Tufts University

“In high school, I liked math and was good at math and thought that I was going to be a mathematician: a weird thing to want to be as a teenager, but there it is. But I went to college with some people who were a lot better at math than I was. I started to understand if I worked as hard as I possibly could, maybe I could major in math, but I was never going to be a great mathematician. I was good enough at math to appreciate and enjoy it, but I wasn’t good enough to come up with original math. It’s like the ability to appreciate great classical music while also knowing that you’re never going to perform it at that level.

In theoretical math, the thinking is that we’re going to perfectly prove everything—there will be no exceptions. In some ways, cybersecurity’s the opposite: there’s no way to actually finish this job. Instead, we’re going to perfectly prove how secure this encryption algorithm is, and then we’ll implement it … but then someone’s got to manage the encryption keys, someone else has to install the update … and 1,000 things are going to go wrong.

The question I’ve found most interesting about cybersecurity research is: How do you marry the rigorous technical part with the imperfect human part? How do you characterize accurately what happens in that combination, and do that in a way that’s not all about blaming humans?

Part of my career has been about coming to terms with the fact that I was not going to be, as the great mathematicians are, perfect in that very specific way of ordering my thoughts rigorously, carefully, and beautifully. I still think mathematical proofs are beautiful, but I’ve come to enjoy solving other kinds of problems.

At the same time, I’ve realized that one of the things that I should be doing is thinking about some of these messier pieces of life, where that kind of rigor and that kind of structure is not necessarily as productive or applicable. There’s a lot that’s interesting and valuable in the parts of life that are not as perfectly ordered and as completely provable as Fermat’s last theorem—and there are great problems to be solved.”

—Josephine Wolff, professor of cybersecurity policy, The Fletcher School at Tufts University

is a series of personal stories shared by members of the Tufts community.

[📸: Andy Kwok/Tufts University]

We 💙 when the 'Bos get back together. Thanks for joining us at the Tufts Reunions celebrations!

It’s all coming together!

On Thursday, June 4, a topping off ceremony was held to celebrate the placement of the final beam atop Pachyderm Place—a new 660‑bed residence hall currently under construction at 401–403 Boston Avenue.

[📸: Alonso Nichols/Tufts University]

Tufts veterinarian-scientists have joined Break Through Cancer's Defying Osteosarcoma TeamLab—the largest unified effort to study osteosarcoma—as part of a national effort to speed cures for the disease in both people and pets.

https://brnw.ch/21x36gU

Levees—raised structures that are built parallel to bodies of water to prevent flooding—are an essential tool for mitigating flooding, which is occurring more frequently and intensely all over the globe.

With the support of a National Science Foundation grant, Tufts University School of Engineering professors Farshid Vahedifard and Babak Moaveni will study how to better monitor and model these important structures.

Leveraging Levees with Digital Twins: Tufts Duo Receives NSF Grant | School of Engineering Levees—raised structures that are built parallel to bodies of water to prevent flooding—are an essential tool for mitigating flooding, which is occurring more frequently and intensely all over the globe. By diverting excess water to protect communities, agricultural land, and infrastructure, lev...

Shannon Steines, M26, and Aidan Welsh, A22, M26, are in different branches of the military. After graduating from Tufts University School of Medicine in May, the couple will continue their training together with residencies at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center.

More about their story: https://brnw.ch/21x33Le

Jumbo congratulations to Tufts Provost Caroline Genco!

Caroline Attardo Genco, provost and senior vice president at Tufts University, has been named ’s 16th president, becoming the first woman and Buffalo native to lead the university. Her appointment was approved by the SUNY Board of Trustees Tuesday following an international search.

Genco will join the UB community on August 10, 2026. Learn more ➡️ http://ms.spr.ly/6180vb2V4

Summertime means barbecues, beach days, outdoor camps—and, unfortunately, ticks.

With lone star ticks causing cases of alpha-gal syndrome to rise across the U.S., a Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University expert shares more about what you should know. ⬇️

Alpha-Gal Syndrome: What We Know and Don’t Know Summertime means barbecues, beach days, outdoor camps — and, unfortunately, ticks.Lone star ticks are especially worrisome because their bites can trigger alp

Congratulations to alum Tyler Andrews on setting a new speed record for climbing Mount Everest!

Using supplemented oxygen, Andrews summited the highest mountain on Earth in 9 hours and 55 minutes—breaking a 2003 record by more than an hour—on May 27.

Read more from The Boston Globe: https://brnw.ch/21x30IA