Varghese was one of two computer scientists to receive awards this year. The Young Investigator Program supports research by exceptional scholars who have held doctoral degrees for less than five years. The funds can be applied to salaries, graduate student stipends and laboratory supplies. Additional funds may be allocated to purchase equipment. Varghese will be designing and implementing fault-tolerant protocols for computer networks.
Protocols are the rules that underlie orderly communication.
Fault-tolerant protocols are necessary because faults, like node and link failures, can otherwise cripple the Internet and other communication infrastructures. Varghese was cited for two new approaches to the problem. The first approach is the design of self-correcting protocols that recover without manual intervention. The insight from the fault-span characterization then is used to design robust protocols. Applications include high-speed communications for the U.S. Navy and for industry systems.