Lixia Zhang facts for kids

Lixia Zhang (张丽霞) is a very important computer scientist. She is a professor at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). She is an expert in computer networks, which are like the roads and highways that connect computers and the internet. She helped create the Internet Engineering Task Force, designed a key internet tool called the Resource Reservation Protocol, and even came up with the word "middlebox". She also led the creation of something new called named data networking.

About Lixia Zhang

Lixia Zhang grew up in northern China. When schools were closed during a time called the Cultural Revolution, she worked as a tractor driver on a farm.

She studied electrical engineering and earned her master's degree in 1981 from California State University, Los Angeles. Later, she completed her doctorate degree in 1989 at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Her advisor was David D. Clark.

After working as a researcher at Xerox PARC, she joined UCLA in 1996. She lives in Sherman Oaks with her husband, Jim Ma, and their two sons.

Her Work in Computer Networks

Lixia Zhang has made many important contributions to how the internet works.

Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF)

In 1986, Lixia Zhang was one of only 21 people at the first meeting of the Internet Engineering Task Force. She was the only woman and the only student there. The IETF is a group that helps make sure the internet works well and keeps improving. Her first work with the IETF was about routing, which is how data finds its way across the internet.

Resource Reservation Protocol (RSVP)

Lixia Zhang designed a special tool called the Resource Reservation Protocol. This protocol helps make sure that certain parts of a network can handle specific types of information, like video calls, smoothly.

In 1993, she co-wrote a paper about RSVP. This paper was so important that it was chosen in 2002 as one of the top ten articles to be reprinted in a special magazine issue celebrating 50 years of communications technology.

What is a Middlebox?

In 1999, Lixia Zhang created the term "middlebox". This word describes a device on a computer network that does more than just send information from one place to another. Think of it like a special helper device.

Some examples of middleboxes include firewalls, which protect your computer from bad things on the internet, and network address translators, which help many devices share one internet connection. The term "middlebox" is now used widely in the computer industry.

Named Data Networking

Since 2010, Lixia Zhang has been leading a big research project called named data networking. This project is working on a new way for the internet to send information. Instead of asking for a specific computer's address, you would ask for the name of the data you want. This could make the internet faster and more secure.

Awards and Recognitions

Lixia Zhang has received many awards for her important work:

• In 2006, she became a Fellow of both the Association for Computing Machinery and the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers. Being a "Fellow" means you are recognized as a top expert in your field.
• In 2009, she won the IEEE Internet Award for her contributions to the internet.
• In 2012, she was given the special title of "Postel Professorship" at UCLA.
• In 2014, Lixia Zhang was featured in a special deck of playing cards called "Notable Women in Computing." Her picture was on the four of diamonds!
• In 2020, she won the SIGCOMM Lifetime Achievement Award, which is a very high honor for someone who has made a huge difference in computer communication.
• In 2021, she was added to the Internet Hall of Fame, which celebrates people who have made the internet what it is today.