Yasra Chandio

PhD Student @ UMass Amherst
Email: ychandio@umass.edu

I am Yasra, a Ph.D. student at the University of Massachusetts Amherst working with Prof. Fatima M. Anwar in the area of networked embedded systems. I also actively collaborate with Prof. Victoria Interrante (University of Minnesota), Prof. Luis Garcia (University of Utah), and Joseph DeGol (Microsoft).

I seek to understand the fundamental problems in Mixed Reality (MR) platforms and devices that can potentially cause physical or cognitive discomfort for a user. My interests are twofold: (1) I am keen on exploring stealthy attack surfaces that malicious entities can exploit for physical harm, alongside addressing internal SLAM/visual tracking vulnerabilities through a domain-specific approach; (2) I aim to enhance cognitive safety by more accurately quantifying 'presence' in MR, suggesting that user interaction metrics, such as reaction times, can serve as a reliable indicator of presence and its impact on cognitive safety.

Before starting my Ph.D., I received an MS in Computer Science from Binghamton University (State University of New York). During my time at Binghamton University, I worked with Prof. Guanhua Yan in the area of LTE and 5G security and collaborated with Prof. Aditya Mishra , in the smart grids domain. Before relocating to the USA, I was at LUMS working on designing IoT systems for energy-efficient built environments with Prof. Hamad Alizai.

I am also a proud Computing Research Association Education (CRA-E) graduate fellow. I will serve on the committee for the next two years (2022-2024) to promote Computing Research in North America. I contribute as a co-editor to CRA Undergraduate Research Highlights.

Apart from my family and work, I love cooking, beaches, and crime shows. I taught myself bread baking in the pre-COVID era (way before it was "cool"). In my free time, I love to read books. Currently, I am reading Think Again by Adam Grant .

Recent News

Adapted from a template by Matei Zaharia. Photo by Noman Bashir.