Mirela Damian

Professor of Computer Science

Villanova University

Biography

I was born and raised in Romania. I got my Bachelor's degree in Electrical and Computer Engineering from the Polytechnic University of Bucharest, and my Master's and PhD degrees in Computer Science from University of Iowa. My former PhD advisor and mentor Sriram Pemmaraju was most influential in defining my career.

I work as a professor in the Department of Computing Sciences at Villanova University. My main research areas are graph theory and computational geometry, with focus on approximation algorithms, combinatorial optimization, wireless and sensor networks and geometric spanners. My Erdös number is 3, owing it to my collaboration with Erik Demaine, Diane Souvaine and Joseph O'Rourke.

I enjoy various outdoor activities, but mostly hiking, skiing, rollerblading and kayaking.