-cse-professors-receive-nsf-funding-8-26.php

LSU College of Engineering LSU Research

💻 Professor A. Bubu has logged in, found the classroom, and is officially ready for the semester. We hope everyone else is too!

Happy first day of classes, Tigers! 💜💛

Whether you're starting your very first semester at LSU or heading into your final one, we're excited to welcome our students back to campus and kick off another year of learning, creating, researching, coding, and probably debugging something that definitely worked five minutes ago.

We hope you have a great first day and an even better semester. We're glad you're here!

And since Professor A. Bubu wants to know: What's one thing you're looking forward to this semester? Drop it in the comments! 👇

LSU LSU College of Engineering

💜 Celebrating 38 remarkable years at LSU.

After nearly four decades of teaching, research, mentorship, and service, Associate Professor Dr. Jianhua Chen is retiring from the LSU Division of Computer Science & Engineering.

Dr. Chen joined LSU in 1988, and over the past 38 years, she has witnessed extraordinary change in computer science while helping shape generations of students along the way.

Long before artificial intelligence became part of our everyday conversations, Dr. Chen was building an impressive career in AI and machine learning. Her research has spanned machine learning, data mining, knowledge representation, fuzzy logic, scalable learning, cybersecurity, climate and disaster prediction, and applications of AI to engineering and infrastructure. She has served as PI or co-PI on numerous externally funded projects, including major NSF-funded research.

Her impact in the classroom has been just as meaningful. A recipient of both the Tiger Athletic Foundation LSU Undergraduate Teaching Award and the College of Basic Sciences Distinguished Teaching Award, Dr. Chen has taught and mentored generations of LSU students in databases, artificial intelligence, machine learning, advanced AI, and more.

But a 38-year career cannot be measured by publications, grants, courses, or awards alone. Dr. Chen has been a constant source of kindness and support to our students, faculty, staff, and division. Whether advising students, serving on committees, stepping in when help was needed, or simply being a wonderful colleague, she has given so much of herself to LSU and our community.

Her legacy lives in the thousands of students she taught, the researchers she mentored, the colleagues she supported, and the division she helped shape over nearly four decades.

Jianhua, thank you for everything you have given to LSU, Computer Science & Engineering, and especially our students and colleagues. It has been an honor to have you as part of our LSU CSE family.

Please join us in congratulating Dr. Chen on an exceptional career and wishing her a very happy and well-deserved retirement! 💜💛

LSU College of Engineering

🎓 Four publications as a Ph.D. student. Three as lead author. And her latest research is asking a question nearly every app user can relate to: Can AI catch design problems humans miss?

We're proud to spotlight LSU CSE PhD student Shristi Shrestha, whose latest research is exploring how AI could help developers build more usable and accessible apps.

Working with her advisor and co-author, Associate Professor Dr. Nash Mahmoud, Shristi developed FUEL, an AI-powered tool that evaluates app interfaces directly from source code to identify usability and accessibility issues and suggest actionable fixes.

And the results are impressive. In testing, FUEL identified roughly twice as many usability issues per screen as human reviewers. When the AI flagged a problem, professional developers agreed it was a real issue about 82% of the time.

Their paper, "Leveraging GPT-4o to Evaluate the Usability and Accessibility of Flutter App Interfaces," was recently published in ACM Transactions on Software Engineering and Methodology (TOSEM). The publication marks another exciting milestone in Shristi's doctoral journey: her fourth publication as a Ph.D. student and her third as lead author.

We're proud to see Shristi leading research that explores how AI can solve real problems and improve the technology people use every day. This is student research making an impact, and we can't wait to see what's next!

🔗 Read the full LSU feature: https://www.lsu.edu/blog/2026/07/ai-beats-users-on-user-design.php

📄 Read the paper: https://dl.acm.org/doi/epdf/10.1145/3821215

Please join us in congratulating Shristi and Dr. Mahmoud on this exciting research and publication! 👏

LSU LSU College of Engineering LSU Research LSU Graduate School