Learning eXchanges
Times: 1:30 & 2:30 - Congdon Hall
We are currently finalizing this years learning eXchanges. Here is what we had last year:
Sessions - 1:30
Adversarial AI - Lying Chatbots, Deep Fakes and More…
Presenter: Jeff Crume, PhD, CISSP
Distinguished Engineer, CTO IBM Security – Americas
This presentation will explore the potential dangers of adversarial AI, lying chatbots, and deep fakes. We will discuss how these
technologies are becoming more sophisticated and how they can be used to deceive people, spread disinformation, and even cause harm.
Through real-world examples and demonstrations, we will explore the implications of these technologies for society in order to gain
a better understanding of these emerging technologies and the risks they pose.
(Note: This description was written by ChatGPT.)
Jeff Crume is a Distinguished Engineer, Master Inventor and CTO for IBM Security Americas with more than 40 years’ experience in the
IT industry. He has a PhD in Cybersecurity and serves as an Adjunct Professor at NC State University. Jeff is the author of a book entitled
"Inside Internet Security: What Hackers Don't Want You To Know” as well as a contributing author to the "Information Security Management Handbook.”
He is a member of the inaugural class of the NC State University Computer Science Alumni Hall of Fame where he has served on the school’s Strategic
Advisory Board. He also serves on the editorial board for the “Information and Computer Security” research journal. He holds CISSP and ISSAP professional
IT Security certifications as well as Distinguished Chief IT Architect credentials from The Open Group. Jeff lived in Beijing on assignment in 2006 and
has worked with clients in 50 countries.
Big Rock Sports Cybersecurity Framework
Presenter: Shannon Adams
Vice President of Information Technology
Shannon will cover their cybersecurity lifecycle as defined by the National Insitute of Standards and Technology (NIST).
The five areas will be Identify, Protect, Detect, Respond, and Recover. There will be examples of what tools we use and do
for each of those areas. Tim Nguyen, Big Rock’s web developer, will dive into website security and show examples of mistakes
that can open up significant vulnerabilities.
Shannon Adams's IT career started in the early 90s. He has an AAS in Computer Engineering and a BS in Information Technology
from Appalachian State University. He has over 30 years of experience in all aspects of IT – including I&O, software development,
e-commerce, business development and growth, project management, and continuous improvement. He joined Big Rock Sports in 1994.
Big Rock Sports is North America's largest wholesale distributor of sporting goods. Shannon serves on various boards and committees
across North Carolina – including technology advisory boards at App State, UNCW, and Carteret Community College. He is a lifetime
resident of Morehead City, NC.
Esports and Gaming: How technologies developed for gamers are changing the way we work, live, and communicate.
Presenter: Dr. Ray Pastore
Professor and Program Coordinator of Esports
In this presentation Dr. Pastore and students from UNCW Esports will showcase technologies that they are using to support esports and
gaming. They will show various tech they are using and discuss how and why these technologies are being adopted in mainstream society.
Dr. Ray Pastore is a Full Professor and Program Coordinator of Esports and Online Teaching and Learning within the Instructional Technology
program at the University of North Carolina Wilmington. He is an active Youtuber with over 5 million views and 10,500 subscribers, an author,
and has 30 peer reviewed journal publications. With a background in management consulting, game design, game-based learning, and instructional
design he has worked on projects for fortune 100 companies, the military, as well as a myriad of schools and universities. In addition to serving
as coordinator of UNCW’s Esports program, Dr. Pastore is faculty advisor for UNCW’s Seahawk Esports Club. He holds a Ph.D. in Instructional Systems
from Penn State University.
Sessions - 2:30
Creating & Delivering Value: Unlocking your software development team's potential by gaining strategic alignment to create and deliver value.
Presenter: Adam McCombs
Chief Product Officer, Vantaca
According to Clayton Christensen, a former professor at Harvard Business School, nearly 30,000 new products are introduced each year,
and 95% of them fail. So why is it becoming increasingly difficult for software development organizations to identify the features that
bring value and avoid making mistakes that could lead to unsuccessful outcomes? This discussion will explore and examine different frameworks,
tools, and approaches that may help reduce common failures and increase the likelihood of success.
A founder and executive with over 15 years of experience building and leading cross-functional product, design, and engineering teams to plan,
build, and manage innovative SaaS platforms. After working at Cisco Systems, Inc. as a senior product manager, Adam founded a start-up called
JumpForward in 2008. In 2016, JumpForward was successfully acquired by Vista Equity, LLC. He currently works at Vantaca as the Chief Product
Officer (CPO). Adam has an undergraduate degree from the University of Minnesota – Carlson School of Management in Accounting and Management
Information Systems (MIS) and an MBA from the University of Notre Dame – Mendoza School of Business.
Quantum Computing: What is it and how will it affect me?
Presenter: Dr. Clayton Ferner
Professor in the Department of Computer Science at the UNC at Wilmington
In this presentation, we will demonstrate what Quantum superposition is in an intuitive non-mathematical manner.
We will attempt to convey why it is Quantum Computer can solve bigger problems in a way that classical computers cannot.
We will explain how Quantum computers, when one big enough is built, will break the Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) as well
as provide an alternative to PKI. And finally, we will discuss what Quantum computing can do for businesses.
Dr. Clayton Ferner is a Professor in the Department of Computer Science at the University of North Carolina Wilmington.
He received his Ph.D in Computer Science from the University of Denver in 1997. His areas of interest include Quantum computing,
Quantum algorithms, Quantum computing education, and parallel and distributed computing.
CentralSquare Technologies: Directions in QA & DevOps.
Presenter: Louise Lane
Sr. QA Manager
In this learning session, we will explore the concepts of QA, software testing, and DevOps. Quality Assurance (QA) refers to the process of ensuring
that a product or service meets specified requirements and standards. Software testing is the process of verifying and validating software applications
to ensure they meet quality standards. DevOps is a set of practices that combines software development (Dev) and IT operations (Ops) to enhance the speed
and reliability of software delivery. CentralSquare's Records Enterprise QA Journey will be the focus of this session. We will start by discussing where we were,
the challenges we faced, and the solutions we implemented to overcome them. Next, we will discuss the progress we have made, and the lessons learned along the way.
Finally, we will discuss our vision for the future and the steps we are taking to achieve our goals. To conclude, we will discuss some of the latest tools and technologies
that can be used to enhance testing processes. We will also share some testing tips and resources that participants can use to improve their own QA and software testing
practices.
Louise Rippy Lane is an experienced Quality Engineering Leader with a passion for quality and automation. Louise has a BS in
Business Administration from the University of North Carolina Wilmington. Concentrating in Operations Management, she held
internships in manufacturing QA with Victaulic and GE Hitachi Nuclear which fostered her passion for quality. She took a chance
on a Software QA job in 2014 and has never looked back. Louise started with CentralSquare in 2016 and has held various management roles,
leading teams of engineers, developers, and testers responsible for delivering quality software. She has demonstrated success in establishing
quality practices, increasing test case coverage, and strategically targeting areas for improvement. In addition to her work, Louise is an active
member of the UNCW’s Information Systems Advisory Board and has been involved with the Wilmington, NC Out of the Darkness Community walk for the
American Foundation for Suicide Prevention since July 2012.