Quicksilver Team Members:  
   
   

Dirk Balfanz
Member of the Research Staff
Secure Document Systems
Computer Science Laboratory

Amongst the many of Dirk's accomplishments, he's implemented a contract-based authorization/billing system for mutually suspicious parties, investigated the trade-off between small trusted computing devices and powerful untrusted PCs, and implemented security and access control for distributed document management systems. Security is his profession and it's an obvious interest.

Of no interest to Dirk is soccer or beer drinking. (Is he really a native of Germany?)
He does enjoy movies, particularly those that are slightly off mainstream, and tries to improve his English by trying to make sense of the category descriptions on the TV program "Win Ben Stein's Money." A newcomer to the San Francisco Bay Area, he's using his free time to explore the area.

Education:
Princeton University
Ph.D., Computer Science, 2000
M.S., Computer Science, 1997

Humboldt University, Germany
Computer Science (minor: Psychology), 1995

Edinburgh University, Scotland
Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence, 1993

 

 
   

Tom Berson
Principal Scientist
Secure Document Systems
Computer Science Laboratory

With over thirty years experience, Tom is an expert in the fields of cryptography and computer security. During that time he was/is a successful Silicon Valley entrepreneur, manager, chair, advisor, director, independent consultant, pioneer, president, secretary-treasurer, general chairman, visiting fellow, co-founder, author, editor, member, business owner, scientific organizer, principal scientist, and information warfare scholar, and has an Erdos number of 2. He is all that, and yet has managed to find time to meet and share some smiles with the Dalai Lama.

For fun, Tom writes short stories (he won a local contest), has studied improvisational theater and is a ham radio operator. If you hear Latin music being played really loud, you might find Tom nearby. It helps his creativity to flow.

Education:
University of London
Ph.D., Computer Science, 1977

State University of New York at Oswego
B.S., Physics, 1967

 

 
   

Teresa Lunt
Principal Scientist
Area Manager, Secure Document Systems
Area Manager, Theory Group
Computer Science Laboratory

Familiar acronyms and companies whose names are all capital letters are part of Teresa's professional life: PARC, DARPA, SRI, SYTEK, and MITRE. As a researcher, she has focused on the development of secure database systems and intrusion-detection systems. At DARPA, she launched a program in information survivability that has led the field to new avenues of research. Today, she manages two research groups at PARC.

When she's not serving on editorial boards, chairing conferences and committees, or authoring papers (which total more than 100), you might find Teresa biking, skiing, jogging, snorkeling or kayaking. Requiring less energy expenditure, she loves reading and attending the theater, operas and concerts. Traveling provides Teresa the opportunity to use her photographic skills. After the photos are taken, she often does the processing, digital manipulating and hand coloring of her work. Many of Teresa's artworks were displayed at PARC's Employee Art Show honoring PARC's 30th Anniversary in 2000.

Education:
Indiana University
M.A., Applied Mathematics, 1979

Princeton University
A.B., 1976

 
   
   

Diana Smetters
Member of the Research Staff
Secure Document Systems
Computer Science Laboratory

Diana's research interests center around putting interesting cryptographic algorithms and protocols into use in real systems. Prior to joining PARC, she was developing embedded software for cryptographic tokens used in high-security Public Key Infrastructure products. Her current research focuses on security for networks of wireless devices, and the usability of security. She has a strong interest in embedded systems, smart cards, and other forms of cryptographic hardware, privacy technology, and systems and network security. Current side projects include new algorithms for and applications of elliptic curve cryptography.

Diana's doctoral and postdoctoral work was in theoretical and experimental neuroscience, in particular in study of the computational algorithms used by cortical neurons involved in sensory processing. Her theoretical work involved biologically accurate simulations of detailed models of single neurons. Her experimental work focused on studying the electrical and signalling properties of single neurons and neural circuits. She has a continuing interest in the interface between biology and computing.

Education:
Columbia University
Postdoctoral Fellow, 1997

Salk Institute
Postdoctoral Fellow, 1996

Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Ph.D., Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, 1995
Ohio State University

B.A., Summa Cum Laude with honors in Liberal Arts, 1988
Cognitive Science independent major

 

 
   

Jessica Staddon
Member of the Research Staff
Secure Document Systems
Computer Science Laboratory

Jessica is known for her work on protocols and algorithms for ensuring privacy and integrity for the distribution of digital content, in particular, broadcast encryption. Her career history includes work at RSA Labs, where she contributed to the PKCS and ANSI families of cryptographic standards, and Bell Labs, where she focused largely on research.

For fun, Jessica enjoys spending time with her pets--a friendly rottweiler and an ornery tabby cat. With expert help from others (see team member Diana Smetters' bio), she is exploring techniques (anger management, brain surgery...) for improving the disposition of the cat.

Education:
University of California at Berkeley
Ph.D., Mathematics, 1997
B.A., Applied Mathematics,1990

 

 
   

Paul Stewart
Member of the Research Staff
Secure Document Systems
Computer Science Laboratory

Paul spent his early years amidst the beauty and tropical climate of Jamaica, West Indies. At age 14, he moved to New York. To fill the great void, he became immersed in the world of computers and hasn’t been able to escape. In recent years, after realizing that some places in the U.S. do have warm weather, he moved to California. Besides computers, Paul's passionate about volleyball, bicycling, off-road motorcycling and digital photography. He can also cut quite a rug and has been known to exhaust his dance partners.

Education:
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
M.S., Computer Systems Engineering, 2001
B.S., Computer Systems Engineering, 1995

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