José Joaquin Garcia-Luna-Aceves

José Joaquin "J.J." Garcia-Luna-Aceves is a professor of Computer Engineering at the University of California, Santa Cruz. In addition to his teaching responsibilities at UC Santa Cruz, J.J. directs the Computer Communication Research Group (CCRG), a faculty-student team that focuses on new algorithms, protocols, and architectures for wireless networks and internetworks. He received his B.S. in Electrical Engineering at the University of Hawaii, Manoa.

What made you decide to specialize in networking?

M.S. Luis Gutierrez Aja, one of the instructors at Universidad Iberoamericana taught a new course that covered computer networks. I took the course and as a result I decided to do my B.S. thesis on the ALOHA system. At the time, I did not understand the technology very well, but thought it was a brand new and exciting area of research related to computers. 

What is a typical day like for you? 

A typical day involves several meetings with graduate students regarding their research work. I try to telecommute twice a week, and I do UC research or consulting from home or my industry host. I carry out research with my graduate students in between committee meetings, phone calls, and e-mails. I usually teach around 4 P.M. Last quarter I spent the majority of my time at UCSC redoing my presentations for the undergraduate course on computer networks.

What is the most challenging part of your job? 

Making sure the graduate students I mentor become the experts in the research topics in which they are working. It is tricky teaching the student how to become the teacher. Some have little self-confidence at the beginning, and it is important to find the right topics for the student.

Another aspect I find challenging is keeping the course material I teach interesting for me. Many times the material becomes interesting because the group of students taking my course is very different from the previous year.

In what direction do you see the future of networking/the Internet? 

I guess the Internet will be pervasive and we'll learn to think of it as just the way we communicate and the road all computers use to communicate and to help people interact. In the future, it will be more that "the network is the computer and the computer is the network."

What people have inspired you professionally? 

Frank Kuo, my Ph.D. thesis advisor. He led the ALOHA system at the University of Hawaii, and that is the reason why I went to UH. He was a great mentor, helping me grow as a researcher, and giving me his support when I needed it most. I would not have finished the Ph.D. program without Frank being there. 

Do you have any advice for students entering the networking/ Internet field? 

No, graduate students have made the key decisions by the time they pick networking, and for undergrads, the Internet will be everywhere. I cannot imagine an engineering undergraduate curricula without Internet-related courses in the future.

In what ways do you learn from your students in CCRG? 

Different ways to think about problems. Asking questions I would not think of asking. Finding connections between themes that do not appear to be related. Finding new problems while implementing new or old ideas and, of course, finding the cheapest airfare or computers on the net.

What is the most rewarding aspect of working with CCRG? 

Graduating Ph.D.s. I love helping these young minds flourish in just a few years, and I love helping extremely smart young people gain the confidence they need to believe in themselves and know they can invent and produce great new things. I also hope that, in the future, they think of me the way I think of Frank Kuo.