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General Information

Name Viraj Thakkar
Languages Hindi (native), English (fluent), and Gujarati (advanced speaker)
Pursuing Ph.D. in Computer Science
Current Degree M.S. in Computer Science

Research Interests

  • LSM-KVS, RocksDB, Optimization and Tuning, Security, (maybe) Quantum Computing.

Education

  • 2023-
    Arizona State University - Ph.D. in Computer Science
    • Currently pursuing a Doctor of Philosophy degree in Computer Science.
  • 2021-2023
    Arizona State University – M.S. in Computer Science
    • Currently pursuing a Master of Science degree in Computer Science.
    • GPA: 3.71 (4.0 scale).
    • Courses: Data Prpcessing at Scale, Machine Learning, Artificial Intelligence, Data Mining, and Software Engineering.
  • 2017-2021
    K. J. Somaiya College of Engineering – B. Tech in Information Technology (Mumbai University).
    • CGPA: 8.56 (10.0 scale).
    • Head of Matlab & IP (2018-2019) of Team KJSCE Robocon where the Team was placed 5th nationally
    • Vice Captain & Treasurer (2019-2020) of Team KJSCE Robocon where the Team was placed 8th nationally

Work Experience

  • 2020
    Analyst Intern at Cyber Peace Foundation
    • Dark Web and Social Media Investigation.
    • Automation of investigation and analysis process by development of a crawler. Modules to analyze text, and media content were developed and used successfully.
  • 2020
    Developer for K. J. Somaiya & KEM Hospital
    • Developed and deployed an application for KEM Hospital, Mumbai to monitor patients during the COVID-19 pandemic. The project focuses on data cleaning, data analysis on the dashboard, and patient management aspects

Technical Projects

  • 2018
    Ingredient Recommendation Engine
    • ML based engine that recommends ingredients to existing reciepies, adding a new layer of flavour.
    • Consolation winner at Prakalp 2018
  • 2019
    TorChat
    • Privacy centered chatting application that utilises the Tor Network to send and recieve messages and data.
  • 2019
    Landscape Analysis of OCSE and OCSA
    • Worked on the trends and different forms of Online Child Sexual Abuse and Exploitation (OCSA & OCSE) as the penetration of online technology has amplified.
    • Project funded by a grant of USD 91,666.80 from Children's Investment Fund Foundation (CIFF) in the UK.
  • 2020
    CoView
    • An application to assist in hospital & patient data summarisation and visualtisaion during COVID-19 pandemic.
    • Created a custom algorithm suited to the hospital for data cleaning and normalization.
    • Deployed and Maintained application for KEM Hospital, Mumbai.
  • 2020
    COVID-19 online scam detection
    • Designed architecture to discover malicious URLs, android applications & UPI IDs.
    • Portions of data was published by Cyberpeace Foundation
  • 2021
    COMRADE
    • Creation of an ML-based tool which employees resource crowdfunding for and amongst hospitals.
    • The project extends as a patient & inventory management software.

Open Source Projects

  • 2018
    Robot mechanisms physical simulation
  • 2021-now
    Memories

Achievements

  • University Committees
    • 2018-19: Head of Matlab & IP for Team KJSCE Robocon.
    • 2019-20: Treasurer for Team KJSCE Robocon.
    • 2019-20: Vice Captian for Team KJSCE Robocon.
  • Major Events
    • 2019: Research for NCPCR (National Commission for Protection of Child Rights).
    • 2019: Project presenter at 2nd Technology Marketplace by CIFF.
    • 2019: Attendee at International conference on cyberlaw, cybercrime & cybersecurity 2019 (ICCC 2019)
  • Technical Activities
    • 2020: Organized and taught at workshop for 100+ College Students
    • 2020–21: Internship organizer and mentor for 200+ college students
    • 2020–21: Quantum Computing course by IBM Quantum & The Coding School

Software Development Skills

  • GitHub: https://github.com/veedata
  • Stack Overflow: https://stackoverflow.com/users/11215536/veedata (top 5% contributer in 2021).
  • Frameworks: Tensorflow, SciPy, Pandas.
  • High Level Programming Languages: Python, MATLAB, Simulink, Java, C, JavaScript, C++
  • Tools & Technologies: Git, OpenCV, Django, Pandas, Simscape Multibody, Docker, Arduino, Basics of Azure/GCP/AWS
  • Programming Environments (IDEs): Visual Studio, MATLAB, Eclipse
  • Database Systems: PostgreSQL, MySQL

Other Interests

  • Sports & Games: Tennis, Basketball, Chess, and Snake
  • Hobbies: Writing, Travelling, Philosophy, and Movies