As the U.S. energy infrastructure becomes the target of more and more cyberattacks, it is clear that we must find a solution. A hack into the power grid could mean widespread shutdowns of the power system, causing turmoil in our hospital systems, police departments, banks, gas stations, and military bases. While taking down the grid would require complex attacks, less elaborate cybersecurity threats are becoming more frequent, and hackers are becoming more skilled. The question is: how can we protect our power grid? Verónica Díaz Pacheco, an Operations Research (OR) graduate student, has been selected as a fellow for the New Frontiers Graduate Initiative for her research on answering that exact question.
Díaz Pacheco’s research uses an optimization model to make large-scale power systems more resilient. “I’m hoping we will gain insight to help design power systems that are robust against cyberattacks and similar disruptions.” Díaz Pacheco elaborated. Her research is not only impressive, but it is also thorough and relevant. “Verónica’s proposed work is interdisciplinary and uses a variety of large data sources. She also had a well thought out research proposal,” Maria Mayorga, interim director of the OR Graduate Program, remarked. “The problem she is looking at has high impact potential, as it relates to protecting the national power grid from targeted attacks, an issue of national security.”
Strengthening national security is one of the main goals of the New Frontiers Graduate Initiative, a program based out of the University of Illinois. This program, sponsored by the National Science Foundation (NSF), works with many federal agencies on research, development and educational projects to provide full-time research support to graduate students involved in national security-related research. “NSF Awards are quite competitive and prestigious. Awards like this speak to the quality of OR students,” shared Mayorga. “Applicants from all disciplines are eligible to apply, meaning that Verónica did not only compete with other OR students but students from any computational discipline!” The program utilizes strengths in computation, data science, cyber protection and more to solve these security issues.
As part of the New Frontiers Graduate Initiative, each selected fellow is provided with a stipend, tuition allowance and an allocation of time using the Delta computing system, managed by the National Center for Supercomputing Applications. The Delta computing system enables researchers to complete advanced computations and access more data resources to further their work more efficiently. With the resources provided by the New Frontiers Initiative, Díaz Pacheco will continue her research alongside Jordan Kern, one of ISE’s newest faculty members. Kern’s research, similar to Díaz Pacheco’s, focuses on protecting the power grid from the long-term impacts of climate change.
When asked to advise students interested in pursuing research, Díaz Pacheco said, “Persevere when facing deterrents and be bold with pursuing and taking on new opportunities – in the end, anything that doesn’t work out can become a learning experience.” This same perseverance and boldness are precisely how she has received this incredible honor and made groundbreaking strides in her research. To Díaz Pacheco, this honor is momentous. “It means I have people supporting me, and I feel grateful for that and this amazing opportunity to pursue meaningful research,” she reflected. Her research is not only meaningful but crucial for the protection of America’s energy infrastructure.