Why did you choose to study computer science?
I was fascinated with Turing's concept of (un)computability.
Who or what had a strong effect on your interest or trajectory in computer science?
My PhD advisor, Andrzej Ehrenfeucht
What life lessons did you learn during your time at CU?
Never be afraid to ask and try to answer the big questions.
Tell us about your career path.
I developed broad interests in CS theory, machine learning and bioinformatics at CU Boulder. I became a professor at the University of Denver and then at the University of California, Santa Cruz, where I still am. I continued to explore all three of these areas.
What moments in your career have been most exciting or defining?
We posted the first draft of the human genome on the Internet on July 7, 2000. We assembled it from data generated by the Human Genome Sequencing Consortium, our collaborators.
What is your current professional role? What is your favorite part of that role?
I direct the UC Santa Cruz Genomics Institute. It is wonderful to be able to build something that is a force for good in the world.
What advice would you give to current/future computer science students?
Pay attention to quantum information theory and quantum computing.