- The internet is one of the most influential inventions.
- However, we cannot do it alone.
- Hammers (techniques) and Nails (problems).
- Project 1: Protocols as Distributed Optimizers
- Traditional traffic management has architectural limitations -- slow adaption
- TCP
- Forward engineering of traffic management
- Decompose to generate a distributed solution
- Lesson:
- Start with a well-stated problem, then decompose into a distributed solution
- Research as decomposition
- People and timing
- Project 2: Composition of Network Policies
- Simple, open data-plane API -- openflow
- Moduler controller applications -- each module partially specifies the handling of the traffic
- Abstract openflow -- policy as a function
- Lesson:
- Abstraction and decomposition;
- Embedded people (and code)
- Project3: Traffic monitoring in the data plane
- Traffic analysis in the data plane
- Streaming algorithms
- A great opportunity
- Example: heavy-hitter detection
- Approximating and approximation
- Lesson:
- Getting concrete
- Computational model
- Example problem
- Strawman solution
- Iteratively designing
- Striving for general understanding
Should we all do interdisciplinary research?
- Interdisciplinary fun
- Bigger impact & social fun
- Managing risks
- One vs many hammers
- Steep learning curve
- Learn both the hammer and the nail
- Learning the culture of both research fields
- Join an emerging community
- Credit for the work
- Healthy interdisciplinary collaborations
Q: We have various network devices, what is the network constrained by now? What is the next problem in the network?
A: There are still a lot of things to understand. For example, which things should be where.
