Yael Tauman Kalai facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Yael Tauman Kalai
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| Born | |
| Alma mater | Massachusetts Institute of Technology |
| Known for | Ring Signatures, the insecurity of the Fiat–Shamir heuristic, delegating computation |
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| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Cryptography, Computer Science |
| Institutions | Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Microsoft Research |
| Doctoral advisor | Shafi Goldwasser |
| Doctoral students | Elette Boyle |
Yael Tauman Kalai is a brilliant computer scientist. She is an expert in cryptography, which is about keeping information secret and secure. She also works in theoretical computer science, which explores the basic ideas behind computers.
She is a professor at MIT. Before that, she was a top researcher at Microsoft Research.
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Her Journey in Computer Science
Yael Tauman Kalai started her studies at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. She graduated from there in 1997.
She then earned her master's degree in 2001. She worked with a famous scientist named Adi Shamir at the Weizmann Institute of Science.
After that, she moved to the MIT. She completed her PhD in 2006. Her main teacher and guide for her PhD was Shafi Goldwasser.
After finishing her PhD, she did more research at Microsoft Research. She also worked at the Weizmann Institute again. Later, she became a professor at the Georgia Institute of Technology. In 2008, she joined Microsoft Research full-time.
Key Discoveries and Work
Yael Kalai is known for several important breakthroughs in computer science. Her work helps make our digital world safer and more efficient.
Ring Signatures
She helped create something called "ring signatures." Imagine you want to send a secret message. A ring signature lets you prove that someone from a specific group sent the message. But it does not show exactly who it was. This technology is now used in digital money systems like Cryptonote and Monero.
Making Computations Trustworthy
Yael Kalai also worked on "delegating computation." This means you can send a complex math problem to a powerful computer in the "cloud." The cloud computer solves it and sends the answer back. Her work helps make sure the answer you get back is correct and trustworthy. This is very important for cloud computing, where many people use shared computer power.
Improving Security Methods
With her advisor Shafi Goldwasser, she found a weakness in a common security method. This method is called the Fiat–Shamir heuristic. Their discovery helped make other security systems even stronger.
Awards and Recognition
Yael Kalai has received many honors for her important work.
Speaking at Major Conferences
In 2018, she was invited to speak at the International Congress of Mathematicians. This is a very big event for mathematicians from all over the world. She talked about how math is used in computer science.
Awards for Her Research
Her master's thesis, which introduced ring signatures, won an award. Her PhD paper at MIT also won a special award. It was called the George M. Sprowls Award.
Leading in Her Field
She helped lead the Theory of Cryptography Conference in 2017. This is a major meeting for experts in cryptography.
In 2022, she received the ACM Prize in Computing. This is a very important award in computer science. She won it for her amazing work on making computations trustworthy. She also won for her other important contributions to cryptography.
About Her Family
Yael Kalai's father is Yair Tauman. He is also a well-known expert in game theory. Her husband, Adam Tauman Kalai, also works in computer science research.
